Plano West Scouting Reports

The main prospect at Plano West is Billy McKinney, who I wrote about here. In this post, I will look at some of the other players on the team.

Preston Betz is a really small looking right-handed pitcher with a violent delivery and mechanics

He would over throw at times, and his curveball would slip out of his hands a lot and hit right-handed batters. This make you wonder how big his hands are (and he didn't have a real feel for his off-speed stuff). His slow curve was too slow, but the fastball looked hard and can get gloveside tail.

Kosuke Nishitani is not a fast runner, and is a small leadoff hitter from the left side. He seems to have solid plate discipline with a quick bat. His swing doesn't lend to power, but he hit the ball hard the other way. The junior throws right-handed and also pitched. This was the weaker part of his game, as he threw a ton of curveballs, along with a soft arm-side fastball that would get some sink.

Connor Smith is a senior catcher (also strangely listed as a centerfielder). He was too glove happy at blocking balls. He didn't have a particularly strong or accurate arm. He just missed a pull homer, with a 5.06 second flyball the wall.

Mason Gentry is a very tall senior first baseman that is thin now. He struggled defensively on routine plays, and was not athletic, and had the awkward run that comes with the size. He should grow into this so to speak, but he is obviously staying at first base for his playing career. At the plate, he struggled with pitch recognition, but hit a 4.18 flyball to center.

Riley Wayland didn't show range at 3rd, and was a well below average runner (4.5-4.6 to first base). However, he will take pitches at the plate, and had a 5.66 pop up tome to shallow left. Aaron Draper showed decent range and arm at shortstop. The arm proved to be strong, but his angels to the ball were a little weird.