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By: Zac Bottoms
Arkansas Scouting Director

The Top Prospects Games had 40 pitchers take the mound over the two days. Here is some of the pitchers who stood out for the Red and White Teams.

Jakob Henry 2016 LHP Conway Christian HS
Henry is a 6-foot-4 200-pound left-hander who pitched 3 innings allowing 1 run on 1 hit while striking out 4. He works from a low ¾ arm slot with a quick arm. His arm action is short with some stiffness in it. When he worked down in the strike zone he had late sink, which induced several groundballs. He complimented his 80-83 mph fastball with a 2/8 curveball with late break and average depth. Overall Henry is a projectable left-hander with a large frame, if he can clean up the arm-action and some timing issues he will continue to throw harder.

Ryan Czanstkowski 2016 RHP Mountain Home HS
Czanstkowski is a 6-foot-1 180-pound right-hander with a large frame and an athletic build. He works from a H3/4 arm slot with a quick loose arm. His fastball was 83-86 mph with slight arm-side run. He located a 11/5 curveball with early break for strikes thrown at 69-72 mph. He pitched 3 innings allowing 1 run on 1 hit while striking out 3. His frame will hold more weight and his athleticism says he will throw harder as he continues to develop. He repeats his mechanics which should allow him to throw strikes consistently as he continues to mature.

Drew Young RHP, 2016 Bentonville HS
Young is a 6-foot-1 205-pound right-hander with a physical build and large frame. He pitched two innings allowing 0 runs, 0 hits 4 strike outs and 1 walk. He pounded the bottom half of the strike zone with his 86-89 mph with slight run. He flashed a curveball with 11/5 break and late action 70-73 mph, but used his fastball command for most of his success. Overall Young has good arm strength and repeatable delivery, he is an advanced high school pitcher who should get better overtime.

Connor McCullough, RHP 2018 Maumelle HS
McCullough is a 5-foot-11 155-pound right hander with a medium frame and an athletic build. He struck out 6 in his 3 innings of work. He did this by locating his fastball 83-86 mph down in the strike zone and complimented it with a 11/5 curveball with depth thrown 71-73 mph. McCullough works with rhythm and balance throughout his delivery. His arm action is clean and loose from a H3/4 arm slot. As a 2018 grad the future looks bright for McCullough definitely a name to follow over the next three years.

Jacob Williams, RHP, 2017 Bentonville HS
Williams is a 6-foot, 170-pound right-hander with a medium frame and an athletic build. He works from a H3/4 arm slot with a short quick arm. He struck out 3 in 2 innings of work by locating his fastball 83-86 mph and a his 11/5 curveball with sharp late break 72-74 mph. He did a good job repeating his mechanics, I would like to see him lengthen the arm action, but it is a quick arm that throws strikes. At this point in time, Williams is very intriguing due to his arm speed and his advance feel for his breaking ball.

Ty Gordon, RHP, 2016 Greene County Tech HS
Gordon is a 6-foot-5 right hander with a large frame and an average build. He pitched an efficient three innings inducing groundballs while striking out 1. Gordon does a good job creating angles using his height pitching at a downhill angle from a H3/4 arm slot. His fastball was 83-86 mph with slight sink. He located a curveball with 11/5 shape and early break. Gordon’s best secondary pitch is his changeup that he throws at near fastball arm speed with arm side run 72-75 mph. Overall Gordon is a big kid that needs to gain strength, he looks young for his class, so he should develop more than the average kid in his class. The arm is clean and uses very little lower half. I believe a sleeper of the 2016 class that may surprise some people in time.

Zach Jackson, 2016, RHP, Bryant HS
Jackson is a 6-foot-2 230-pound right hander with a large frame and a large build. He pitched 3 innings striking out 6. He struck hitters out primarily with a two pitch combination of his fastball and slider. The fastball was 85-88 mph with boring action. His slider was thrown 74-77 mph with late sharp break, which dominated the hitters in this event. Jackson works from a H3/4 arm slot, with a quick arm. He repeats his mechanics. He needs to improve the body and continue to recover from Tommy John he had just 7 months ago. Overall he is one of the top arms in the 2016 class and should continue to get better as the body and athleticism improve.

Austin Allen 2016, RHP, Searcy HS
Allen is a 6-foot-2 170-pound right-hander with an athletic frame and a thin build. He works from an H ¾ arm slot with a quick clean arm. He pounded the strike with a fastball of 83-86 mph, the fastball had late life when it was down in the zone, as he elevated it, the fastball would flatten out which lead to surrendering some hits. He located two different secondary pitches, a curveball and changeup at times that allowed him to keep hitters off balance. Overall if Allen can add strength he will be an intriguing prospect moving forward, for several levels of collegiate baseball.

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