Exclusive aXcess
Big Board!Top College Players
This is a list of the best draft-eligible college players we’ve seen on the island. The limitations are that a) we have not seen every player and b) we have not seen every player multiple times. Nevertheless, this is based on our best resources and unbiased opinions. February 14, 2019 Vito Friscia, Junior, Hofstra Hofstra makes it 5-1 on a solo HR by Vito Friscia, his 6th of the year. pic.twitter.com/M2tHkFxsvI — Axcess Baseball LI (@axcessbaseball) May 4, 2018 Friscia has powers in droves and will be the biggest reason that scouts come out to Hofstra this season after sending three players to professional baseball last season. He has appeared more as a DH/1B as opposed to a catcher, which makes it more challenging for him, but Hofstra says he will be a catcher for the bulk of the time. Al...
Which Players Haven Risen Their Stock the Most This Year?
As you see in any sport, players can greatly help or hurt their future outlook by their performances on the field. That seems like common sense. The thing is, sometimes it doesn’t even have to be in a real game. Look no further than the 2018 NFL Draft in which Baker Mayfield rose his stock incredibly in a short amount of time, which didn’t even feature him in a game! That happens in any amateur sport, because you’re dealing with a lot of speculation and information based on one person’s observation. I’m guilty of it too. I may only get to see a kid play once or twice and my opinion of him is based on a very small sample size. As a scout, it’s my job to make snap judgements. Sometimes I’m right, sometimes I’m wrong. This article will be highli...
Insider Notes: March 24
by Nick Vecchione Below are my scouting observations from yesterday’s game between Stony Brook and Quinnipiac Nick Grande Standing at 5’11 Grande sports a straight up stance with quiet hands sitting about shoulder height. He is the epitome of a complete situational hitter, which is why the 2-hole compliments him quite well. He is talented enough to have a gameplan entering each at bat, keeping the pitcher off balance as to what he’s trying to accomplish during each plate appearance. At times he looks to clearly be trying to put the ball on the ground to utilize his speed to reach base. Furthermore, he can take advantage of the defense playing back by featuring his outstanding bunting skills. Additionally, given all factors within a game, he can showcase an abnormally large upper cut ...
Who Were the Best Performers at Today’s Blue Chip Showcase?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m5yVp_42nMk This time of year is crucial for college coaches as they are looking to acquire the top available talent. Events such as the Blue Chip Prospect showcases always get good turn outs because they tend to get the best uncommitted players in the region. I was in attendance today at the Mitchel Athletic Complex and was impressed by a number of the players. Below are my top five position players and pitchers. Position Players: Chris Peralta: 6’1″ 180 lbs Valley Stream South ’18 Chris Peralta (Valley Stream South ’18) showing off his arm in right pic.twitter.com/nfgMisMDa3 — aXcess Baseball (@axcessbaseball) July 25, 2017 I’m a huge fan of Peralta because he is such a versatile and athletic player. He has gap-to-gap pow...
What is the Best School to Recruit From?
Those who follow closely know that there are high-level, impact players all over the island. A small number of the schools are responsible for a vast majority of the best players. Obviously, there are external factors that give certain schools advantages such as the socio-economics of the city, the average income of the parents, demographics, the quality of the school’s head coach/athletic director. Here is my best effort to compile a list of some of the other best high schools to recruit from… Shoreham-Wading River: They have had three Carl Yastrzemski Award winners (Keith Osik, Mike O’Reilly, Brian Morrell–twice), and a handful of other high-end Div-I players (Eric Strovink, Bryan Sabatella, Tyler Osik, Nick Bottari just to name a few) and they just graduated four players he...
Insider Notes: April 9
Through out the season, Exclusive aXcess members will be able to read our Insider Notes section based on observations from a scout’s perspective. Today I was in attendance for the Maritime vs St. Joseph’s showdown at Gregg Alfano Field in Patchogue. It was a crucial match up for two reasons If Maritime won both, they were in the driver’s seat in the Skyline Conference If St. Joseph’s won both, they were in the driver’s seat in the Skyline Conference. As it ends up, the two teams played at completely different speeds and the Golden Eagles won both games by the score of 7-0 while getting complete games from both Brandon Lubrano and Josh Outsen. I was a bit surprised that Maritime was so flat offensively. In Game 1, they only mounted a couple of rallies but the m...
