Getting YSU Baseball 🐧 dialed in heading into a... scrimmage Focus on swing decisions, adjustability, and swinging with intent to do damage. -Mix machine Compete time, move fast and see shapes -Live arm BP Short bat depth ladder👉Posture and adjustable POC Skinny bat around the world👉B2B skills and ball flight goals Hunt a zone👉Learn the strike zone and figure out where you can win -Mini hack Bat gauntlet👉Find the barrel, be a problem solvershow more

I’ve watching hundreds, maybe even thousands of hours of... elite MLB swings. This video work was done to determine their bat path. Their bat path determined their hard contact zone. As a catcher, my goal was to be above their bat path, or below their bat path. This was accomplished by utilizing velocity, movement, and obviously, location. The disruption of a hitter’s timing creates weak contact or swing and miss. Whenever I saw hitters that had a lengthy (3.5-4ft) of FLAT bat length in the zone, I knew that we would have to be very careful. These types of hitters had much room for error in their swing. They could be late, and line it oppo, or, they could be early on a hanger, and would pull it for damage. The more downward barrel tilt I saw, the more knob up I saw, and more barrel casting toward catcher I saw, it was always a lesser hitter I was watching. Perfect example here of a flat path. High heater, and flush contact. If you see barrel drop or a cast behind on this pitch, it’s a foul ball, swing and miss, or, a pop up on the infield.show more

I'm bullish on a Florida State OF Max Williams... breakout going into 2025. Whiff% fell 8 percent in 2024; in-zone whiff% fell 14%. Chase% skyrocketed, but bat-to-ball metrics out of zone made considerable strides. Evolving swing. Will flash 70-grade raw power. Fringy runner with solid arm strength though he's shown above average routes and reads in the outfield. Can handle CF in a pinch. Some athletic traits to like. Just 20 years old for the Draft. A little Dylan Dreiling in the whole package/operation.show more

Was happy to get my first look at SS... Rock Arnold (OSU Cowboy Baseball) down in Jupiter. Went 1-for-2 in the game I saw him and hammered a backside RBI triple. Recently re-classed into the C/O 2026. Listed at 6'1" and 190-lbs, Arnold has a lean, athletic frame with some length in his lower-half and present strength. Stands fairly tall in the box, small leg lift gives way to a normal stride. Hands will drift and drop a bit in his load that includes a barrel tip. Present bat and hand speed, slightly uphill swing path that's geared towards lifting the baseball. There's a degree of adjustability in Arnold's swing, and he's shown the ability to drop his back knee to help create leverage. Some swing and miss, particularly against secondaries, but Arnold's swing decisions were sound and he stayed within the strike zone in my look. Has shown he can impact the baseball—especially to the pull side. Arnold's athleticism is evident both in the box and on the dirt. Flashed an above-average arm on the left side of the infield with solid carry across the diamond. Didn't display the quickest first step on the play I saw him attempt to make, though he showed comfortability attacking the baseball. Figures to get the chance to stick at shortstop. When bucketing these players out, Arnold fits into a handful of them: He's an athletic, lefthanded hitting SS with present power and potentially more on the way. Definite name to follow closely this spring in the Northeast.show more

Nick Dumesnil (California Baptist Baseball) has as much upside... as anyone in the 2025 draft. With question marks early on about how he'd fare against the top arms in the country on the Cape, "Doomey" proved quickly as one of the best players in the summer league circuit. His hands start high with the bat coiled behind his head. While a somewhat unorthodox approach, he's able to get his bat head up and hands lowered upon loading. It's an explosive operation with elite bat speed, averaging as much as 79.9 mph in the CCBL (per @Blast_Bsbl). It's a consistent swing making hard contact and driving the ball to both gaps (led the CCBL with 12 2B). The quick hip hinge allows for a powerful on-time rotation through the ball as he barrels the ball at a high clip (up to 30.4% this summer per Joe Doyle). Then there's the speed. Doomey set the Brewster Whitecap SB record with 26 (27 ATT) in 36 G. His 96.2% success rate is the highest in league history for someone with 20+ steals in a season (per League Statistician). He gets good jumps on the base paths and good reads off the bat defensively. There is some swing and miss to his game. He walks at an average rate (8.6 BB% in the CCBL) and struck out just 12.9% of the time in the WAC but that went up to 21.7% this summer. There's some chase low out of the zone vs break and did way more damage vs LHP (.435/.469/.783; .348 ISO) than RHP (.247/.333/.337; .090 ISO). A true five-tool talent, Nick Dumesnil made a name for himself this summer on the Cape, and will soon be at the top of many teams' draft boards next July.show more

