Perfect Game Classic

I only got a chance to watch a couple of innings....  I could not believe the speed of some of these kids, some  under 6.2   60 's speed is crazy.

Before the game they were interviewing the Rawlings defensive POY   , I think that was the award, kid is 5'8".

I didn't know what position he played and an immediate short player bias entered my brain... first play of the game he is at SS, he dives  , makes a back handed grab gets up throws a bullet to 1st. Made a believer out of me.. I think his last name is Allen.

I should have recorded the game, hope they replay it.

Nick Allen

https://twitter.com/Reece_deC1...s/765036207088734208

MidAtlanticDad posted:

Nick Allen

https://twitter.com/Reece_deC1...s/765036207088734208

That's the play, kid looks like he's 12 years old, with a 20 year old arm !

I have watched a lot of baseball and it's not the smaller players who struggle, it's the weaker kids who have problems.

There are some very explosive and powerful athletes in small bodies. 

He was impressive. He swung it pretty well, too. But by and large the kids were, well, large -- only 2 kids out of the 52 are listed under 6'. Rosters here:

www.perfectgame.org/Allamerican/Roster/Default.aspx

And the speed, as MMM1531 said, was really notable. Quentin Holmes has a 6.15 time, Jordon Adell a 6.19, Adam Hall a 6.29, etc., etc. The color commentator for MLB TV said that it was the skill set that really stood out for the 2017s, in comparison to previous classes.  

It was a really fun game to watch and those kids can flat out play.  I was curious about the trackman data related to the pitchers.  They mentioned release points and extensions and I wasn't sure I followed it all well (and seemed like announcers didn't explain well either).  The 6'9" lefty Miami commit had a release point at 6'7" and an extension of 7' (I believe those were the numbers).  I assume that means where the ball left his had was at a height of 6'7" and the release was 7' from the rubber (effectively a 53' pitch).  Is that a correct interpretation?  Is there an ideal "release" point percentage based on height?  Interesting information to say the least...

6.2 60? Mmkay.  The USA Baseball club tournament testing in July (Arizona) had 100 kids under 6.6 including kids I know from our area that had never run sub 6.9. I'm not buying it. Lot of hot watches out there.

tres_arboles posted:

6.2 60? Mmkay.  The USA Baseball club tournament testing in July (Arizona) had 100 kids under 6.6 including kids I know from our area that had never run sub 6.9. I'm not buying it. Lot of hot watches out there.

The PG times were electronic, outdoor.  As in any 60, there is always some variation of where the start/finish are, but no fast watches on the times.  While the track may have been a few inches short of 60, comparison from one time to another are completely consistent, which is to say the fastest time recorded was, in fact the fastest time there, and the slowest would be the slowest.

Laser times are usually faster than hand held stop watch times. Over the years we have determined laser timing is somewhere near .15 faster on average.

There are several reasons why running times are different.  Obviously the biggest difference is the running surface.  The biggest difference between hand held and laser timing is laser is much more consistent, it takes away the human factor.  Back when we used stop watches we would get as much as two tenths difference between scouts.

Laser starts when the starting beam is touched.  Stop watches start one of two ways, signal or usually drop of the hat by starter.  Some use first movement.  At the finish line the time is recorded as soon as the runner touches the finish beam.  Scouts tend to play it safer and make sure the runner has crossed the finish line.  Anyway, that is what I used to do.

Most always the tape measure is left out marking both ten yard and sixty yard distances. So it is always accurate!

Consistency is something MLB scouts and college coaches want.  They don't want to trust someone else's stop watch time.  When they see a laser time and know cheating is not allowed, they have a time they can use.  Even if they want to add time to what is reported, they know what was reported is accurate and consistent.

This year's HS class might have more speed than any other class we have seen over the past 21 years.  

We have a kid who just started 9th grade who can REALLY run. Ran a 6.33 in Ft. Myers last month. Some guys questioned it until they saw him run and then felt like the time was legitimate. 

Did Hunter Greene not look like a can't-miss prospect and a guy headed for the HOF? To see it in person was something else.

Hunter Greene's talent is very rare.  He is probably the best player in this class and for sure the best pitcher in this class.  And that is not to take anything away from others in the class.  Early favorite for 1-1 IMO. Think I will tweet that and start some controversy.

Roothog, Glad you got to see it.  Sorry, had to leave Monday so missed the Underclass AA.  Hope your son had some fun, there were a lot of outstanding players there.

PGStaff posted:

Hunter Greene's talent is very rare.  He is probably the best player in this class and for sure the best pitcher in this class.  And that is not to take anything away from others in the class.  Early favorite for 1-1 IMO. Think I will tweet that and start some controversy.

Roothog, Glad you got to see it.  Sorry, had to leave Monday so missed the Underclass AA.  Hope your son had some fun, there were a lot of outstanding players there.

We were very happy with the event. He did well. The talent was something else. The game at Petco was a lot of fun as well. My impression was that it had to be a real blast for the players. To watch, for example, young kids (and more than a few adults), bunched up around the dugouts with their posters and pens extended looking for autographs, was cool. For most of those kids, it must have seemed surreal. My favorite moment was watching the Hall kid walk around the park with the autographed poster while about a hundred kids followed him around like puppies. The smile on his face was huge. That game was inspiration to my son who has already planned out his off-season workout with hopes of improving enough over the winter to make that game next year.

roothog66 posted:

Did Hunter Greene not look like a can't-miss prospect and a guy headed for the HOF? To see it in person was something else.

Big-time talent. It seems like the 2017 class in SoCal has some really, really high end talent (that West team was about almost 50% SoCal). Some of the leagues are incredible. Watching Greene pitch, he sure looks like the favorite for 1-1 . . . I'm just astonished that high school kids hit him at all. I posted this about Hunter Greene on a different thread a few months ago:

The story makes sense given the location. And typically I suppose a 90+ pitcher will toy with HS hitters. But, believe it or not, there are some high school batters who can hit 90+.

There's a local kid who was described recently by ESPN (i.e., not a Dad) this Spring as throwing "94-96" and on a different occasion this Spring as throwing "91-96." He's projected to eventually be a first-rounder. Here are his five league starts so far -- one absolutely dominant, one good, one poor, two fairly decent. He's obviously very good -- I'm just surprised that HS hitters don't all have the reaction described by KANDKFUNK, above.