Top Prospects Class of 2012 - Your Turn

I'll give it a shot:

Josh Sborz P/1B...McLean HS/signed at UVA/on Canes 16U Champ at East Cobb

I'm a NOVA guy, so I see these guys alot more than I do other areas.

Sborz definitely belongs.

I'd also say Tyler Thomas from Woodbridge. Probably best pure hitter to emerge so far from the 2012s in Virginia and is solid on the mound as well. You really can't do more as a sophomore than he did for Woodbridge last spring.

Is Sborz a younger brother of the major leaguer?

Pro scouts always like "bloodlines". So he may be one to watch for the draft come June 2012.

With guys that young, it's difficult because often you have kids with substantial talent who have not yet matured to the point of achieving top results consistently. You believe they will, but sometimes they disappoint you.

That being said, I see Nathan Kirby (James River) as a LHP who's already at 87-89 and likely to grow to the 92-93 mph range by the time he's a senior. So he has to be on any list.

Stephen Brooks (Deep Run) sits at 86-88 and has brushed 90 as a RHP already, so he has the potential to become a 92-96 mph guy over that same time. The one thing I worry about with Brooks is whether he'll focus on his pitching enough to realize his full potential.

Stephen Godfrey (Douglas Freeman) is not quite as high MPH wise, I think he's more of an 85-88 guy, but could grow to a low 90's guy in 2 more seasons. He has a compact, repeatable delivery and his command is superior already. He shows a great head for pitching as well. I don't know if he'll ever get to where he just blows guys away, but he will shut teams down regularly. I would expect his stats to surpass those of Kirby and Brooks come spring even though some might say the other 2 have more stuff.

Collin Lawless (James River) has shown an elite bat, hitting over .600 as a sophomore, first team all region and hon. mention all state AAA. If his power grows and his catching skills mature, he's a top guy in 2 years.

Sborz older brother is with Detroit. Up and down between AAA and Majors this year.

From PG site...threw in the '13's as well. I don't know if these guys belong here, but Perfect Game wrote them up. Recognized a few of the names in other threads during the season.

- Scott Van Steelant (2012, RHP, Woodgrove HS, VA) pitched vs for the Orange team vs his own team (White) next. His fastball sat in the 78-80 range, he has a tall athletic build, throws from an over head slot and creates good down plane on his fastball, he has a clean delivery and has he matures his velocity should increase.

-Mitchell Aker (2012, MIF, RHP/OF, Paul VI Catholic HS, VA) was 1-3 today and showed good opposite field pop, he also pitched two innings for the Orange and sat between 83-86 topping out at 87, he has a live arm with good arm strength as he demonstrated yesterday throwing 90 MPH from RF. His fastball has good arm side run and sink, he will need to make some minor adjustments to help his control but he has a lot of upside and tools to develop.

-MIF Mitchell Aker (2012, Paul VI Catholic, VA) showed the strongest arm of the day throwing 90 mph from the outfield.

-LHP Thomas Rogers (2013, Lake Braddock HS, VA) might have been the most impressive arm in the game as he sat in the 80-84 range with a polished delivery and clean arm action. He also flashed a solid 2-8 curveball and showed a feel for his change-up.

--RHP Adrian Powell (2013, Broad Run H.S., VA) topped out at 83MPH and sat at 80-82 in his fastball with a 67-70 curveball, 72 slider, and a 67 change. Powell has a 2 piece arm action, high ¾ arm slot, and locates his pitches well. Powell’s curveball is a 12-6 where the bottom falls out.

From the 2012's I have seen last year:

Pitchers
Stephen Godfrey (Douglas Freeman)- 85-87, touched 88 @ PG - a true pitcher
Tim Kelly (York) - 85-87
Sean Kennedy (N. Stafford) - 85-87 from left side
Nathan Kirby James River) - 86-88 from left side
Josh Sborz (McLean)- 87-89, touches 90 - verbal to UVA
Zak Wasilewski (Tazewell)- 90-92 from left side, also a top OF

Catchers
Luke Lowery (Cosby)- 1.93 with 77 velo @ PG, physical hitter
Matt Reed (Loudon Valley)- 2.00 with 79 velo @ PG
Christian Younce (Kellam)- 1.90 with 78 velo @ PG