I want parents to really think about this. Imagine... paying good money for lessons because you care about your daughter’s long-term development… and the first thing you’re told is that “swinging down isn’t correct.” Instead it’s barrel depth, elite path, and swinging up because “that’s what the pros do.” That’s where development goes backwards. Most young athletes aren’t broken they’re underdeveloped in movement. They don’t understand shoulder angles, how to get on top of the ball, situational hitting, or how the body actually organizes a swing. That’s not their fault. That’s instruction skipping steps. In my cage, athletes do not swing up first. They have to earn the right to swing up by first owning the down. We stay at the top of the zone, learn how to find the down, and teach how the shoulders orient the swing. The up isn’t cued or forced it’s a byproduct of correct movement. What floors me is how often kids, especially in softball, are taught to swing up immediately. How do you start middle-down and swing up in a sport where the ball is traveling on an upward plane? It makes no sense. Baseball and softball mechanics are the same the body doesn’t change. But instruction must start differently because pitch plane is different. Baseball breaks down. Softball rise spins up. If a softball hitter can’t control the down out front, they’ll never handle elite rise. Once control is there, the femur turns down, the torso gets pulled up, and the natural up shows itself. No forcing. No manipulation. I can post videos like this all day. I’m not teaching a “style.” I’m teaching how the body is designed to move. I’m demanding because parents invest real time and money, and I won’t waste either. If you want game swings that hold up to velocity and plane find the down!show more

Contrary to what many believe, we don’t want our... feet landing from the prep step at the exact moment the bat makes contact. Why? Because if you land a fraction early, your feet can become stuck and stagnant. Instead, aim to be a fraction of a second late. As your eyes read the angle of the bat through the hitting zone, your feet can begin to self align in the direction you need to go. This doesn’t mean jumping higher or creating a bigger prep step. Stay low to the ground, athletic and ready to move. Being a fraction late takes practice and a high level understanding of how to be on time every pitch. But when done correctly, it can gain you inches or even a couple feet of range in either direction. And in the infield, that distance matters. Here are two infielders showing exactly what that timing can look like.show more

1B/3B Max Jensen, Cornell Keep an eye on this... kid. Easy to fall in love with the long, athletic, 6-foot-3-inch frame. Clearly more strength coming into his upper half. Posted a .358/.455/.561 junior season. Parlayed that into a .386/.441/.648 showing in the NECL. Jensen has always shown hitterish traits with higher swing rates and above average bat-to-ball numbers. Swing doesn't have any glaring holes. He’s loose and adjustable in the box and seems to be able to get to anything. Despite his size, bat speed has never been a huge strength of Jensen’s, though it sounds like that’s been the emphasis this fall/winter. If he begins lifting the ball more frequently and getting to his pull-side like he’s capable, he’s got a chance to go inside the top-half of the draft as a priority senior. Primary first base, but sneaky athlete that looks passable at third base at this size. Just something about his film. Diamond in the rough/hidden gem type.show more

Doesn’t get much better than texts like this. From... the guys you know have been putting in the work. — Big time recruit. Middle of the order on a big time high school team. We spent the whole offseason shortening up his swing. More ready to swing, gap to gap. He also put real focus into skinny bat, 3 plate drill, and mixed pitches. The skill of HITTING, not just the swing. Both pieces matter. The swing (mechanical advantage) and the skill of hitting. Find what you need. Train what the game is telling you to get better at. > Send this to who needs it > Save this for when you need it.show more

