02 03 SoCal High School Baseball: 15U WWBA Player Notes 04 05 15 16 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 31 32 33

15U WWBA Player Notes

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I'm in Georgia for the Perfect Game WWBA National Championships. Last week was the 15U division and featured over 180 teams. I saw over 30 games in six days of the tournament after arriving on the second day of the event.

I was at the new Perfect Game fields at LakePoint while the tournament took place at some 20 locations. Due to the amount of games being played at the new facility, the powers-that-be at Perfect Game decided that players were only allowed to used turf shoes or molded cleats.

Below are notes on some of the top 15U players I saw during the week.


Name Position (Bats/Throws) Grad Year  High School City Notes
Ben Jordan RHP,1B (L/R) 2017 West Carter County Olive Hill, KY At 6'8" he's a towering presence on the mound. Add his over-the-top delivery and the ball gets on hitters in a hurry. FB was 86-88 (T90) which he commands to both sides of the plate and has some run. CB was 70-72 and tight with great command. 
Brady Jones C/RHP (R/R)  2017 Central Baton Rouge, LA Very good defensive catcher who pops 1.92-2.04 consistently in-game. Moves well and blocks very well. Line drive hitter which shows occasional pop. Above average speed on the bases. On the mound uses a high 3/4 slot to command a FB that sits 87-89 and runs into RHH with loose, easy actions. 
Buddy Kennedy 3B (R/R) 2017 Memorial Millville, NJ Power hitter with the quickest bat speed I saw at the tournament. 5'11" 190 of solid muscle. Shows advanced defensive skills at 3B with good feet and body positioning. Has plus arm strength and instincts and makes every play. Will add more power. (Video)
Connor Konishi CF,LHP (L/L) 2017 Helix San Diego, CA Outstanding range in OF with plus arm strength. Great instincts for reading ball of the bat and positions himself very well to make plays. Plus speed on the bases with a smooth swing that gets the barrel in the zone. FB sat 80-83 with run in on RHH's. CB was 66-69 with tight spin that was loopy and unhittable. 4.23 to 1B from left side. 
Devin Ortiz RHP, 3B,OF (R/R) 2017 St. Joseph Regional Nutley, NJ Slick fielding player with a very quick exchange and strong arm across the diamond. Showed plus instincts with great body control. Positions himself very well and makes all the plays. Uses a high leg kick trigger to start his swing and shows a sound approach with good plate coverage. Disciplined hitter.
James Kirklin III CF (R/R) 2016 North Cobb Kennesaw, GA Flashes plus speed on the bases and in the field. Very good defensive CF with plus arm strength. Positions himself well to make strong, aggressive throws. Line drive hitter who repeatedly squares up the ball. Disciplined approach with great plate coverage. 
Jaree Pledger OF (R/R)  2017 Walnut Grove Monroe, GA Plus speed on the bases - 3.19 on a steal of 2B on wet turf wearing turf shoes. 4.13 to 1B on a line drive to RCF. Gap-to-gap hitter who keeps the barrel in the zone a long time. Swing gets a little handsy at times.
Jason Rooks OF,RHP (R/R) 2017 Walton Marietta, GA Disciplined hitter with current power. Hit the deepest HR I saw during this tournament. Average runner on the bases but good OF quickness with very good defensive instincts and a strong arm. 
Javier Valdes 3B (R/R) 2017 John A. Ferguson Miami, FL Protoypical power hitting corner INF as evidenced by his multiple HR's during the event. Disciplined hitter who doesn't bite on bad pitches. Covers the plate with a slightly closed stance. Strong defensive skills with good lateral movement and a strong arm. 
Joshua McKnight RHP,IF,OF (L/R) 2017 Central  Roaring Springs, PA Long, lean frame at 6'1" 160. Uses his long arms to produce a loose, clean delivery that is very repeatable from a high 3/4 arm slot. FB sits 82-84, CB 64-65. 
Justyn-Henry Malloy RHP,3B (R/R) 2018 St. Joseph Regional Bergenfield, NJ At 6'1" 185 he a physical presence for an incoming 9th grader. Flashed a FB that sat 80-82 with a lot of run. A high leg kick helps to hide the ball from hitters. A true 12-6 CB sat 72-73 and was unhittable in his 6IP. Was 1.19 to the plate w/runners on 1B. 