Infielders
Ty Best (Hickory) - 2B/3B - led Canes North in hitting this summer
Matt Campbell (Hickory)- SS - makes all the plays
Brandon Lowe (Nansemond River) - SS - developing power, 3 HRs this summer
Tyler Thomas (Woodbridge)- 1B - a top hitter
Dylan Raymond (Giles) - 3B/RHP - top hitter & 85-87 on hill

Outfielders
Garrett Brooks (Western Branch)- verbal to ECU
Josh Henderson (Homeschooled) - plus speed and power
Kyle Moore (Nansemond River) - plus arm, plus speed and good batspeed

Of those, I know Luke Lowery well, and shame on me for overlooking him in my first post.

Luke has just gotten very strong and now has HR power to all fields. Scary hitter at this point. Definite high D-1 prospect with ability to stick behind the plate at that level or move to a power position like 1B if he wants.

Nykolai Ellis (Grassfield) would have to be near the top of the list for catchers, although he is a "Richmond Brave" he is definitely a stud.

"Although"?

You make that sound like a negative thing.

I'm wondering if anyone knows Jack Delaney from Northern VA he played with my son's team (Richmond Braves) in East Cobb. He was killing the ball that week. I did not see him at the Braves workout this weekend. Anyone know who he is playing with this fall?

DC Heat what do you mean "although"?

Yes, Nykolai can play. I didn't mention him because I didn't see him last year.

As for his "although"...it's because all of the catchers I mentioned are Canes kids. I thought we had this petty stuff behind us...

No, trust me, it never stops.

Sorry Redbird, did not know that it was petty. I'm new to this and I was trying to find out where a kid ended up this season. That's it.

Bfdent, my comment wasn't directed at you. Not at all.

Besides which, he gets extra points for coming up with "bfdent" for a screen name. Has to be a BoSox fan!

Rob it was a joke... ha ha lighten up bro. Man can we have a little fun on this page, it seems you are always ready to battle, give it a break we have put it behind us atleast I have.

Buck,

bfdent, if you want to track down Jack, contact the Strike Zone Academy in Alexandria.

Venkman- no didn't really want to track him down. I thought he might be playing with the Canes but I guess not. IMO he was a definately a 2012 to watch. I saw him 2 weeks in NC and WWBA in East Cobb.

Anyway thanks for the nods on the name, although Bucknerball was a close second.

2 more...

Shane Johnsonbaugh (Western Branch), RHP/OF - 82-85 on the mound, touched 87. Great pop and 7.0 speed

Kyle Moore (Nansemond River) OF/RHP - 90 from OF, good speed, good pop.

Another stab from NOVA:

Kyle Corwin: SS/P Westfield HS/NVTBL Stars

Mitchell Aker (Paul VI) - up to 87 on the mound and 90 from the OF. Solid hitter

Since the 2011 thread was so much fun, here are the 2012 VA kids who are in the Top 350 (that's as far as they've listed):

1 Zak Wasilewski LHP/OF - Tazewell (22 Nationally)
2 Josh Sborz RHP - McLean (95) - UVA
3 Tyler Thomas 1B/RHP - Woodbridge (99)
4 Stephen Brooks RHP - Deep Run (118)
5 Michael Taylor RHP - ChristChruch (129)
6 Luke Lowery C - Cosby (147)
7 Nathan Kirby LHP/1B - James River (193)
8 Kyle Moore OF - Nansemond River (198)
9 Jack Wynkoop LHP - Cape Henry (208) - South Carolina
10 Hayden White SS - (240)
11 Matt Campbell SS - Hickory (252)
12 Matt Reed C - Loudon Valley (277)
13 Tim Kelly RHP/OF - York (283)
14 Joe Warren RHP - St. Stephens St Agnes (299)
15 Mitchell Aker RHP/OF - Paul VI (312)
16 Stephen Godfrey RHP - Douglas Freeman (340)
17 Christian Younce C - Kellam (350)

Interesting names on this list. Especially if these ranks are HS propects nationally. As always heavily weighted toward the pitching.