Insider Notes: March 30
Today I was at Wantagh vs Bellmore JFK to watch the rematch of the Nassau County Class A Finals. The game was basically over as soon as it began, but I was able to jot down some notes from a scout’s perspective on some of the top players in the game. Here’s my takeaways: Jimmy Joyce: Head Coach Keith Sachs stated that he has no doubt that Joyce is the best player on Long Island. He has a point–he’s the reigning Class A Player of the Year, and as many people will tell you–Joyce plays with that chip on his shoulder that makes the opposition hate him. College coaches love that because he’s not out there to make friends. He struggled with his command in the first inning, throwing 26 pitches but he worked out of the jam by picking off the trailing runner at f...
Insider Notes: March 20
Today there were three scrimmages going on simultaneously at Baseball Heaven. I was able to watch a little bit of all three of them and here are my observations from them: Bellport vs Floyd: A.J. Verga started for Floyd and he was impressive. The sophomore has pretty clean mechanics and the ball explodes out of his hand. He got lots of swings-and-misses. If they are to have a big season, he will be a big reason. Ryan Bouman smacked a HR over the right field fence. It got out in a hurry–not a typical majestic HR but a line drive that barely got off the ground. It was very impressive. I hadn’t heard of him, but that swing certainly got my attention. Very few legit power hitters from the northeast. He is uncommitted but if he’s going to swing like that during the regular sea...
Insider Notes: March 8
Through the season I will be posting my observations of games from a scouting standpoint. Today I was at NYIT @ Hofstra, in which the Pride protected their field with a 14-3 victory. Here are some observations: Teddy Cillis: He got the start for the Pride, and they used one pitcher per inning, but it was a great outing for him. He struck out two batters–the second and third place hitters. Cillis is one of the few two-way players on the island at the college level and he is very deserving of it. He hit nine home runs last year and throws 91 MPH from the left side. He works very quickly, which is good when he is throwing strikes, but he does have the propensity to get overly amped and lose the zone. In my opinion, he is a closer because he can let it all out for one inning with no fear...
Insider Notes: February 28
Through out the season, I will be posting my observations from the games I attend from a scout’s perspective. It will not always feature positive reviews, but they will be what I gather from my years of watching the game. Here’s a rundown of a few of the top players in yesterday’s game: TJ Santiago: It was the first time I’ve watched him in-person. He was every bit of the hype. He has a 3/4 delivery but is no gimmick. Velocity was 87-89, his splitter is a true weapon at 82 MPH and his slider was 77 MPH. He sustained his velocity through 7 innings–which is even more impressive that it’s his first outing of the season and it was February 28. Santiago also showed a lot of fire. There was a lot of intensity after his big strike outs. The one downside was tha...
Insider Notes: February 25
Through out the season I will be posting my observations from games in the Insider Notes column. It will be for Exclusive aXcess members only. It will include scouting reports and detailed descriptions of player’s strengths and weaknesses that they show in the game. Today I was at the Sacred Heart vs. NYIT game. Here is the information I gathered based on my conversations with the scouts that were in attendance: Elias Martinez: He is definitely on the draft radar. The Mets, Yankees, Orioles and Phillies were there to watch. He is a big, strong pitcher that throws hard (87-89 MPH in this outing but has thrown 96 MPH in the past) and has command of his breaking ball. In this game, he threw 100 pitches and threw 65 percent strikes. He showed a very good ability to throw breaking ba...
Neal’s Knowledge: How to Control the Running Game
I had the pleasure of playing for Jim Leyland for three years. Sitting next to him was like going to Harvard for 12 years and studying baseball. I learned a lot from him and he taught me if you don’t hold guys on properly you will run yourself right out of the game. It is very important for pitchers to keep the running game in check and there’s several ways to do it. I will break it down for lefties and righties. Lefties: You have a huge advantage. As we saw from Jon Lester, you don’t even have to throw the ball over in order to prevent runners from stealing. Leyland told me the most important thing is being able to vary how long you hold onto the ball prior to your delivery. Base runners love seeing a pattern with how many looks you give and how many seconds you are in y...
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