C Easton Carmichael (Oklahoma Baseball) is one of the... top college catchers in this year's Draft. Started from the get-go as a Freshman and hit .306/.346/.482 with 18 XBH and 48 RBIs. Proceeded to enjoy an outstanding Sophomore campaign to the tune of a .366/.406/.563 slash line with 31 XBH, 64 RBIs and 12 SB. Carmichael was then an All-Star and All-League selection in the Cape League after hitting .299/.372/.496 with 10 2B, 5 HR and 23 RBIs across 36 games. Prototypical catcher's frame at 6'1" and 200-lbs with strength throughout. Slightly crouched stance in the box with a high handset and the bat held horizontally above his back shoulder. Hands drift a little bit in his load, leg lift leads into a normal stride. Does a nice job of getting into his back hip. Average bat speed. Carmichael has an aggressive approach and digs into the box ready to hit. He uses the entire field and has a tick above-average bat-to-ball skills. Has shown the ability to drive the baseball into either gap. Could stand to tighten up his swing decisions a bit; chased at a 35% clip and was particularly susceptible to secondaries down and away. Present barrel skills. Would say his hit tool is a 50 right now, though it's probably closer to a 55. It's more extra-base hit and gap-to-gap power than it is HR power for Carmichael right now, but he has shown he can generate quality contact. Posted a Max EV of 109.5 during the spring and 104.2 on the Cape. If he can pull the ball in the air more (had an Air Pull% of just 20.8 in '24), it could lead to an increase in power production. 50 raw, it plays more like 45 in-game. It's been encouraging to see the progress Carmichael has made defensively. Has gotten better at corralling balls in the dirt and his transfers have gotten quicker. Best part of Carmichael's defensive skillset is his receiving. Soft and quiet, consistently works down to up and has a knack for stealing strikes. Doesn't stab at the baseball. Average arm strength, continuing to shore up his footwork will only help as it pertains to controlling the running game and delivering accurate throws down to bases. A nice cherry on top to Carmichael's profile is that he's far from a clogger on the bases. By no means a burner, but he'll pick his spots to steal a bag. Carmichael has an intriguing toolset and profiles as a 2nd-4th round pick this July. (📽️: Oklahoma Baseball)show more

🚨 Dinesh Karthik Cooks Abhishek Sharma in live Comm... Box 🎙️🤯 Dinesh Karthik Said 🗣️: Abhishek Sharma lacks basic cricket sense as an international opener. DK pointed out that blindly swinging the bat like a windmill without any intent to rotate the strike or take singles won't work at this level. He emphasized that openers must read the pitch, time the ball, and respect good deliveries rather than just slogging flat-track belters. DK made it clear that getting exposed the moment there's a real challenge shows how brainless this approach is!show more

Oswaldo Cabrera and Luis Arraez need to be rotating... at the leadoff spot for the Yankees, depending on who is hitting first. Then, whoever isn't at the top of the lineup can bat second. It's time to put the analytics down like Old Yeller; otherwise, how are the Yankees ever going to beat the Dodgers in the World Series? This lineup is missing PURE contact hitters, and that's where Ozzy and Arraez come in. In a lot of ways, they're both more important than Aaron Judge. If you do this, Judge can take his time because the lineup would be LOADED.show more

OF Nick Dumesnil (California Baptist Baseball) is one of... the higher upside college bats in this year's Draft. Showed flashes across a limited sample as a Freshman, but exploded last year to the tune of a .362/.440/.702 slash line with 40 XBH (19 HRs) and 45 RBIs across 61 games. Proceeded to have an excellent summer on the Cape in which he hit .311/.378/.489 with a league-leading 12 2B, 4 HR, 15 RBIs and a league-leading 26 SB in 36 games. Strong, athletic frame at 6'2" and 205-pounds. Big league body. Slightly wide base in the box with a somewhat high handset (lowered his hands as the summer went on, was ultra-high at school with his bat pointed almost straight down behind his back shoulder. Drew Burress-ish look). Ultra-small stride that is more of a toe tap than anything else. Hands already start pretty far back, though they drift slightly in his load. Engaged lower-half, especially his back side. Easy plus bat speed. Dumesnil showed the ability to drive the baseball to all fields both at school and on the Cape. Would give his power a 55 overall, but it's a 6 to the pull side. Top spun a 2-run HR (EV of 106) off the scoreboard in the ASG. Very curious to monitor how his hit tool progresses this spring. There's a present feel for the barrel and his bat-to-ball skills are plus (ovr. IZ contact rate of 90%, including 93% and 91% against FB and SL, respectively). Will certainly need to shore up his pitch recognition skills and swing decisions in order to maximize his offensive upside. Some chase up/out against FB, down/out against secondaries. Key will be doing a better job of picking up spin out of the hand. Plus runner—who most importantly knows HOW to run—whose speed translates on both sides of the baseball. Chaos-causer on the bases, Dumesnil's speed also gives him the opportunity to take an extra base on a ball in the gap or down the line. I thought his instincts in CF got better as the summer went on. Dumesnil's speed and elite athleticism allow him to cover plenty of ground and his arm is average, I'm sure he'll get the opportunity to prove he can stick there in pro ball. Chance he could move off and end up at a corner eventually. Key for Dumesnil is adding polish to his hit tool. There is 5-tool upside (key word) with him and he can impact the game in a number of ways. Potential first round pick this July. (📽️: California Baptist Baseball)show more

