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Tournaments  | Story  | 10/24/2017

World Championship Day 5 Notes

Vincent Cervino      Greg Gerard     
Photo: Perfect Game

2017 WWBA World Championship: Daily Leaders | Stats | Day 1 Notes | Day 2 Notes | Day 3 Notes | Day 4 Notes

Starting the day out in the quarterfinal round was Canes Prospects starter Jack Jasiak (2019, Spring Hill, Fla.) who turned in a sterling outing to send the team to the semifinal round. The South Florida commit had an extremely efficient outing that saw him strike out six in seven innings of one-run baseball with no walks on only 74 pitches. Jasiak worked the fastball early and often against the opposing batters with a fastball that registered up to 88 mph, and he showed pretty good command of the pitch by working it to either side of the plate. There is some effort to the overall delivery, however, he was able to sit in the 84-86 mph range throughout his performance even in the seventh inning of the affair. Jasiak also mixed in a tight-spinning breaking ball that registered up to 2,500 rpm.

The San Francisco Giants Scout Team/FTB advanced to the championship game of the tournament to take on the Canes Prospects and their offense had a big part to play in that success. Players including Riley Greene (2019, Oviedo, Fla.), Kendrick Calilao (2018, Kissimmee, Fla.) and eventual tournament MVP Preston Hartsell (2018, Newport Coast, Calif.) all had big roles to play.

Greene, a Florida commit, was the sparkplug out of the leadoff spot for the team and his lefthanded swing has been mentioned multiple times over the course of the weekend. Greene has excellent hand-eye coordination with pretty good bat-to-ball skills and the ability to create loft on the swing. The speed also stood out as he stole multiple bases and got very good reads on the opposing pitchers. He went 3-for-4 with four RBI in the semifinal round and 2-for-4 with three RBI in the championship game.

Calilao had the go-ahead hit in the semifinal game against the Ohio Warhawks, where he sat back on a breaking ball and drove the ball into the pull-side gap for a triple. The Florida commit had one of the most important hits of the tournament and has shown a very high ceiling for his hit tool.

Hartsell was named the MVP of the tournament for going absolutely bonkers in Jupiter as the Southern California commit finished with a .421 average and seven RBI. Hartsell has very impressive and projectable hitting tools with excellent bat speed, natural leverage and a lot of raw power thanks to his strength. All of which profile well for hitting at the next level as he certainly proved how tantalizing his hitting is over the course of the event. One of the more impressive hits Hartsell recorded was a triple down the right field line in the semifinals that came off the bat at 102 mph.

The Canes Prospects walked away as champions of Jupiter thanks to an extra-inning victory over FTB/SF Giants Scout Team. Patrick Alvarez (2019, Charlotte, N.C.) and Tucker Flint (2019, East Greenwich, R.I.) were both very impressive in the championship as they both played big parts of the offensive presence of the team.

Alvarez, a North Carolina commit, was a game-changing presence near the top of the lineup with multiple important hits on Monday. He added the insurance run in the semifinals with an opposite field triple that showed off his speed by being able to fly around the bases. He had another 87 mph triple in his first at-bat of the championship game and later came around to score. The swing is compact and quick through the zone with good hand speed that culminated with a 94 mph single later in the game. He finished the championship game with two hits.

Flint, a Maryland commit, had the go ahead hit in the ninth inning of the championship game and he has a very loose and projectable swing. The lefthanded swing is fluid with a lofted swing plane and he is able to generate good bat speed with the ability to impact the ball hard. He had multiple 90-plus mph exit velocities over the weekend and came away with the biggest hit of the Canes Prospects’ season.

The Ohio Warhawks finished with the third place finish and put up a good amount of runs in the process. Infielders Buddy Floyd (2019, Marietta, Ga.) and Luke Boynton (2019, Marietta, Ga.) stood out on Monday as the underclassmen showed good poise and the ability to impact the game.

Floyd, a recent Georgia commit, showed his top-of-the-order hitting tools as well as very sound defensive ability on Monday. Floyd may not be the tallest player on the field, listed at 5-foot-6, however he plays the game well and is always in the mix of the important plays. The switch hitter has very quick hands at the plate with a short, line drive oriented swing, which produced a 90 mph line drive single to the pull side. Floyd made a number of impressive pays defensively to display his very quick hands and exchanges as well as the ability to maintain body control on the run with a couple of well played ground ball outs while charging in.

Boynton, a recent Nebraska commit, is one of the strongest players in the event and all year long has produced some of the highest exit velocities over the course of the season, and he launched another high exit velocity shot on Monday with an opposite field bomb to right field. Boynton is full of well-proportioned strength at 6-foot-5, 220-pounds with the ability to generate incredibly hard hit balls. He shows a good amount of lift in the swing and his powerful fly-ball approach works well for a lot of long light-tower home runs.

Canes National played in a consolation game on Monday and righthander Stephen Pelli (2018, Arnold, Md.) showed off some good stuff in the process. The 6-foot-, 215-pound North Carolina commit fought through some command issues but he ran his fastball up to 91 mph early on and worked in the 87-90 mph range throughout. Pelli utilizes a full arm action with a deeper plunge through the back. He comes through on time with good arm strength and mixed in an 11-to-5 breaking ball that he could throw for strikes. Pelli also mixed in a changeup to complete the three-pitch arsenal and has the chance to start at the next level.

The AZ D-Backs Scout Team made a loud statement in Jupiter, knocking out the No. 1 seed in the East Coast Sox to advance to the semifinals where they lost in 11 innings to the eventual champion Canes Prospects. In the process shortstop Jonathan Ornelas (2018, Peoria, Ariz.) made a highlight reel play, showing off his range with a diving stab while ranging to his right, reaching out with full extension to stop the ball. He then got to his feet from very deep in the 5-6 hole to make a strong throw with carry and accuracy to nail the runner at first. The play was very impressive and showed off the Tennessee commit's actions at the shortstop position, as well as his arm strength. He followed up that exceptional play with a single up that middle that was squared up well and finished the day with four base hits. Ornelas's overall athleticism and tools are fun to watch. 
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