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College  | Story  | 6/27/2023

Cape Cod Notebook: June 27

Photo: Austin Overn (USC Athletics)
RHP Hayden Durke, Chatham, Rice, 2023 

Durke has now barely pitched in the last two seasons, most recently being suspended throughout the entire 2023 season. In his first two starts he has shown off his great arm strength but the command and results have been lacking. He has a very quick delivery w/ a ¾ arm slot. He uses a medium leg lift and lands inline finishing balanced above the belt with some head jolt to the delivery. His fastball was 95-98 and touched a 99 and he really leaned on it to start the game, occasionally missing arm side and up. His curveball is his best pitch inducing seven whiffs at 83-86. It’s a 12-6 hammer w/ great bite and he was able to make hitters look silly on both sides of the plate. His third offering is a gyro slider 87-89 that mimics Shane Bieber’s slider with a movement profile of 0 inches both vertically and horizontally. His future profile is interesting with his lack of innings recently both keeping the miles down on the arm but reducing his experience.  



RHP Nicholas Judice, YD, Louisiana-Monroe, 2023 

Monday night featured a duel between two eligible pitchers, starting with Nicholas Judice. He is a tall, long-levered righty with a low ¾ crossfire delivery. He throws from the stretch with a high leg kick and a long arm extension before landing slightly early. His fastball was 91-93 with some run. His slider is fringy pitch with inconsistent shape though it flashed above average potential. It was 83-86 and was mostly 2-plane and occasionally was a full blown sweeper with double digit horizontal shape. He felt comfortable throwing it to both sides of the plate and induced 8 whiffs mainly down to the glove side. His split-change was low 80’s, he didn’t quite kill the spin consistently and floated it in the zone. He also threw it to both sides of the plate and it is a fringe to average pitch. Judice was mostly a reliever in school and has potential of being an early day one name with a tough arm slot and decent stuff.  

RHP Jake Peppers, Orleans, Jacksonville State, 2023 

Peppers faced off against Judice and looked solid in his four inning start despite running up the pitch count. He sets up on the first base side of the rubber and side steps into a pause before a leg lift, he then really yanks his front side and whacks his head making it a rather violent delivery as he falls off to the first base side of the mound. His fastball was 92-96 with some arm side run and he held his velocity throughout the entire start. His slider was 82-84 with a gyro downer shape and was his best pitch that missed the most bats. His changeup also flashed solid potential in the mid 80’s, throwing it only to lefties. Also a name to keep an eye on for day two of the draft but he will likely make another start or two on Cape.  

RHP Izack Tiger, Falmouth, Butler County, 2023  

Tiger has some impressive arm strength despite the secondary stuff lagging behind. He sets up on the third base side of the rubber and brings his hands overhead as he side steps before an upright medium lift where he tucks his heel and finishes inline below the belt. He started his outing with some spotty command, mostly leaving everything below the zone and in the dirt. He mainly relied on his fastball even as he settled in, it was 94-97 with ride and held the velocity popping multiple 97s in his last inning of work. He also throws a hard cutter and changeup rounding out a hard pitch mix overall. The cutter was 86-90 and was a fringe to average pitch at best. His changeup was only really thrown to lefties and he struggled to spot it close to the zone. The velocity is promising and Tiger could really serve to benefit by adding a curveball to his high ¾ release spot. A change of pace pitch that changes the hitter’s sight line would be a big step in his development at the next level.  

RHP Janzen Keisel, Cotuit, Oklahoma State, 2024 

Keisel transferred to Oklahoma State after playing his freshman year at BYU. He barely pitched all year after  battling an injury and inconsistent command and reliability hurt his usage when healthy but has some upside given his arm strength and velocity plus a good frame. Fastball had two different shapes with his high spin 4-seam 93-96 being more effective, mixed in a lower velocity 2-seam that was more low 90's and less productive. His slider is better than his cutter at present with more sweep and can develop to an above average pitch. Cutter lacks much horizontal movement.
 
