Prep Baseball Report

Future Games Analysis: Two-Way Players


Toby Bicknell
Texas Scouting Director

WESTFIELD, IN - The Prep Baseball Report Future Games is the premier summer scouting event for uncommitted underclassmen. 253 college coaches from all over the country were in attendance. This was the first year for Team Texas to participate, with 26 players from around the state, including six that were on Team Select. Over the next several days we will be breaking down every player, based off positions. This event was loaded with talent from around the state, including six two-way players between Team Texas and Team Select. 

 

Two-Way Players

 

Peyton Havard RHP / 3B / Bridge City, TX / 2020

At 5-foot-11, 220-pounds, Havard has a strong, durable frame. The right-hander works from a high-¾ slot with a long, clean arm swing. Simple, low effort, repeatable delivery with a quick hand out front on release. Topped out at 91 several times, sitting mostly 87-90. All four pitches come from the same window with his slider coming in at 74-76 mph with short, late break and 11/5 shape. His curveball has 12/6 shape at 72-73 with good depth. Both breaking balls have tight spin and show signs of becoming plus pitches. Throws his changeup with fastball arm speed and arm side fade at 77-80. Got two quick punchouts to start his first inning. Then worked around some defensive miscues creating mostly weak contact. With Havard’s durable frame, four pitch repertoire and repeatable delivery, he is creating significant buzz among college recruiters. Will likely throw significant innings as a freshman and could fit into the weekend rotation at some point down the road. A two-way play and corner infielder, Havard generates significant leverage from the right side of the plate. Starting from a tall, slighlty open stance, Havard loads his hands down and back into a front arm bar as he takes a short stride, landing balanced. Powerful lower half transfer, strong contact to the pull side with natural lift, quick hands, and an exit velocity of 89 mph. At third base, Havard through the ball with quick footwork and soft hands. His arm strength plays well on the hot corner as he can zip the ball across the diamond with a top velocity of 89 mph.



 

 

 

 

 

Carson Keithley LHP / OF / Alvin, TX / 2020

At 5-foot-11, 155-pounds, Keithley has an athletic, long-limbed frame with a young face, and plenty of room to add strength as he continues to develop. The arm speed translates well to the mound where the left-hander works from a high-¾ slot with a smooth, but aggressive delivery with good tempo down the mound. The key here is Keithley’s demeanor and presence on the mound. He pitches with intent and pounds the zone with his fastball at 83-86. The ball comes out of his hand clean and jumps on top of hitters. His breaking ball is a nice change of pace at 71-74 mph with 1/7 shape and deep break. Also mixes in the occasional changeup at 76 mph. The left-hander had several punchouts as he worked quickly through his two inning stint. A two-way player and left-handed hitter, Keithley starts from a slightly open stance with his hands already set back behind his front shoulder. Smooth load back with a controlled leg kick as he pinches his knees together and walks away from his hands, landing athletic with good separation and front arm bar. Hits against a firm front side as his hands whip the barrel through the zone on a slightly uphill plane. Aggressive hack with intent to do damage to the pull side, flashing carry and power with an exit velocity of 87 mph. In the outfield, Keithley has a bounce in his step as he plays through the ball with soft hands and clean exchange. Long, clean arm swing with elbow dominant action with a top velocity of 86 mph from the outfield.



 

 

 

 

 

Tyler Talbert RHP / SS / Flower Mound, TX / 2020

Listed at 6-foot, 170-pounds, Talbert has a lean-athletic frame with plenty of room to add strength as he continues to develop. Confident two-way player with elite arm strength (91 mph) on the infield. The right-handed hitter starts from a neutral stance then uses a reverse leg-lift as he pushes his weight back and triggers his hands, landing stacked with good separation and smooth rhythm. Repeats his swing with limited head movement, generating leverage with his lower half transfer as he drops the head on plane, creating easy lift with quick hands and a top exit velocity of 87 mph. Barreled it up during batting practice all four days, uses the whole field during games and has the ability to hit both spin, and velocity. At shortstop, Talbert plays has outstanding rhythm in his footwork with a quick first step and moves with ease as he keeps a positive angle in his torso, allowing his hands to work well out front. Plenty of arm strength to stay on the left side of the infield moving forward. Confident player that commands the field. On the mound, Talbert works from a ¾ slot with a medium arm stroke and quick hand out front. Short stride down the mound in a tall-and-fall delivery with regular effort. His fastball comes out clean, sitting 85-87, topping out once at 90 mph. The ball has late life and jumps on top of hitters. His changeup flashes arm side fade, thrown with fastball arm speed, at 75-81. Breaking ball was inconsistent at times but shows signs of becoming a solid secondary pitch with varying shape at 67-71.



