Peach State Games: Top Catching Prospects

August 27, 2018
Blake Davis
State Director, Georgia

Taking a look back at our talented catching group from the Peach State Games. Catching will forever be one of the more coveted positions on the baseball field, and this group has a chance to mature into quality players at the next level both behind the plate and in the batters box.

Top Catching Prospects:

Marshall Toole C / OF / Decatur, GA / 2021

Toole has a young athletic frame at 5-foot-10 165-pounds. He has good life in his body and is only going to get stronger. He is a good enough athlete too play catcher and outfield effectively right now. At the plate Toole has a good set-up from the left side and uses an efficient direct path to deliver the barrel to the zone. His high hand set-up into a good launch position allows him to be direct with leverage and some pull pop. Toole also had quality at-bats, and got off some good swings against live pitching. Behind the plate Toole is a quiet receiver of the baseball and shows the good toughness behind the plate. As he gets older he will learn to anticipate with his feet and will add to his suddenness. I would like to see Toole improve his overall flexibility behind the plate, but see this being very attainable considering the type of athletic ability he posses. Overall Toole is an athletic hard nosed type player behind the plate and projects well as a left handed hitting catcher in the future.

McDonald McCommons C / RHP / Lake Oconee Academy, GA / 2022

"Mac" McCommons is a good looking young baseball player with an excellent frame and life to his body. At the plate he is upright in his approach and creates leverage with his swing. He hits out of a wide base and at times wants to get forward to soon, having to slow his bat down to keep it in the zone. As he learns to stay behind the baseball, "Mac" is going to have the ability to drive the ball to all fields. His path is good and looks as though he will be able to do some damage in the future. As he gets stronger look for McCommons to more power to all parts of his game. Defensively he moves very well behind the plate and shows the ability to move laterally with ease. He is light on his feet and recovers very well on blocked balls. His flexibility is a huge plus for him as he moves forward. You are still having to project strength to his game, but McCommons has the actions that should translate well in the future. Exciting future for this live bodied young backstop.

Cooper Doughman C / 1B / Troup County, GA / 2019

Doughman is a big kid at 6-foot-2 220-pounds. At the plate he stands tall and uses his frame for leverage, as he had one of the top exit velocities at the event registering a 90. When he lets the ball travel Doughman has the ability to sting the baseball. He has feel for the bat-head and will flash you some all fields approach, but he seems much happier working pull side at this point. He is balanced and shows hitters rhythm with his hands in the box. Behind the plate Doughman has very good leadership qualities and will take charge. He receives the ball well and has plenty of arm strength. As he gets into the higher levels he will need to improve his footwork and overall range behind the plate. He profiles well as a solid catcher with some power potential at the next level.

Ben McDaniel C / RHP / Upson-Lee , GA / 2020

The 2020 medium build prospect from Upson-Lee high school, is a good all around baseball player. He receives the ball well and shows a balanced set-up, making him an easy guy to deliver the ball too. He shows good agility behind the plate and is quick to his feet when recovering the baseball. McDaniel showed a consistent pop time sitting between a respectable 2.13 to 2.16. His velocity was also consistent at 74 mph. As a hitter McDaniel starts from a good balanced straight away stance with his hands at his shoulder. Showing the ability to get on plane with the baseball and has good rhythm. At times he will get to his front side too much and bat drags, but when he stays compact and his foot gets down on time, the ball jumps off his bat. He had a 87 mph exit velocity at the games. His swing is predicated on leverage, so strength and how much he adds will be important to his overall profile as a catcher.

Cade Combs C / OF / Grovetown, GA / 2020

Combs is a good looking catching prospect at 5-foot-10 175-pounds. He shows solid receiving skills and the ability to move and recover from behind the plate. He was limited in live game action because of a hand injury, but showed well behind the plate during the showcase portion. Looking forward to seeing more live game situations in the future. His actions and flexibility behind the plate look promising. I would like to see Combs shorten his arm action on his transfers to help him deliver the ball quicker to second-base. Offensively Combs has an athletic set-up from the right-side and uses and good high finish after contact. At times Combs will get his foot down too early and bat will drag, but when on time Combs showed good bat-speed and the ability to make hard contact consistently. He showed an strong 86 mph exit velocity during the event. Combs showed well at the event even though he was not at full strength and will be one to keep an eye on over the next couple years.

Noah Sweatman RHP / C / Homeschool, GA / 2020

The 5-foot-10 180-pound 2020 two way player has feel for the game. At the plate he hits out of a very wide base, with hands slightly above his head. His back can drag on balls up because he loses leverage because he is so spread out. On balls down however he shows the ability to drop the bat head and get to solid gap type power. Like the rhythm in his hands, would just like to see him be more athletic in his lower half set-up. Sweatman needs to continue to work on his strength, because it will be a large part of his appeal at the next level. Behind the plate he catches the ball well, but his base is too wide and hurts his quickness behind the plate. Staying more compact will give him more sudden and quicker movements. Sweatman has strong durable catchers build and projects as durable back-stop at the next level.