cg12 wrote:
Aside from a full-time job, I give a few pitching lessons at a baseball academy up here in NWA just to stay around the game. Caleb Kimbel works out year-round and plays for the academy in the summer.
PBR was spot on with their eval. He is a bit stiff in the way he moves, but has a lot of raw potential. I know the staff was a little bit hesitant to pick him up, but personally I think he is one of the more underrated players in his class.
Based off of what I've seen, he is the kind of player I would want in my locker room. He's an extremely hard worker, always has a positive vibe about him, and is a good teammate (maybe the most important intangible asset in baseball) . He doesn't say a whole lot but is a leader by example. Aside from being a freak in the weight room, he has the size/build and power to be dangerous in the heart of the lineup. He has a short simple swing, but the ball flies off his bat. He covers a decent amount of ground because he gets good jumps on balls and throws probably mid-80's from the OF. He has a good sense of awareness about him in terms of where to go with the ball and when to take some calculated risks.
He'll have to work on his flexibility no matter where he plays, and will probably need to get a little bit faster if he is going to stay in the OF. If he stays healthy and buys into the system, he may be one of the best pick-ups out of this class. And if the OF doesn't work, he's got the size to play 1B. I'll be interested to see how well of a fit UCA is and how he progresses.
He did very well as a junior in the 7a West and there were some pretty good pitchers in the conference. He should be even better this year. I agree that he's not exactly a premium athlete as far as speed and movement, but he should continue to hit and could end up at first base.
Gilberston from Cabot is a pretty good pitcher and could come in and help in 2018 as a freshman if he continues to develop. I don't know much about the rest of the 2017 signees.