Written by: Jake Tillinghast
Follow him on Twitter: @JTillinghast27 & @GiantProspectiv
Follow Prospects Worldwide on Twitter: @ProspectsWorldW
The biggest annual event in the high school ranks, the Perfect Game All-American Classic. 54 of the nation’s best athletes put on a heck of a showing in OKC. Where we saw the West team win their 5th straight. And some great performances all around.
Here, @JTillinghast27 & @GiantProspectiv each picked 3 hitters, and 3 pitchers who stood out to them. With their thoughts and takeaways.
Make sure to take a look at our Perfect Game All-American Classic previews, where every single athlete had a write-up on them, Jake and Wrenzie each had an article out with great information on each of the players, be sure to check them out at the links below!
Jake’s PGAAC All Players Preview
Wrenzie’s PGAAC Pitchers Preview
And our draft board with over 500 player reports will be released sometime this month! Be on the lookout for that. So much information, reports, data, grades, etc in there we cant even begin to explain.
Jake Tillinghast – @JTillinghast27 Standout Picks
C – Harry Ford – R / R – 5’10, 200 – Commit: Georgia Tech
No question Harry Ford is one of my favorite players in the entire draft process. I’ve said it multiple times, but I’ll say it again. The skillset at the position is unmatched at this level, and most any for that matter. The only players that come to mind with similar skill sets in Minor league or the big leaguers are, J.T. Realmuto, Dalton Varsho, and Dillon Dingler. All are excited comps who have made a big name for themselves at different levels of the game. Harry has a chance to follow in each of their footsteps with his skillset, and ability to stick behind the plate (something Varsho likely wont be able to do).
What you are getting with Ford is Above-average defense and RAW Power, which he clearly showed he can tap into the pull side (shown by his HR in the video below during the Classic). I have him as a 45 Grade Game Future Power, which would project for roughly 15-19 HR per season, and could see a “career year” or 2 with 20+ HR seasons. Lofty expectations no doubt, but Ford has proven he is up to the task.
The power has shown up big and rather consistently for Harry this summer to the pull side, and yesterdays game was no different. On a pretty decent pitch, a low slider from one of the top arms in the class, Drew Gray, he crushed it into the LF bullpen to leave a huge final impression on all watching.
He has a low setup at the plate that has leaves his at risk of being attacked with consistent high fastballs. To this point, he has shown an ability to use his quick hands and bat speed to find barrels up in the zone, but as he faces consistently better pitching, could be something to monitor. But until he shows the need to adjust, let him continue doing what got him here. The natural talent takes over.
He showed well behind the plate, making multiple athletic plays and actions throughout the game. Some pitchers had a hard time and weren’t giving him much of a chance with spiking balls, but made the most of his chances. Still room to improve with his receiving and blocking, but there are no questions about his ability to stick behind the plate. Although, he would be more then capable at filling a number of positions around the diamond if the need ever became a reality.
C – Ian Moller – R/R – 6’1, 200 – Walhert HS, IA – Commit: LSU
By now we all know of Ian’s talent. It’s hard to not buy into it. Not often you see HS catching with the advanced bat he has, with the ability to stick behind the plate. Ian offers that. And if we take a quick look back at the 2019 draft, the first 2 HS Catchers selected were Tyler Soderstrom 26th overall, who most would agree will be moving out of the catcher position, next was Drew Romo 35th overall, who has legit defensive traits, switch hit ability but the bat has some question marks. Comparable.. Moller is a bit of a mix between the 2. Showing that ability to be an impact bat, as Soderstrom has, and showing ability to stick behind the plate, as Romo has, however not showing that gold glove potential at the next stage as Romo has. But a middle of the order bat form the catcher position is a dream for any organization.
In the 1st at bat he popped up in 1st AB where he got a 6+ second hang-time that shows off some of the RAW Power he has. 2nd AB he found cutter from Maddux Bruns that was poorly located and didn’t miss it, just barely missing a HR to LF off the top of the wall (shown below). Mixed in a walk
During his last at bat, facing Irving Carter, he flipped in a 2-0 curveball, showing respect to the bat of Ian. All Ian could do was smile and laugh back out at Carter. Fun little moment in the game between 2 players who have a ton of history together. Tells you a bit about the respect Ian has as a player, a 2-0 count in a showcase style game and he gets a nasty breaking ball on the outer half. Not much you can do but smile back at a friend.
