By Sean Duncan

Many of the top sophomores and freshmen prospects from Illinois, Indiana and Wisconsin participated at the Chicago White Sox Silver and Black showcase at Triton Junior College in River Grove, Ill. on September 27. The assemblage of talent indicated that the future is definitely bright in the Midwest.

While there were many standout performances at the six-hour event, these players stood above the rest:

·         Jordan Minch, LHP, Highland HS (Indiana), Class of 2012:  As arguably the top pitching prospect at the event, this long and wiry left-hander showed on 83-85 mph fastball with excellent run to go along with a 68 mph curveball. Minch (pictured right) carved up the hitters in his two innings work. He will no doubt be one of the top prospects in Indiana in the coming years.

·         Jake Junis, SS-RHP, Rock Falls HS (IL), Class of 2011: The 6-foot-2, 190-pound Junis was clearly the best hitter at the event. Strong and physically gifted, Junis has an advanced plate approach and a powerful, compact swing. As a freshman last spring, Junis was the starting shortstop and pitcher for his high school team that took second at the Illinois Class 3A state tournament.

·         Sam Maher, LHP, Kenosha (WI), Class of 2011: With a loose arm and clean mechanics, the left-handed Maher throws three pitches for strikes and has a mature mound presence. Free and easy, his effortless 80-81 mph fastball leaves one to believe he will see a significant velocity spike in the coming years.

·         Cory Kay, Catcher, St. Viator HS (IL), Class of 2011: The event’s best catcher, Kay impressed with his defensive and offensive skills. Kay threw out three of four runners during the game and has excellent feet and hands. At the plate, using wood, he was the only player to tally two hits, including a double to the left-center gap.

·         Brett Lilek, LHP-OF, Marian Catholic HS (IL), Class of 2012: This wiry left-hander solidified himself as one of the best freshmen prospects in Illinois. Lilek (pictured right) showed an incredibly quick arm and an explosive fastball that climbed as high as 84 mph.

·         Kyle Klosak, RHP, Naperville North HS (IL), Class of 2010: A young junior, Klosak showcased the event’s best fastball – 85-88 mph – to go along with a slider. With his clean mechanics and three-quarters arm slot, Klosak is one to keep an eye on in the coming years.

·         Keelan Prince, RHP, Rock Island Alleman HS (IL), Class of 2010: At 6-foot-5, 190-pounds, Prince is remarkably athletic and is extremely loose. He showed an 82-84 mph fastball, but the junior has been up as high as 88 when in baseball shape. Also a standout basketball player.

·         Mike Barajas, SS, Nazareth Academy (IL), Class of 2011: Haven’t seen a player in the Illinois  sophomore class pick it better than Barajas. Has extremely quick hands and actions, with good feet and ability to cover a lot of ground.

·         Mason Snyder, SS, Ottawa HS (IL), Class of 2011: An all-around player, Snyder has top-level hands in the field, a strong arm, good feet and an advanced hitting approach at the plate. During the games he doubled and made a tremendous play in the hole.

·         Brendan Hayden, RHP, Racine (WI), Class of 2011: This 6-foot-5 right-hander is a power arm who is physically strong and developed. He showed an 84 mph fastball that is said to have gotten up to 87 in the summer.

·         Nick Collins, OF, Rich Central HS (IL), Class of 2011: This athletic 6-foot-1, left-handed hitting outfielder has an extremely quick and explosive bat. He also demonstrated good arm strength from the outfield.

·         Blake Hickman, Simeon HS (IL), Class of 2012: At 6-foot-4, Hickman has an athletic frame and is a quick-twitch athlete. He’s raw behind the plate, but he showed excellent arm strength in workouts (2.10, 2.15 pop times) and quick feet. His brother, Christian, is a senior standout shortstop at the Chicago Public League school.

·         Spencer Mahoney, SS, Lyons Township HS (IL), Class of 2011: This left-handed hitting shortstop has a strong frame, quick hands and plus arm strength at shortstop.

·         Quintin Richardson, INF, Simeon HS (IL), Class of 2011): Athletic and extremely quick, Richardson showed well at several positions. He was a freshman impact player at Simeon as a freshman last spring.