RHP Jay Driver, Hyannis, Harvard, 2023 

Driver was one of my favorite pitchers last summer but struggled when I saw him pitch against Ivy League competition this spring. Driver has a medium athletic frame and starts his motion with a side step into a leg lift where he tucks his heel before dropping and driving with his back side. He bends forward and throws from a low release point but his arm slot is still around ¾. He finishes above the belt and falls off to the first base side of the mound. His sweeper slider is his best pitch thanks to the horizontal movement he can generate from his release point and is 80-84. It’s a plus pitch with a great movement profile and he commands it well arm side and glove side. His fastball was 92-93 in his relief appearance but he started the summer in the rotation and traditionally has dipped more to the low 90’s in his starts. He mixes in a low 80’s change but it is still a work in progress. Driver’s stock was at an all time high after last summer and he has a chance to prove he can still shove pre draft.  

RHP Tanner Witt, Chatham, Texas, 2023

Witt missed a lot of time in the past two seasons due to Tommy John surgery but returned to make 5 starts at the end of the spring, though they only totaled 9 innings. He started on Friday night for Chatham, the same team he excelled for two summers ago. The long-levered righty sets up on the third base side of the rubber, he steps into a pause before a high leg kick with wrap, he stays upright with a short arm extension and lands online with a ¾ arm slot before falling off to first base. He’s still making his way back from injury and Witt can hopefully regain pre-surgery form sooner rather than later.


OF Austin Overn, Orleans, USC, 2024 

Overn has been atop the Orleans lineup since day one but will be leaving soon to join Team USA like many of the other top-tier underclassmen. He is a two-sport athlete playing football and baseball at USC. His athleticism is on full display as he has double-plus speed at the least while appearing to fly even while he is jogging. He led the country this year with 14 triples while hitting .314 for the Trojans. His athleticism expands to the outfield where he navigates center field well and shows great range. There is not much power to his game but he is a very twitchy athlete. 

IF Ethan Gourson, Falmouth, UCLA, 2024 

Gourson is another big name to join the Falmouth Commodores for a short stint before joining Team USA. I was only able to see him once but he impressed homering in his third at bat against a tough cross-firing lefty which as I'm writing is his only hit down here so far. He has a compact swing with a small load and a bit of an uppercut swing path. He played middle infield at school but has played 3B for Falmouth and has the arm for the left side as well as good actions on the dirt.  

OF/1B Jace LaViolette, Falmouth, Texas A&M, 2025 

LaViolette was a freshman All-American for the Aggies as he hit 21 HRs to the tune of a 1.046 OPS. There is swing and miss to his game which can be expected from a big player with a long powerful swing, but he is hitting .389 with 7 hits and 4 walks. LaViolette has played mostly left field and he has above arm strength alongside some sneaky speed that doesn’t always come with his size. He can steal an extra base on the base paths despite not necessarily being a burner down the line. He rounds out the Falmouth trio that will head to Team USA this weekend.  

1B/3B, Billy Amick, Hyannis, Clemson, 2024 

After an All-American season with Clemson where he finished the year batting over .400, Amick shocked many when he entered the portal in his first few days on Cape. Amick has a relaxed setup at the plate with a high handset and uses a small load with a timing step. He has plus raw power and has continued to impress in the bat-to-ball department this summer. He has impressed at the hot corner so far after mainly serving as the designated hitter for the Tigers. He now has 10 hits in 7 games with 2 home runs and 2 doubles. 

OF James Tibbs III, Brewster, Florida State, 2024 

Tibbs has a loud toolset alongside a sweet looking left handed swing. It's a power profile with a plus arm in the outfield and plus raw power. He sets up with a slightly open stance and a low handset. He takes a big stride but generates great bat speed and can really drive the ball. He had a big year for the Seminoles hitting double digit home runs and doubles and I think his Cape League numbers will start to catch up to his ability at the plate.  

OF Brett Bateman, Cotuit, Minnesota, 2023 

Bateman is a great athlete and has showed off his toolset and then some so far this summer. He hit .354 with 17 stolen bases at school. That speed and hit combo have been on full display as he currently leads the league hitting over .500 and is towards the top with 5 stolen bases. He has a wide, slightly open stance at the plate and has a simple operation with great feel for the barrel although he doesn’t have much pop. He is still able to shoot the ball gap to gap for extra base hits. He moves well in the outfield with an above average arm and is really raising his draft stock with an all around impressive pre draft performance.  

-Sam Capobianco
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