LATEST PG SHOWCASE REPORT
2006 National Showcase
Justice French is a 2007 right hand hitting shortstop/pitcher from Collins Hill HS, residing in Suwanee, GA. He has a long, lean, lanky, loose body type on his 6'4" 185 lb. frame which has plenty of room to fill out. There is some life in that body which combined with future strength gains makes French one to watch very closely. He ranked #96 among PG National Top 100 position players and if he was a pitcher only, he was plenty good enough to be ranked in the top half of the Top 85 pitchers at PG National. At the plate French sets up with a square stance and kind of has an old-school approach to hitting. He is clearly up there to hit and is not overly concerned with looking pretty or looking for a particular pitch to hit. He is aggressive to all pitches in all zones and has a natural instinct for hitting. From a technical breakdown, he does have a flat swing plane and maintains good balance throughout his swing. His approach is aggressive, pull side approach. French has excellent hands for hitting. They fire easily and quickly. Basically he is a see it and hit it kind of hitter, which is fun to watch. His swing can look long but he is actually pretty direct to the ball and overcomes any swing length with good timing and excellente hand-eye coordination. French is a very projectable bat, the kind of hitter that shouldn't be messed with too much by hitting coaches. Put him in the line-up and let him go, he will produce. On defense he looks pretty big out there as shortstop and some are going to want to move him to another position, but to do so at this stage of development would be hasty. Frensh has a quick release and good feel for the game that serves him well at shortstop. He has solid average raw arm strength that will continue to get better. He did play particularly well at 3rd base and has a body that may eventually outgrow the middle, so file that away. His lateral range was good and another plus for the hot corner. On the mound French is very interesting. He pitches from a high 3/4 slot and has a very easy, quick arm. The ball has a lot of life out of French's hand and considerable sink with lively action down in the zone. His arm action is similar to Padres right hander Jake Peavy. French pitches with good rhythm and like the rest of his game, he has good feel on the mound. His fastball was 85-87 mph, with projectable velocity. His breaking ball was a slippery 70 mph slurveball and he showed good feel for his 73-74 mph change-up. French has good mound presence and is a quick worker. He is a ground ball pitcher who can get outs early in the count. French ran 4.45 home/1st and posted a 6.87 60 yard time, speaking to his athleticsm. He is a top D1 prospect that should continue to get better and better as he plays. He would seem to have his best professional opportunity after college, possibly on the mound if the velocity comes.