 

 

 

 

 

Logan Hamm OF / RHP / Bridge City, TX / 2020

At 6-foot, 200-pounds, Hamm has a strong, muscular frame with a well defined lower half. A two-sport athlete at Bridge City HS, Hamm spends his fall on the gridiron playing running back for the Cardinals. After running a 6.75 60-yard dash, the left-handed hitter put on a serious power display during the August 1 open workout. He starts from a tall, relaxed, slightly open stance. Simple load as he triggers his hands by cocking the barrel before taking a relaxed, short stride. Lands easy with good balance and separation. Short path to contact with natural lift as the barrel gets on plane early, working through the zone with high end bat speed (92 mph) and loud contact. The ball jumps of his bat and he can launch balls with relative ease from gap to gap - and over the right field wall. Hamm got Team Texas on the board in game two as he stroked a long, high, triple off of the right field wall, driving in a run. He drove in another on a missile down the right field line for a double. With his unique skill set of left-handed power and speed - to go with his arm strength (92 mph) - Hamm is sure to draw significant attention from Division 1 schools. On the mound, the right-hander works from a high-¾ slot with a short, compact arm circle and quick hand out front. Drop-and-drive delivery with a long stride down the mound. His fastball was mostly straight at 84-88, but we have seen him get as high as 90 mph earlier this summer. Maintains good arm speed on his offspeed pitches with his slider showing short, late, lateral break and 10/4 shape at 75-76 mph. His changeup his good sink and arm side fade at 78-80 mph.

 

 

 

 

 

Kauner Porter 3B / RHP / Samuel Clemens, TX / 2020

At 6-foot-3, 192-pounds, Porter has a strong, athletic, projectable frame. The right-handed hitter starts from a wide, neutral base, using a simple, smooth load back as he engages his hands and takes a short stride. Aggressive hack, short path with strong, rotational lower half allows him to generate bat speed, be on plane, and get through the zone with leverage and power with limited movement of his midline. There is long term projection in the bat as Porter showed power during batting practice on day one with juice to the pull side and an exit velocity of 90 mph. In game three on Saturday, the rising junior had a pair of quality at-bats. The first, an RBI ground ball with a runner on third and less than two outs. In his third at-bat, he singled to left field on the barrel, then stole second base, moved up to third on a dirtball, then scored on a passed ball. In the outfield, Porter threw 92 mph during the workout, and on Saturday, he showed off his athleticism by making a game changing catch in the first inning, running down a would-be RBI double. Porter drop-stepped, opened his hips and tracked down a ball on a full sprint stride going into the deep right-centerfield gap for the last out of the inning. The right-handed hitter has juice in the bat, to go with athleticism and arm strength, both on the mound, and in the outfield. On the mound, the right-hander works from a high slot with a short, quick arm circle and max effort delivery down the mound. Porter creates good angle on his fastball at 85-88, flashing tilt when he stays on top of the ball, locating it down in the zone. His curveball has true 12/6 action at 71-72 and flashes signs of being a plus pitch. Scattered command for two innings, but the stuff is good enough to think that Porter could see time out of the bullpen at the next level. Hitters did not pick the ball up well and the curveball was sharp at times.



 

 

 

 

 

Josh Hill 3B / RHP / Cypress Creek, TX / 2020

At 6-foot-3, 185-pounds, Hill possesses lean, proportional strength throughout his projectable frame. Works from a high-3/4 slot with a medium arm stroke, short stride and regular effort down the mound. His fastball was 82-85 in two innings of work, but we have seen him as high as 84-88 earlier in the summer. Throws his curveball with good arm speed as the pitch comes from the same tunnel as his fastball with late, short, downward 12/6 action at 69-72 mph. Changeup flashes depth at 70-71 mph. College recruiters will want to follow Hill closely this fall as there is a ton of upside and potential with his high-waisted frame. A two-way player and right-handed hitter, Hill starts from a tall, open stance with his hands set high and close to his ear. Shifts his weight back as he strides closed. Strong hands with a leveraged path on an uphill plane. When he gets the barrel to the ball, it’s going somewhere in a hurry. Quality round of BP before game three where he showed serious pop to the pull side with plenty of lift and carry. At third base, he has quick footwork as he plays through the ball and does a nice job of creating momentum toward first. Soft hands funnel the ball back to his midline before he throws with a top velocity of 84 mph across the diamond. With his athleticism and frame, look for Hill to continue trending upward in the coming year.

 

 

 

 

 

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