This “Layback Drill” w/ #Uncommitted ‘26 SS Nash Brophy... of Wow Factor Baseball Canada 🇨🇦 is a hitting CHEAT CODE 👨🏽‍💻 •Creates fluidity & efficiency from launch thru turn •Easy adjustability to any pitch plane/location •Tight turns to any part of zone, keeps hands inside ⚾️ •Path builds speed earlier, is more controlled+accurate, and stays on plane more consistently •Connects bat with the entire backside and takes away the inaccuracy of a hand dominant path •Builds momentum for hands to take over late in path (like an axe) •Once in good layback position, all you do is take the back hip + back shoulder directly to the ball while turning, and the path will match the plane of the back shoulder perfectly. •Takes away choppy+pushy path that’s in zone late & leaves early •Becomes rearward turn that’s in zone early & leaves late #baseballcanada #baseballontario #hitting #hittingdrills #hittingcoach #baseballacademy #playerdevelopment #baseballtraining #canada #ontario #toronto #mlbshow more

A lot of people are misreading Shohei’s grand slam... swing. They misread because they don’t know high level. One guy said “front leg, off balance out front”. Don’t let the video interfere with your opinion. 🤦‍♂️ His weight is clearly back at launch. He has very good barrel depth (means he wasn’t on his front leg at launch). You can’t get barrel depth when on a weighted front leg. He’s clearly early. So the launch was deep (rear legged) but the pitch wasn’t there yet. So he demonstrates an adjustability that only comes with HLP…..he LET the arms out to align barrel and ball. Key word: LET His barrel was already up to speed from being launched rearward. You can see it’s completely blurred out when it’s still behind him. But because his arms are not force producers, they are free and able to ‘let out’ the barrel. (He could have pulled them in if the pitch was inside) If the arms were force producers the launch would have been forward, not rearward. There would be no deep rearward barrel blur. And the arms would have been ‘spent’ at launch. They’d have no ability to do anything else. He would have made a commitment at launch to a spot, he would have ‘spent’ the arms to produce force, and that would not allow him the late arm adjustability that he shows here. Some day people will stop talking out of their ass.show more

LHP Zach Root (Arkansas Baseball) is one of the... best college lefthanders in this year's Draft class. After splitting time between the bullpen and rotation as a Freshman, Root last year was a full time starter and pitched his way to a 3.56 ERA with 76 Ks to 21 BB across 68.1 IP. Slightly undersized at 6'1" and 186-pounds, but there's present strength and physicality in his lower-half. Natural funk and deception in his delivery that includes a high leg lift and some tilt in his upper-half. Average arm stroke with a slight wrist coil, attacks from a mid-three quarter (maybe a tick lower) slot with a bit of cross fire. Root's FB will sit in the 91-94 range, but it was up to 97. Will flash arm side life through the zone and is best when located on either third (arm or glove side) of the plate or in the top-half. Not a real bat-misser right now, so refining its shape should be a point of focus both this spring and beyond. Bread and butter offerings are his secondaries. Root's low-80s CH gets averaged almost 10 MPH of separation off his heater and it's a pitch he throws with conviction. Consistently flashes fade to the arm side as well as late diving life. Generated a 46% miss rate last spring, would stick a plus grade on it. High-70s-to-low-80s CB flashes big-time depth with some sharpness. 11-to-5 shape against RHH, but will be longer than it is deep against LHH. Has a decent feel for the pitch, and last season it held opposing hitters to a minuscule .048 average while generating a 48% miss rate. Rounds out his arsenal with a mid-to-upper-80s CUT/SL that against LHH will flash sweeping life with some late bite. Potentially average offering. Would like to see his strike-throwing improve this season. Day 1 profile this July. (📽️: ECU Baseball)show more