Logan Adams  C (R/R) 2017 Knoxville Christian Knoxville, TN One of the top three defensive catchers I saw at the tournaments. Moves very well laterally to block balls out of the zone. Showed very good feet and popped 2.02 - 2.13 consistently and in game. Defense is ahead of the bat but he put very good swings on the ball. 
Ma'Khail Hilliard RHP,OF (R/R) 2017 Central Baton Rouge, LA Live arm with loose actions. Varies arm slots on all pitches. High 3/4 cutter sits 79-81. Over-the-top FB sits 82-84. 3/4 CB is tight and sits 69-71. Long arms & legs with a short torso. Big time competitor on the mound. 
Matt Ruddick OF,LHP (L/L) 2017 Scripps Ranch San Diego, CA Despite a diminuitive frame (5'8" 155) Ruddick is a player. On the mound he shows a clean and easy delivery that resulted in a FB that sat 84-86 which he commands to both sides of the plate. CB sat 73-74 and kept hitters off balance all game. (Video) Shows great range in the OF to go with a very good arm. His best tool is his bat. Gets and keeps the barrel in the zone. One ACC head coach in attendance told me "he's swings like a grown man." Enough said. (Video)
Miguel Reyes 3B (R/R) 2017 Lafayette Lafayette, LA Arguably the most dangerous hitter at the tournament. Had multiple home runs and all of them were no doubters. Great mistake pitch hitter who covers all of the plate with great bat speed. Good defensive 3B with a strong arm, but it's obvious his bat is what will be his ticket. 
Richard Gilbert LHP,1B (S/L) 2017 Johnson  San Antonio, TX On the mound there is a lot to like of this southpaw. Sitting 82-84 with run on his FB, he features a true 12-6 CB that was 72-73. Showed incredible command with both pitches working them in and out. Compact delivery with a high leg kick, he stays closed and is very disciplined. Was 82 on his 76th pitch in the 7th. 
Sam Miller RHP (R/R) 2016 Cathedral Catholic Carlsbad, CA FB sits 83-85 with late tail. CH was 73-74 with late movement to it. Wore down later in the game but at 6'4" 180, there is a lot to like about the frames ability to add strength. 
Stone Scoppettuolo OF (R/R)  2016 La Jolla La Jolla, CA Stood out for his defensive ability and arm strength. Made a throw from the warning track to 3B on the fly. Showed great range in the OF and has above-average speed. Defense is a little ahead of the bat, but signs are there that the bat will catch up. 
Trei Cruz SS (R/R) 2017 Westminster Christian Miami, FL The son of former Major Leaguer Jose Cruz, Trei showed the genes definitely run in the family. Smooth actions at shortstop pair with a strong arm and innate instincts for the position. Cruz flashed plus speed on the bases with a balanced swing that gets and keeps the barrel in the zone. 
Tyler Solomon C,1B (S/R) 2017 Battlefield Haymarket, VA Big time power from both sides of the plate from a 6'4" 200lb frame. Smooth swing from a slightly closed stance with hands close to the body. Barrel gets and stays in the zone throughout the swing. Body projects to move to 1B permanently although he popped 1.91 - 2.02 in-game. Flat out ballplayer. 
Weston Bizzle RHP,2B (R/R) 2017 Crawford Mosley Lynn Haven, FL Threw an 87 pitch perfect game in which he sat 85-87 with the FB and touched 90. CB was a tight spinning pitch with deep break at 73-75. Commanded both pitches and only had two 3 ball counts. 
Zach Sehgal MIF,3B (R/R) 2017 Francis Parker La Jolla, CA Great defensive instincts with good lateral movement and a strong arm. Positions himself very well to make all plays from the SS position. Quick bat that shows line drive capability. Frame shows ability to pack on muscle in the future. 
Zack Brockman RHP,3B (R/R) 2017 Savannah Christian Savannah, GA FB sat 82-84 with run. Ball explodes out of his hand and looks, and sounds, a lot firmer. Very clean mechanics give the impression that there is more in there. CB was 68-69 and tight, deep movement. 
Zack Kokoska LHP/OF (L/L)  2017 Greater Latrobe Latrobe, PA Clean, repeatable delivery that had scouts taking notice. While the FB was at 82-83 it had plenty of run in on RHH's. Ball comes out of his hand easily. CB was 66-67 with tight spin that he located to both sides of the plates. There is a whole lot more in there.  (Video)
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