Prep Baseball Report

Top Prospect Showcase: Houston - Quick Hits


Phil Haig & Brandon Gowins
Scouting Directors

HOUSTON, TX - On Tuesday, June 12th, we hosted our second and final Top Prospect event of the summer, the Top Prospect Showcase: Houston at the University of Houston. Prospects from all high school classes came out and did not disappoint. Today, we take a look at some of the prospects that stood out on the day.

FULL STAT SHEET

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Quick Hits

 

 

Lane Sparks OF / LHP / Brenham, TX / 2023

The toolsy Lefty put on a show in all facets at U of H.  He set the tone early with a blistering 6.55 60.  Showed off a good arm, as he was 90 from the OF.  At the plate, he drove the ball with authority all over the field.  He showed strong wrists, spraying line drives from foul line to foul line.  Sparks ended his day by hopping on the mound.  He showed a low effort delivery with repeatable mechanics.  His fastball peaked at 85.6 and showed the ability to command the arm side part of the plate throughout his pen.  His breaking pitch was a slider that he threw in the upper 70’s. Could be used to get swing and miss from a LHH or generate weak contact from the Righty.  Sparks does everything well on the field and shows a high IQ while doing it.  He continues to impress everytime we see him. 

 

 

Brady Englett C / 2B / Katy , TX / 2023

It’s not often you get a primary catcher who runs a sub 6.7 60. Englett busted out a 6.64 on Tuesday, showing elite athleticism for the position.  It carried over behind the plate as well.  He moved with ease laterally and had quick feet and a quick transfer on his throwdowns.  He registered a best of 1.99.  At the plate, he showed a short stroke with a gap to gap approach.  He showed above avg. bat speed, maxing out at 76.3.  Englett is a very athletic catcher who can help in all facets of the game, and I would expect schools to jump on him soon. 

 

 

Rylan Wooten SS / 2B / Brenham, TX / 2023

Wooten had one of the more complete days out there for any participant.  The rising Senior started the day running a 6.57 60, showing off his athleticism.  He followed that up by showing good range and soft hands in the infield. He has a good first step and initial lateral quickness.  He was 87 across the diamond showing off more than enough arm strength.  At the plate, he had a simple operation with not a lot of wasted movement. He had an approach geared for line drives and staying up the middle and had a max exit velocity of 95.9. Wooten is a good athlete that still has plenty of projection left. 

 

 

Carson Luna SS / 2B / St. Johns, TX / 2024

Everytime we see Luna, he does everything well and carries himself that of someone older than a ‘24 grad. He ran a good 60 time at 6.83 to start his day.  Then he showed off soft hands and good footwork during the defensive portion.  Showed the ability to move to his left and right and that he had enough arm to stay at short with an infield velocity of 87. At the plate he showed off above avg. bat speed coming in at 75.5 and had a max exit velocity of 94.2.  There isn’t a lot of wasted movement in the batter’s box and he is looking to hit the ball hard in the big part of the field.  Luna does everything well, and offers a high floor for college coaches. 

 

 

Bryce Dwyer C / RHP / Grand Oaks, TX / 2023

Another athletic catcher on Tuesday was Dwyer. The rising senior showed off good athleticism, running a 6.96 60 to start his day.  The physical traits carried over to the defensive portion, as he showed off his good arm with an 80 mph reading behind the plate and a pop time of 1.99.  He showed good receiving skills as well. At the plate, he maxed out with a 94.5 exit velocity and some elite Blast numbers.  He had a max bat speed of 76 mph and rotational acceleration of 31.7.  To end his day Dwyer hopped on the mound as well.  He topped out at 84.4 and showed good arm speed.  For a catcher, he has a longer arm speed, but does a good job of timing it up and getting out front.  He also threw a CH and CB.  Dwyer is a physical catcher who has all the tools to stay behind the plate and deliver some power production at the plate. 

 

 

Easton Dean C / 1B / Coldspring Oakhurst, TX / 2024

Dean is a physical catcher, and looks to be able to handle the physical demands of the position.  He posted a solid 60 time of 7.15 showing good athleticism for the pitcher.  He showed off his arm with 85 across the diamond and then  followed that up with a 2.04 pop time.  His throws had good carry and were accurate.  The LHH showed some serious bat speed, maxing out at 77.8.  He had a max exit velocity of 95.4. There are a lot of moving parts in his swing, and as a result he drives most of the balls to the backside.  As he learns to start the swing earlier and catch it out front, I believe there is some pull side power that will begin to show up. Dean is one to follow moving forward. 

