Updated Texas 2020 Rankings
October 23, 2019
With the conclusion of the 2019 season in sight, it’s time to give the Texas State Rankings a polish after a jam-packed 2019 season. This group of seniors is filled with plenty of depth to get major league organizations excited about June and college programs looking forward to what might show up on campus next fall.
Our PBR boots-on-the-ground staff that scoured the state with the commitment to providing the most credible and reliable information in amateur baseball. PBR’s staff of scouts and evaluators are constantly on the road, watching practices, games, workouts, and running events. Typically the end of fall rankings is a clean-up of sorts, filtering and shuffling players based on updated notes and scouting reports. Although, the top of the list remains relatively the same there has been a slight shuffling with serval players making sizable jumps.
+ Complete Texas 2020 State Rankings
A look at the Top Ten:
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Jared Kelley RHP / Refugio, TX / 2020The first man on the mound for the Texas Rangers in a game loaded with pitching, Kelley took in place in Area Code Games lore. The Texas recruit is known for his extra-large frame at 6-foot-2, 229 pounds, blazing fastball and ease of operation. All of that was on display, as he retired the first eight batters he faced, walked one and struck out six in his three innings of work. In the first inning, he spotted up 96-98. Both strikeouts came on 98 mph fastballs. He didn’t need any help behind him in the second, sitting on 96, striking out one and fielding two comebackers. He struck out three and walked one in the third, sitting at 93-95. Kelly’s slider has been inconsistent in the past, but he has developed another plus pitch in his changeup. He has excellent feel for it, as it sits in the 80-84 range with power sink and fade. His slider was 80-83. |
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Drew Romo C / The Woodlands, TX / 2020Romo’s defense is among the best in the country and it showed up at the Area Code Games, where he threw a base stealer out at third base with a 1.68-second pop time, caught another at second with 2.04 and back picked one at second with a 1.93. He also quietly had a solid week at the plate. He had two hits in his third game, singling and launching a two-run home run to left field in his second. It was 97 off the bat and traveled 368 feet. |
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Cam Brown RHP / Flower Mound, TX / 2020Brown has a big, durable frame at 6-foot-2, 220 pounds. The Texas Christian recruit had a dominant appearance the PDP League and followed it up with two more strong ones in Long Beach. Closing things out in the Rangers’ second game, he sat 90-93 and mixed in a plus slider and above average changeup. The slider has sharp, late break and sits in the 77-81 range while the changeup is 85-86. He struck out the first five batters he faced and didn’t allow a baserunner in two innings in his first outing, then came back on the last day to strike out four more in two innings while walking one. He fastball velocity backed up in the second appearance—not unexpected for a young arm on short rest at the end of the summer—but still showed the ability to snap off some nasty sliders. |
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Tanner Witt SS / Episcopal, TX / 2020Witt is a legitimate two-way player with projectable power and strength in his right-handed swing, but at 6-foot-5, 199 pounds with long limbs, the needle was probably tipping toward him being an arm. It may be leaning even more that way after two stints on the mound in Long Beach. He tossed two innings as part of the Rangers’ pitching show with Kelley and Brown, allowing a run on a hit and two walks while striking out four and running his fastball up to 93 with above average spin. He was even better as the starter for the Rangers’ final game. He tossed two innings against the Oakland Athletics, allowing a hit and walk while striking out four. He was 90-92 mph, working downhill well and getting a high spin rate on his fastball. His breaking ball ranged from 72-77, varying in shape and showing a spin rate in the 2700-3000 range. He also showed feel for a changeup in the low 80s, as he maintained his arm speed on the pitch and got swings and misses. At the plate, the Texas recruit was 4-for-13 with two singles in the first game that were 100-101 off the bat. |
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Cole Foster SS / Plano Senior, TX / 2020 |
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Masyn Winn SS / Kingwood, TX / 20205-foot-10, 170-pound athletic frame with a strong lower half. The right-hander throws from a high ¾ slot with a quick, short arm swing. His fastball was 91-93 mph the entire night, touching 94 mph. Was able to command the fastball to both sides of the plate, especially low in the zone. His slider had 10-4 action and was 74-76 mph, touching 78 mph. Threw the slider to both sides of the plate with the ability to land it in the zone for strikes and bury it in the dirt for swing and misses. Also showed great athleticism fielding his position on the mound.
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Braxton Pearson RHP / Georgetown, TX / 2020The right hander opened eyes right as he entered the game from the bullpen in the fourth inning. Pitching exclusively from the stretch, his delivery offers some deception to the hitters. His fastball sat 88-91 with big arm side run that received several uncomfortable swings as he rode in in on right handed batters. His fastball played up in the zone as well, as it looks like the ball jumps out of his hand. He complimented his fastball with a slider with tight spin at 79-80. He pounded the strike zone throughout his outing, throwing a first pitch strike to seven of the eight batters he faced and 85% strikes overall. When he keeps the ball down in the zone, it seems like he is in complete control. Definitely an arm to continue to follow this summer.
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Elijah Nunez OF / Arlington Martin, TX / 2020We have been tracking Nunez since last summer when he popped up at the North Texas Underclass Trials. The TCU commit has smooth, fast twitch athleticism to go with a left-handed swing that has really come into his own in the past 10 months. Gap power with a balanced approach and high end feel for the barrel. He ran a 6.64 60-yard dash and he is likely going to get a lot of attention from Major League teams in the 2020 Draft. Had an exit velocity of 93 mph off the tee and was 87 mph from the outfield. |
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Levi Wells RHP / LaPorte, TX / 2020 |
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Ryan Targac 3B / Halletsville, TX / 20202020 3B/OF Ryan Targac (Halletsville) has a strong, muscular, athletic frame at 6-foot-1, 195-pounds, and he squats 415-pounds. The switch hitter started the day with a 6.99 60-yard dash, then showed excellent strength in the barrel and gap power during BP with a 95 mph exit velocity right-handed, 92 left-handed. From the left side, he has a bit more natural lift, and right-handed he has more pop to the opposite field gap, either way, he has the look of an impact corner bat in the SEC. Quick footwork on the infield with a clean exchange. Throws the ball with true carry across the diamond with a top velocity of 87 (88 OF). On the mound, the right-hander works from a high-¾ slot with slow tempo and a tall-and-fall delivery. Fastball was 82-84, changeup 74-75, and his slider had short late, 11/5 break at 69-70.
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