Baseball Recruiting Class '16-'17

[Donald Boyles]

Let's talk about the '16-'17 Longhorn Baseball Recruiting Class. Perfect Game has updated their rankings and this class will be ranked in the top 5 when they sign their LOI in November of '15.

1st up is RHP Mason Thompson from Round High School. If Mason wasn't such a polish pitcher he would make a very good Right Fielder. Not only does he have a strong arm, but he also has good speed and and enough pop in his bat to make some noise. Watch for Mason to lead the Dragons in the HR category this year. Thompson is Rank #2 in the State and 17th Overall for his class

I know the next question will be, But what about the June draft of 2016... All I know is that Mason loves working with Skip Johnson.. Will that be enough to spurn the MLB..

OF/LHP Connor Capel(Son of Mike Capel) Very good all around player(#3 in the State & #29th overall). 17u PG WS MVP. Very interesting on the mound and up to 89 at PG Junior National. I actually like his bat better and outfielder's skill set then I do his mound presence. Capel attends Seven Lakes in Katy, Texas where he will be called upon to carry some of the work load on the mound. But, it is his stick where he will make the most noise this year as a Junior.

LHP/OF Kyle Muller(#5 in the State & 42nd overall) from Jesuit High School out of Dallas and also plays for DBAT during the summer. Muller is a young man that I was able to see during the Area Code tryout in Weatherford last July. That is where he began to make some noise and where Skip took notice of his capabilities.

Shortstop Austin McNicholas(7th in the State and 57th overall) was the 2nd one to commit for this class(Mason was the 1st) and that was during the summer after his Freshman year. Since then McNicholas has done everything to improve on his game. He is Stronger, Faster, & quicker. McNicholas is from Austin Akins High School and plays for Midland Redskins during the Summer.

Outstanding defensive SS. Bat projects. Very good at NUC Main Event

Part 2 tomorrow

 

[joeywa]

Good stuff Donald. 

 

[Johnstark23]

Nice job Donald

 

[Etex Horn]

Thanks for the great report, DB!

 

[GBT]

Question is will many actually make it onto campus after MLB draft. ?????

 

[HornSports Staff]

BOOM.  Thank, Don.  We're ready for the season to start!

 

[Matt Cotcher]

Looks like I need to get to RRHS this Spring.

Thanks, Don!

 

[Donald Boyles]

Question is will many actually make it onto campus after MLB draft. ?????

This is the trend that Skip and Tommy are taking when it involves recruiting. They are going after the guys that want to further their careers at the University of Texas. They want ball players that want to come in and continue the long tradition of Longhorn Baseball.

Now, anything can happen between now and June of '16.. But, I will be willing to put it out there right now.. that all of them will show up come Fall of '16.

 

[Donald Boyles]

RHP Blair Henley(10th in the State of Texas and 83rd overall) is another young man that saw his stock rise last summer. Henley is from Arlington Heights and also plays for the DBATs.

Blair Henley is a 2016 RHP/OF with a 6-2 175 lb. frame from Fort Worth, TX who attends Arlington Heights HS. Tall and angular broad shouldered build, lots of room to fill out and get stronger. Standard leg raise delivery with some back lean, high 3/4's arm slot, arm is clean and fast, lands a bit cross body but gets hips clear, repeats his release point well, low effort release. Very steady 87-89 mph fastball, occasional darting life, works fastball to spots. Nasty hard slider is a potential plus pitch, has power and a sharp, deep biting action. Only threw one curveball but it was very good, also with depth and power. Has some deception and the ball seemed to get on hitters quickly, induced some uncomfortable swings and at bats. High ceiling prospect with lots of present stuff and skill. Good student.

Kevin Rolliard(11th in the State and 90th overall) is a RHP/OF from Klein High School that also plays for the Marruci Elite Red out of Houston. Rolliard has been on my radar but not my camera...

Kevin Roliard is a 2016 RHP/3B with a 6-2 175 lb. frame from Spring, TX who attends Klein HS. Nice projectable athletic build, lots of room to get stronger. Big high leg raise delivery, short quick arm action, tight high 3/4's arm slot, good downhill angle to the plate. Topped out at 91 mph early on his fastball, settled down into the upper 80's, fastball mostly straight. Curveball has good power and tight spin with hard 12/6 bite and shape at times. Showed confidence in his changeup. Was around the plate with all pitches and competed. Left handed hitter, short line drive swing, handles the barrel well from a low hand start, spray contact. Good student.

The next young man is Andres Sosa(12th in the State and 91st overall) from Reagan High School(San Antonio) and his summer team, Banditos.

Andres P. Sosa is a 2016 SS/3B with a 6-0 175 lb. frame from San Antonio, TX who attends Reagan HS. Medium athletic build with good present strength. Right handed hitter, late crouch and hand load, short compact swing with very good bat speed, hard pull line drive contact with occasional lift and power, very confident hitter whose "hit" tool really comes alive in games with constant hard authoritative contact. Polished defensive tools, smooth and balanced to the ball, compact arm action and release with very good arm strength, ball carries well, can play shortstop at present but will have to increase range/foot speed to avoid moving to third base in the future. Bat looks to be his carrying tool. Good student, verbal commitment to Texas.

Jaxx Groshans is a 2016 C/1B/OF with a 6-0 178 lb. frame from Magnolia, TX who attends Magnolia HS. Large, athletic frame with a lean, projectable build and room to fill out with additional strength. Ran a 7.06 60-yard dash. Primary catcher, clean and fluid mechanics behind the plate, pops out of crouch well, gains ground with lower half, stays low and shows a quick transfer on accurate throws to second base. Short arm action from the outfield, strength on throws, works through the ball well with some snap at release. Right-handed hitter, starts with a crouched stance and a spread lower half. Long and quick swing with a nice handle for the barrel, consistently squaring up live pitching. Creates line drive contact with leverage in swing, shows strength to all fields with present pop gap-to-gap. Solid tools all around. Very good student. Named to National Underclass South Top Prospect List.