INF Gavin Kilen (Tennessee Baseball) will be a key... piece within a loaded Tennessee lineup this season. Earned the starting 2B job as a Freshman and contributed, but broke out last spring to the tune of a .330/.361/.591 slash line with 23 2B, 3 3B, 9 HR and 41 RBIs. Kilen is slightly undersized and has an average build at 5'11 and 180-lbs. Some room to fill out and add ~10 pounds or so. Relaxed, slightly crouched stance in the box with a medium high handset. Minimal load in which his hands drift slightly, leg lift leads into a small stride. Short, compact swing and takes a direct path to contact. Above-average hand speed, it's an operation that's tailored towards spraying line drives all over the yard. Kilen is a hit-over-power profile with an aggressive approach in the box. He has plus bat-to-ball skills and his feel for the barrel is evident. Last spring, Kilen worked a 93% IZ contact rate, including 95% against FB. His aggressive approach and somewhat free-swinger mentality does lead to some chase up against FB and secondaries down, but it hasn't been a hindrance to his production. Kilen pounces on pitches in the zone and steps in the box ready to hit. Would give his hit tool a 55. It's more gap power than it is over the fence power for Kilen, but he did tap into some more impact last season. Part of that is due to getting the ball up in the air more: between '23 and '24 he increased his FB+LD% from 44% to 51%. It will always play as slightly below average (fringy), but he did post a Max EV of 108.5 during the spring and 101.4 this summer. Kilen's HR impact and highest quality of contact comes to the pull side. Vast majority of his XBH power comes on pitches in the bottom-half of the zone, which makes sense given his bat path. Has shown the ability to work from gap-to-gap. Kilen was Louisville's every day SS last spring, but he'll slide over to 2B this season for Tennessee. I actually think that's where he profiles best defensively as a professional, where he has an average arm with some range. After seeing him at SS for a couple of summers, his actions and clock translate better at 2B. Kilen is a day 1 type this July with top-55 overall upside.show more

1B Anthony Martinez (UCI Baseball) is an intriguing college... bat to keep an eye on this season. Was one of the best Freshmen in the country in '23 and posted a gaudy .394/.471/.619 slash line with 19 2B, 11 HR and 60 RBIs. Enjoyed another productive season last year and hit .316/.422/.492 with 18 2B, 9 HR, 74 RBIs and more BB (36) than Ks (29). This summer he did what very few players do nowadays, which is start on the Cape, leave for Team USA and finish out the summer on the Cape. At 6'3" and 230-lbs Martinez is plenty physical with present natural strength. Stands upright in the box with a slightly open front side and a medium-high handset. Relaxed setup. Martinez has a rhythmic load that includes a small barrel tip. Minimal drifting of his hands and is a small-strider. It's a compact operation in which he consistently takes a direct path to contact. Real hitterish look. Martinez has a bit of an interesting profile for his position in that he's a hit-over-power guy. He has a highly advanced feel for the barrel and double-plus contact skills. Martinez in '24 worked an 86% overall contact rate and an eye-popping 96% overall IZ contact rate. All-fields approach and sprays line drives from foul pole to foul pole. Advanced pitch recognition skills and swing decisions, will sometimes expand the zone against secondaries down. However, it's far from a hindrance. Not afraid to get aggressive early in counts. Comfortably 55 hit for me. While it's hit-over-power, Martinez isn't without some thump. He can drive the baseball into either gap, though the vast majority of his HR power is to the pull side. Posted a Max EV last spring of 104.3. More XBH power than HR power. Would give it a 50. Martinez is without a doubt a 1B/DH type professionally, so you're buying the bat. Finished product physically, but I believe in the hit tool. 4th-6th round type for me this July.show more