Prospect Breakdown-District I

By: Nick Nickles-July 30, 2007

Andy Fowler-P/2B, Spartanburg Methodist Signee: Fowler is a small-bodied guy with a big arm. He resembles Tim Hudson in a uniform with his stature. Fowler did run out of gas over the first five innings and dropped down to 84-85 around the 80-pitch range of his start that went 6+ innings. Fowler is a legit upper-80’s guy hovering between 87-89 and topping out at 90. Fowler worked his fastball on both sides of the plate. His change-up was very effective and much better than previous outings. Fowler’s curveball is a get-me-over variety, but with his arm-speed, Fowler’s hook could be another serious pitch added to his repertoire if he would not “baby it”. Fowler is very effective when he keeps the ball down and tends to get hurt when he leaves the ball up with regularity in the zone. Fowler was the 2A/3A MVP in the North/South game and continued tonight to show why he was one of the better pitchers in the class of 2007.

Arturo Mogrezutt-3B/SS, Spartanburg Methodist Signee: Mogrezutt (left) is a very aggressive hitter at the plate and showed some opposite field power and speed by driving a fastball into the right-centerfield gap and legging out a triple. His infield actions have improved and he has plenty of arm strength across the diamond as a 3B/SS. There is no doubt about Mogrezutt’s talent. He can play anywhere and the ability he has to swing the bat makes him a very diverse player. The fact remains that Mogrezutt could still be a better ballplayer than the level he plays. A moderate risk-high reward pick-up for SMC.

John Bolding-1B/P, Erskine Signee: At 6-2 and over210 pounds, Bolding played an above average first base tonight with very good reaction time and footwork. Bolding stabbed a one-hop smash hit by Michael Roth to his right and then hustled back to the bag with ease to make the great play. He has a presence in the middle of the line-up, and has hit balls this summer that have disappeared. He led the state in homeruns (14) and RBI (59) in his senior year at Pickens High School. Bolding could be the best homerun hitter you have not heard about. Bolding has the ability to be a four-year, two-way starter and All-American at Erskine with an 88-90 mph heater in his arsenal.

Austin Ashmore-OF, 2008 Greer HS, South Carolina Commit: The left-handed hitting outfielder has a lot of potential and some pop in his bat. The timing mechanism required from the open stance to square up the fastball seems to give him fits when he gets change-ups away. He invites you to come inside, but has shown with some regularity that he has no problem dropping the hands on it for extra bases as he did tonight in a 2-for-3 game with a double. He appeared close to 100 percent from his knee injury that forced him to miss most of his sophomore campaign. Ashmore will be continue to be one of the best hitters in the class of 2008.        

Jake Koenig-2B, 2008 Greenville HS, Unsigned: Koenig doesn’t wow you with any tools, but he is a solid ball player. He has average infield actions and an average arm, but makes the plays. He doesn’t strikeout much and puts the ball in play. A solid player that lacks pure power, but should find a spot on a college roster due to fact that he can help you and not hurt you by knowing his limitations and maximizing his abilities.

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Prospect Breakdown-District VII

By: Nick Nickles-July 30, 2007

Matt Pegler-RHP, 2009, Riverside HS, Unsigned: Pegler was 84-86 and topped out at 87. He was a fastball-curveball guy tonight and was touched up for five runs. He was consistent tonight but ineffective at times. Pegler seems to have abandoned his change-up, which has been an above average pitch for him in the past. The couple of change pieces he did show were at 73 and 74 MPH respectively. Pegler’s curveball was 68-69. It is an above average breaker but there is a 17 MPH difference between the hook and the fastball, giving the hitters plenty of time to sit fastball and adjust to put it in play. Pegler still has a good upside and he has three pitches he can throw for strikes. He kept his team within striking distance, and worked the outer half of the zone for strikes all night. It will be interesting to see if Pegler will have a jump in velocity by next summer.

Paul Nitto-Catcher, 2009, J.L. Mann HS: Nitto is a big-time player in the making. Nitto (left) is a catcher, but was the DH backing up John Nester tonight. Nitto looks the part physically as a high-end division one catcher. He takes a serious hack, and got the first hit of the game off an 88 MPH fastball that he lasered through the 6-hole. All indications point to Nitto playing showcase baseball this fall all around the state. He is a guy that pro scouts should take a peek at over the next couple of seasons and college guys get on immediately. He will enter his junior year in the fall.

Peter Kovanda-LHP, 2008, Blue Ridge HS: Kovanda is an interesting prospect. A tall left-handed pitcher who threw at 84-86 MPH and sat at 84 in his relief appearance of Matt Pegler. His breaking pitch was 72-75 and improved as his outing progressed. It was a late breaker and didn’t bite much, but was extremely effective behind his fastball to the District I hitters. Kovanda’s stock improved with college coaches who were in attendance after this outing. He couldn’t have pitched much better and took control very quickly in a game that could have gotten out of hand. He is a definite follow guy.

Michael Roth-1B, 2008, Riverside HS, South Carolina commit: Roth is locked in at the plate again. Following a little bit of a slump after his sophomore year that basically just lacked consistency, those days seem to be in the past. Roth has had a great tournament hitting several homeruns and has helped his team battle their way back to Easley. Roth displayed smoothness in the box followed by electric hands toward the baseball. He was robbed of a base hit and scorched a ball later down the first base line that would not be gloved until it reached the fence in the corner. He fouled several good pitches off that he was right on tonight, and all of his at-bats were deep count, quality battles. Roth is one of the top players in the 2008 class.

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