He came away with the Rawlings Gold Glove award for best defensive catcher in the country for the HS ranks. It was a pretty fun and impressive showing from Ian. You got to see the talent on full display and him enjoying himself out there, smiling during at bats, making gestures and head nods towards the pitcher, as to say “nice pitch”. Ian’s been the #1 catcher for me from the start of the process, and I don’t see that changing leading into draft day. He has solidified himself as a 1st Round pick. The overall package is tough to pass up.
SS – Edwin Arroyo – S/S – 6’0, 170 – 2B/SS – Arecibo Baseball Academy HS, PR – Commit: Florida St
The #1 player in Puerto Rico showed off his skills throughout the game. Switch hitter, switch thrower (when he pitches) above average defender and shows plus barrel control from both sides of the plate. One of the youngest in the class, will be a few months shy of 18 on Draft day.
In his 1st at bat he faced Max Debiec and had a quick 3 pitch strikeout on a fastball away. Other then that, really showed out well. Making the plays that came his way and showcasing his skills in the box
He showed well defensively at 3B, and also saved a run from scoring on a throw down to 3rd base on a steal attempt. Aggressive base running on that 1st single in the video below, hard out of the box thinking double all the way showing off his plus speed. (60 Yard Dash: 6.51 sec)
How about that 2nd hit? What a gorgeous piece of hitting that was. Taking a 96 MPH fastball on the outer half from James Peyton Smith and lacing it into left field. His first at bat he took an outside fastball into RF on that stretched double, here he shows an uncanny ability to flip this ball into LF for a hard single. Of all the swings we had yesterday, this might have impressed me the most.
He shows quick hands and really strong wrists, vertical bat angle and hip separation. There is some power potential in here as well, I have graded as a 50.
Leading into the event in my PGAAC Pregame article I mentioned I was looking for a bit better overall approach by Arroyo, staying within himself and using the whole field with his barrel control and hard hit rates. He did that, not selling out for power here and finding the outfield grass and using his entire skillset to his advantage.
Arroyo versatility, youth, and athleticism are tough to match in this class. Or any class for that matter. There is legitimate upside and athleticism that will give him so many different avenues to find success at the next level.
RHP – Eric Hammond – 6’4, 185 – Keller HS, TX- Commit: USC
This was an arm I was pretty excited to get a look at. With some of the best physical projection in the class, a 4 pitch mix that pops, and electric arm speed, there is no question Hammond has as much upside as any in the class. With legit helium potential to find himself in the first few rounds of the draft.
The fastball was sitting 90-92 MPH, and when the frame fills out, you can see him sitting 94-95 with relative ease. And when you can work that up in the zone, with a big downer breaking ball that’s been registered at 2400-2550 RPM, an above average changeup that was fades hard in on Right handers, AND a slider into the mix, yeah we have some excitement here.
Hammond showed up big time on the biggest stage. In his 1 inning of work, Hammond struck out the side, all swinging on breaking balls, showing that true swing and miss ability. The curveball was showing plus consistently, with downer action, working so well off that high fastball as you will see below in the video, 1st pitch is the Fastball, and the next 3 showcasing his filthy curveball and changeup. Getting swings and misses from good LHH on said curveball, showing that confidence you need to attack platoon advantaged hitter. As well as some disgusting R/R Changeup that not many prep pitchers have the confidence in, or an ability to command it as well as he showed.
I was expected a loud, fun outing, but I don’t think I was expected to come away this impressed. That was impressive stuff from Hammond. Legitimate starter traits you can dream on. Hammond may have one of the best all around repertoires in the prep class with that 4 pitch mix, mixing in a Slider we didn’t get to see much out of, but its in there, as a league average pitch that shows some big horizontal movement and finds swings and misses vs RHH. Expect to hear Hammond’s name on early in the Draft next July. There is so much untapped potential left in here.