 

 

Kaden McCoy SS / RHP / Atascocita, TX / 2024

McCoy was relatively unknown to our staff coming into the event but he did more than impress us with everything he did. McCoy showed quality actions on the dirt and a short clean arm path across the diamond that produced natural backspin and carry to first base at 87 mph. The uncommitted middle infielder showed quality feet and hands around the ball showing he can throw from multiple slots and on the run. In the box McCoy has a balance set up with a leg lift for a load but was on time to everything during BP and showed no reason to think the moving parts in the load will hamper him as a hitter down the road. He took one of the more professional rounds of BP on the day by staying in the middle of the field consistently and never trying to do too much with an average exit velocity of 87 mph on his line drives. McCoy is an interesting one to follow along with and see what he can develop into as he continues to physically mature.  

 

 

Mason Ashlock 1B / OF / Dripping Springs, TX / 2023

Ashlock took one of the better rounds of BP on the day. Showing present bat speed and pull side power there is a lot to like out of the Dripping Springs rising senior. Ashlock has a balance setup and looks to do damage with each swing he takes. Ashlock showed a lot to like in the box right now and there is only more to like down the road. Ashlock is versatile defensively and can play 1B or the corner OF spots. Look for Ashlock to continue to progress and anchor the Dripping Springs offense in 2023 

 

 

Andrew Hilton RHP / Katy, TX / 2023

The rising Sr. had another great showing on Tuesday.  The RHP had a solid day showing good stuff to pair with good command.  The 6’ righty sat 87-88 mph the whole bullpen without a lot of effort.  He showed the ability to get to the glove side when he wanted to.  He also threw a low 70’s curveball that showed good shape and was able to generate swing and miss. Hilton also mixed in a nice changeup that he threw with good conviction and out of the same slot of his fb. Hilton has thrown a lot of big innings and always produces at a high level.  Hilton could still see some velo jumps as he gets stronger. 

 

 

Rowdy Miller RHP / OF / Boerne Champion , TX / 2023

Miller is fresh off an injury and it was good to see him back out on the mound in a short outing. The uncommitted right hander picked up where he left off showing a quick arm and a fastball that jumps out of his hand. The fastball worked up to 88 mph and averaged 87.1 mph on the day in his short pen. Both off speed pitches showed promised but still plenty of room to fully develop, The changeup averaged 80 mph and the CB was 72-73 mph. Miller will only continue to get better the more and more he throws with a healthy arm and regains his natural feel for the baseball 

 

 

Lance Gorman RHP / OF / Brandeis, TX / 2024

Gorman has been known as a strike thrower for some time now and has shown well at previous events. Gorman looked a bit stronger and more physical this time around and it was good to see his natural progress on the mound. The fastball was up to 86.3 mph and averaged 85.4 mph on the day with arm side action. Gorman showed feel for a changeup and a breaking ball in the zone with solid action that plays well with the fastball. The changeup averaged 79.3 mph and the curveball averaged 71.7 mph that at times would show the right shape and spin. Gorman has only gotten better each and every time our staff has seen him. There is a lot to like about the right hander moving forward.  

 

 

Aidan Moody 3B / RHP / Sinton, TX / 2024

Moody is a physical 3B/RHP that will only continue to get better and develop with time. The Sinton product did a little bit of everything on the day. Showing sound actions on the infield and a strong arm across as well as jumping up on the mound and filling up the strike zone with 3 pitches. In the box Moody has a shot to hit for some power especially to pull side where his natural power is but he showed the ability to drive a ball to right center field with backspin as well. The uncommitted athlete doubles as a pitcher and doesnt necessarily have the most overpowering stuff but he filled the zone up with 3 pitches for strikes in the short outing. All in all Moody will continue to get better being around quality players all high school season and summer season. 

 

 

Jackson Melanson RHP / OF / Boerne Champion , TX / 2025

Melanson once again stood out on the mound for our PBR Texas staff. The tall projectable right hander showed well in our tournament previously this summer and picked right back up in the Houston Top Prospect Showcase on Tuesday. Melanson has a natural feel for his delivery and pitching itself. Melanson shows a repeatable delivery that with upside there as he continues to grow and develop. The fastball worked 82-84 mph with some arm side run and paired that with a quality changeup at 77 mph as well as a curveball at 71 mph. Melanson will only continue to get better every time he is out there. 

 

 

Hagen Tijerina LHP / 1B / Mabank, TX / 2024

Tijerina came into this event as an unknown to us, but after just a few pitches he is squarely on our staff’s radar.  First, Hagen has a frame to dream on.  He is 6’5 with a waist up to his shoulders.  He has grown a lot the last year, so as he continues to grow into his body and get stronger, Tijerina should make some big jumps.  The arm action is clean, efficient and he repeats it well.  His fastball peaked at 83 and as he grows into his body and learns how to use his legs more, I expect a big velocity jump.  He also showed a promising breaking ball that he threw in the low 70’s that would play against Lefties and Righties. He flashed some change ups that he threw with good conviction and ASR.  Tijerina is also the Quarterback at Mabank, and will be one to follow moving forward 

 

 

 

 

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