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Preseason All-State: Preview

February 6, 2019
By Andy Sroka
Staff Writer

On Sunday, Feb. 10, PBR Illinois is headed back to The MAX to host one of its biggest showcases of the year: Preseason All-State. This invite-only showcase brings together the state’s best talent in its 2020 class.

Well over 100 of Illinois’ best juniors will meet in McCook, Ill., on Sunday, many of whom remain uncommitted. For a look at this year’s roster, click here. For more information on the showcase’s format and structure, click here.

Perennially, this single event highlights some of the best talent in the state. Last year’s event featured OF Jason Hodges (Marist, 2019; Arkansas commit) and C Matt McCormick (St. Laurence, 2019; West Virginia), two prospects who wound up representing Illinois at this past weekend’s Super 60 pro showcase.

This year, the No. 3-ranked prospect in the state’s 2020 class, RHP Jack Mahoney (Saint Viator; South Carolina), will be joining us. It’ll be the first time we’ve seen Mahoney at a PBR event since he attended the 2017 PBR Future Games. He’s an athletic righty with a clean arm who has touched 90 mph in front of our staff in the past, as recently as May of last season.

The No. 10-ranked junior will be there, too: 1B Drake Westcott (Edwardsville; Louisville). We’ve seen the left-handed slugger a handful of times in live game action, including at last spring’s Metro East Kickoff Classic, but not yet at a PBR event. It’ll be exciting to see how the strong lefty is progressing.

Three members of Team Illinois’ 2018 PBR Future Games roster will be there on Sunday as well: No. 10-ranked INF Anthony Livermore (Mount Carmel; Northwestern), No. 11-ranked RHP Jake Kuntzendorf (Aurora Christian; Purdue), and No. 13-ranked INF Tre Hondras (Homewood-Flossmoor; Michigan).

The top-three uncommitted prospects on Illinois’ 2020 board are back-to-back-to-back on the rankings. The highest-ranked among them is RHP Eben Heine (Plainfield North), who also repped Team Illinois in Westfield, Ind., last summer. He’s another athletic righty who has some feel of a three-pitch mix, with a clean and quick arm.

Eben Heine (8.12.18)

Following Heine on the rankings is 3B/1B Joshua Houston (Mount Carmel). Houston is up there as one of the top right-handed hitters in Illinois, with a combination of bat strength and barrel awareness. We're only just scratching the surface on the amount of talent joining us in McCook, and there's bound to be some breakout candidates to speak of, too.

Follow along with us on Twitter at @PBRIllinois as we live tweet during the event. Next week, we'll share rapid analysis on the showcase as well as a statistical analysis of the day's top performers.

ITINERARY

  • Check-in for Pitchers, Catchers, two-way players: 8:15 to 8:30 a.m.

    • Bullpen Sessions (15-pitch session, mechanical analysis)

    • Catcher Evaluations (evaluating receiving/blocking skills)

  • Check-in for Position Players only: 11:30 to 11:45 a.m.

    • Offensive Evaluations (exit velo, mechanical analysis, batting practice)

    • Defensive Evaluations (arm strength, mobility, positional reps)

  • Catchers will stay for both sessions.


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