LHP – Mason Albright – 6’0, 190 – IMG Academy HS, FL – Commit: Virginia Tech
Albright picked up right where he as all summer. As I mentioned in my PGAAC Pregame write-up, a player who has steadily been climbing my board as the summer has progressed and he has continued to impress with each new look I get. He worked quick, efficiently and pounding the zone with glove-side fastballs and tunneling his plus slider off that, proved to be to difficult for the lefties.
He got Cody Schrier to pop up on a 2nd pitch Fastball, which was leaked out over the plate, followed by 2 strikeouts of Carter Jensen and Jac Caglianone (both lefties). And that was all we saw from Albright. An impressive outing working ahead, quick, pounding the zone, and showing what makes him such a tough at bat vs LHH.
Not overpowering, but the command, tunneling of his fastball and plus slider were to much to handle. Striking out the 2 left handers he faced. He will continue to be a tough AB for lefties with that arm slot, ability to mix up his delivery, locate his fastball, and mix in quality secondaries. Slider as I mentioned, grades as plus and the Changeup flashes 55s, but settles as a 50.
We didn’t get to see a much of the changeup in this outing, a pitch I was hoping to see a bit more of and also how he handled RHH (just faced 1, Cody Schrier, and just 2 pitches needed), two things I was hoping to see a bit more of heading into the event, but I cant exactly complain with the performance he put on. Solidified himself as a Top 5 HS LHP for the 2021 class.
LHP – Carter Holton – 5’11, 175 – Benedictine Military HS, GA Commit: Vanderbilt
Carter came firing bullets early and often. Striking out 2 of the best hitters in the class, Jordan Lawlar and Ian Moller, back to back on 96 MPH Fastballs. Max McGwire grounded out off end of the bat right back to the mound to quickly end his inning of work. Holton just feels like an uncomfortable AB with his ability to run the fastball up to 96 in on your hands not giving you much room to breath. Pretty electric stuff.
His smaller frame so well, getting incredible drive ff that back leg, with a near 90-degree angle open the back leg, and strong extension on each pitch. Some deception mixed in, a fastball that sits 93-94 T96. Gets ugly swing and misses on all his pitches, but today his fastball was untouchable and didn’t really need much else. So electric with the heater from the left side generating tons of swing and misses, with all those traits listed and you can sprinkle in some fairly good command there a lot to like.
He had some trouble finding the release point on his slider, but again, really wasn’t needed today, but you would like to start seeing some more consistency with it. But man… This was extremely loud, and making many evaluators re adjust their draft boards. Mine included.
In past events the Slider has been sharp and pretty tough on lefties. But his bread and butter is his 96 MPH fastball he can blow by hitters with ease. Some have some risks he may end up in the bullpen with his smaller frame, highish effort delivery, and secondaries that need a bit of tuning up
Wrenzie’s – @GiantProspectiv Standout Picks
RHP – Jackson Jobe – 6’2″, 190 lbs – Heritage Hall HS, OK – Commit: Mississippi
The Spin King or Mr. Spin It to Win It, Jobe pitched in the 6th inning of the game for the West squad while in the lead. Before the game, I expected Jobe to flaunt his 3,000+ RPM breaking ball quite often in a one-inning stint, and expected him to gain a couple more ticks in his fastball since it is grip it and rip it time.
In the game itself, he checked my expectations. He looks very athletic on the mound with clean mechanics, he gained a couple more ticks with the fastball as he was hitting 95-96 MPH with his fastball, and he threw several beautiful sliders with his final strikeout registering at around 3,100 RPM. What I did not expect from him was that his changeup flashed plus once, much better than what I saw a couple of months prior.
I was running out of words to just explain what I saw from Jobe.
Like plenty of the big name pitchers in the game, Jobe suffered through some bouts of wildness as he struggled to repeat his release point and stay on top of both his fastball and slider. Nonetheless, he got through the inning unscathed and as written earlier, got the strikeout on that breaking ball.
