Texas: Mayfield Strikes Out 10 In Tough Loss

FRISCO, TX—We’re not done with you Texas. After Shooter Hunt’s 10-day swing through Austin and Houston, The Rode Show is spending a weekend in the Dallas area as early season tournaments wrap up.

The main event was a night game between Marcus and Houston Memorial. Two Texas A&M recruits were on the mound in RHP Blake Mayfield (Marcus HS, TX) and 2020 LHP Thomas Vincent (Houston Memorial HS, TX). Mayfield took a tough loss, 2-0, despite pitching well. In the fourth inning, his center fielder got burned on a deep line drive, allowing a double. That runner advanced on a single to put runners on first and third. He then scored during a rundown. An infield single, two stolen bases and sacrifice fly made it 2-0 in the sixth.

Overall, Mayfield pitched well. He pounded the strike zone, striking out 10 and allowing six hits while walking none. His fastball generally sat 86-89 mph, touching 90 and showing arm-side run at times. His slider was inconsistent, but showed hard sweep at times to get swings and misses out of the zone. He would also flip in a soft, loopy curveball at times for strikes. Mayfield is a good athlete and has a quick arm through a 3/4 slot.

Vincent stifled the Marcus lineup with a mid-80s fastball and deceptive changeup. He pitches from an over-the-top slot and pronates his arm action on the changeup, which he shows excellent feel for. The velocity is only 71-75, but has fade and racked up bad swings and weak contact all night. He allowed four hits and a walk while striking out four over seven innings. He also put a good swing on a fastball from Mayfield for a double to the left-center field gap late in the game.

Earlier in the day, we saw 3B Logan Kohler (Little Elm HS, TX), though he was on the mound and not playing defense this game. The Oklahoma recruit was 1-for-4 in a 2-2 tie against Plano West HS, TX. As a left-handed hitter with a lefty on the mound and a stiff wind blowing straight in from right field, the Oklahoma recruit had a clear approach at the plate, trying to stay back and go to the left side. He drove the first pitch he saw down the left field line, but it landed just foul. He eventually singled through the six hole. He grounded out twice and struck out looking on a borderline pitch in the rest of his at-bats. Kohler has a patient approach and does well to stay back. He has a short, compact swing and stays balanced.

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