Before the game, I thought Jobe has one of the highest ceilings in the draft class because of the athleticism, projection in his frame and velocity, smooth and powerful mechanics, and the ability to spin the baseball at an elite rate. After the game, I still think Jobe has that mid-rotation ceiling with room for more because I can see him sit in the mid-90s that he flashed in that one-inning burst if he added more muscle in the offseason, and if he can stay on top of the ball more consistently. If he could make those positive adjustments, he is a first-round, likely rounds 2-3, material.
RHP – Chase Petty – 6’1″, 185 – Mainland Regional HS, NJ – Commit: Florida
It did not took long for Petty to step on the mound as he handled the second inning for the East squad. Before the game, Petty was expected to be the one to deliver the fastest pitch of the day aside from Chase Burns. In the end, Petty registered the premium gas of the game. How hard, you must ask.
That was not just 98-99 but is as straight as an arrow. That ball had tremendous life, running and sinking violently as it travelled to the catcher’s mitt. Even when the catcher asked to backdoor righties with the hard stuff, the pitch had so much movement it drifted to the inside half of the zone. Petty generated that much velocity because of his tremendous hip-shoulder separation and shoulder abduction.
In my opinion, Petty’s secondaries looked great as well, with his sweeping slider and his changeup flashed plus, and he used his secondaries as his putaway pitches. There was such a big velocity difference between his fastball and slider (almost 20 MPH difference) that one can say that he was throwing a curveball. There were some struggles locating his fastball in the zone, most likely due to nerves, but he was such a fun guy to watch and was pretty chatty (in a good way) on his outing.
With his already present plus repertoire, Petty has the potential to be a first-round material as a starting pitcher with mid-rotation or better ceiling. There are some things that might be considered as issues to some people like his command on the outing and he looked like he did not have much projection in his frame. In my opinion, he just have to be more physically mature in terms of toning his physique and get more reps. With all things considered, I see Petty as a special-looking arm.
RHP – Irving Carter – 6’3, 200 – Cavalry Christian Academy, FL – Commit: Miami
It took around 4 hours into the game (I was already pretty smashed at this point from waking up at 4 in the morning) when the pitcher that I am waiting for to step on the rubber. The last pitcher in the schedule, Carter stepped on the mound with a runner on first base.
The unfortunate thing is that even though Carter was notorious for showing off his body balance and athleticism on the mound by incorporating Johnny Cueto-esque shenanigans in his windup, I did not see any of the double clutch, quick pitch, or any other variations because of the runner on base. That did not stopped the right-hander to exert his presence on the mound, as he showed off low-90s fastball with sink and his plus secondaries, with his changeup faded hard and his slider had two-plane break.
Carter’s final stat line did not really tell the whole story because if the catcher could have done a better job blocking the changeup in the dirt for a strikeout pitch and not overthrew the ball to register the out in first base, it could have been a much easier task for him to finish his outing.
Carter’s matchup with Ian Moller was no doubt the best mano y mano of the day. Both exuding high confidence and competitive spirit, never giving in to one another. The right-hander, with the Fernando Rodney cap tilt, threw a 2-0 breaking ball that Moller took and all that Moller could do was laugh in disbelief because Carter pitched backward on him and was located on the edge outside the zone. The count went to full and in true competitive fashion, Carter threw a breaking ball that was a good looking pitch to chase and a real putaway pitch and Moller just spit on. The friendly banter continued but it was really good at-bat to watch.
Even though Carter’s outing was shorter than others, his performance on the mound solidified what I thought of him as a pitcher. He should be one of the most fun pitchers to follow moving forward and he has early-round potential. However, Carter could really took off and be a top of the first round-type of prospect if he decides to pitch in college. I am just a big fan.
SS – Alex Mooney – R/R – 6’1″, 175 – Orchard Lake St. Marys Prep. HS, MI – Commit: Duke
On the hitters side, it would not be a standout players without the game’s MVP, Alex Mooney. When I was looking at the deep shortstop class as I was immersing myself in the 2021 draft class (specifically, prep players), Mooney was one of the sleepers in the position. I thought that his defense at the position is potentially plus, with his arm capable of throwing 94 MPH in the dirt, plus range, and good fundamentals.
However, how much will he impact the game offensively is the big question. At the biggest event of the year, he’s proven that there’s excitement with the bat as well.
All in all, Mooney was the star of the game, with 2 singles, a walk, a stolen base and this booming triple off lefty Pierce Coppola.
Mooney possessed a quick stroke with strong wrists and quick twitch to produce that bat speed with that wiry strong frame. Not only was the bat really impressive, his defense was also on point, where he made a spectacular turn on a ball from Schrier to turn the double play that just oozed athleticism and I clapped on that one.
Even though it’s just one game, Mooney’s performance was loud enough to make me think that he is a first-round prospect that will stick at shortstop with the quick bat and the impressive defense at short. His power potential and the age at draft day will be the deal-breaker though as how much muscle will he put on his body in the future is the big question in my mind. If he can turn use this game as a stepping stone for future success, Mooney is a potential everyday big leaguer.
And they did just that. Mooney walked away with the Games MVP. Well deserved.
SS – Jordan Lawlar – R/R – 6’2″, 185 – Jesuit College Prep. HS, TX – Commit: Vanderbilt
I was warned by Jake about what I will see regarding Jordan Lawlar. In a non-verbatim way, he told me to buckle up as he’s just ridiculously talented and polished.
In my opinion, the tools are true. Lawlar is one of the best players in the draft overall with potential for at least four above-average tools in the premium position, with his power grading out as average. I think the thing that impressed me the most about him in the game is not that he’s flashy, it’s just that the game is not too big on him. The stage did not looked daunting at all. Performing is just what he does on a normal basis.
Both of his two hits were opposite field shots, the first one was a scorcher down the right field line and the second was a line drive to the place where there are no defenders around. Oh, those two hits came from Andrew Painter and Maddux Bruns (on a good pitcher’s pitch), respectively. Those are not just regular prepsters. Those are some of the best that this draft class has to offer, and for Painter, the best. And Lawlar just showed them who’s boss.
Like everyone else, I am sold on Lawlar as a prospect and he has the chance to become a top shortstop in the Majors for a long time. It’s just rare to see someone with that frame, that kind of barrel control, plate approach, raw speed, arm strength, footwork in the dirt, and touch in his throws not become at least a big leaguer. He is a surefire top 10 draft prospect in my opinion.
OF – Jay Allen – R/R – 6’3, 190 – John Carroll Catholic HS, FL – Commit: Miami
Before the game, I was actually a high guy on Allen as Jake told me to get some notes on him a couple of months before because he wasn’t sure if what he saw was for real. But what I saw in multiple looks are the oozing athleticism that reflects on all facets of his game, and his already good know how of the strike zone even though he is a top prospect in football as well. I was really excited to see him play in the game and get some live looks on him, albeit online.
Even though Allen did not record a hit in the game, he got on base twice via a hit by pitch and a walk. Even though I only saw Allen posted an above-average 60-yard dash before, it was definitely not above-average this game as he was just untouchable on the bases as a base stealing threat. After being got hit by a pitch by little to lead off the game, Allen got a good jump and stole first base easily even if Moller’s throw was accurate. He also stole third base on a double steal attempt that Moller just decided to eat it. On that ball four pitch to James Wood, the ball popped out of Moller’s hand and Allen took advantage of that big time when he scored the first run of the ballgame on a head first slide. Not afraid to get that jersey dirty that’s for sure.
Allen showed good eye and patience at the plate when he got on base via the free pass. Like in the first inning, Allen decided to run on Moller once again and even though Moller’s throw was on target, Allen beat the throw with a quick first step and plus speed.
Even though Allen did not get a base knock on the game, Allen definitely made impact on the game via his aggressive base running. Even though there are some reports that he’s cooled off a bit recently with his bat, but I am still a believer of the bat and the approach. If he can commit his time to playing baseball full-time, he can be a really good player, an early-round selection potentially, based on the impact that he can do in center field, with his bat, and in the base paths.
You can find all our 2021 MLB Draft content by clicking here!
Follow us on Twitter @ProspectsWorldW
SUBSCRIBE To our YouTube channel! For amateur and Minor League prospects
Featured Image Credit: Perfect Game
4 thoughts on “2020 Perfect Game All-American Classic Standouts”