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Team TN Future Games: Standout Pitching Performances

August 10, 2023
Hunter Martin
TN Scouting Director

As we return home from Atlanta it’s time to take a closer look at the young men that represented Team Tennessee at the PBR Future Games. With 375 college recruiters in attendance the event can be a little overwhelming though our Tennessee prospects handled themselves very well and played very competitive baseball with games vs. Alabama, Louisiana, and Mississippi. 

Let’s take a look at the pitchers that made it out to the Lakepoint Sports Complex in Emerson, GA.

 

standout pitching performances

+ Cade Allen: Wiry 6 foot at 175 lbs. frame with plenty of room to add strength. Allen was given the ball to close Game 1 and he delivered a masterful performance, as he went 2 innings, giving up zero hits and 0 ER with 4 K's. The South Gibson County HS product wasted no time on the mound, before working through an athletic and repeatable delivery, and releasing the ball from a 3/4 slot. His 89-92 mph four-seam had some really good ride and life through the zone at 2400 RPM’s and definitely played higher as he worked around the knees consecutively with 19 inches of hop on average. What was most impressive, was his ability to move his FB in, out, and even up in the zone to both RHH and LHH. He flashed a 78-80 mph sharp biting slider with spin rates up to 2500 RPM's, and was able to land it for strikes and swing/miss. Allen also landed a quality 77-79 mph CH with late fade as well, and just may need to work on killing spin to create an overall better shape to the offering.. He is extremely polished for a young pitcher, but also has a great mental approach that carries a lot of poise and presence. He brings a lot of quiet confidence and I personally even felt before he threw that he was going to go out and shove. He completely changed the momentum of the offense with quick innings, while pounding the strike zone. He's still fairly young, can throw 3 pitches for strikes, and has serious athletic traits that he is able to translate to the mound for a consistent and reliable right handed pitcher that is only going to continue to develop. I believe that he is going to be a guy that a school is hoping makes it to campus come 2026. 

+ Ari Bethea: Durable 6'1" 185 lbs. frame with a sturdy lower-half. Comes from an athletic family with football bloodlines.The Collierville HS product was the lone pitcher on the staff who threw in two separate games, as he started Game 2 vs. Louisiana going 1 inning before a lighting delay cut his outing short and came in relief for one inning in Game 3 vs. Alabama. Against the boys from Louisiana, he started the game out hot, getting ahead on multiple 89-90 mph 4-seam fastballs, with an average RPM’s of 2200 and finishing guys with a slider at 75-77 with 12 inches of sweep on average at 2500 RPM’s. He was able to get 3 outs on 9 pitches, while allowing no one on base to go alongside 1 K. The following day against the Bama Boys, Bethea came in relief and arguably flashed his best stuff for 2 k’s, while allowing zero hits. Two pitches really stand out for me when looking at Bethea’s outings. One was a 4-seam fastball at 91 mph with high 2300’s RMP’s that went alongside 22 inches of IVB. The other was a slider that came in at 77 mph with close to 2700 RMP’s and 19 inches of horizontal sweep. As Bethea develops and starts to understand how to throw that pitch harder, he is going to have serious chances at a 75+ graded offering for that pitch.. Bethea works from a back step to gather momentum to home in a controlled manner before delivering the ball from a ¾ arm slot that looked natural and effortless. This is a pitcher just on the cusp of understanding how good he can be.

+ Bo Holloway: Projectable, long, and lean 6 foot 5 at 190 lbs. frame with a lot of strength to come. The southpaw was one of 3 underclassmen on this year's Tennessee Future Games team, and after his Game 2 performance against Louisiana, proved that he is someone to keep an eye out on as he develops over the next few years. Holloway logged 2 IP, giving up 1 H, and 1 ER to go alongside 4 K's. His only trouble was mostly self-inflicted with early walks in his first frame. Holloway worked his FB in the 87-88 mph range with aim side run and sink, while touching 90 a handful of times. The thing that sticks out regarding Holloway is that he is still very much raw in his development. The ball really jumps out of his hand from a very high over the top arm slot that works well at holding plane to create a downhill effect at just around 20 inches of IVB. This to go alongside just about 7 feet of extension upon release. Holloway was able to tunnel a curveball in the 76-79 mph range with a tight 1-7 break that had IZM’s and put away ability. The crazy thing with Holloway is that he has so much more in the tank currently and it is only a matter of time before he starts truly feeling comfortable in his frame and is able to repeatedly find his release point and delivery. He is more athletic than he looks and as he starts understanding how to block his lead leg effectively and work the kinetic energy of the chain to ball release, I would not be surprised if he is throwing mid 90’s come senior year of high school and working himself into deciding between college and the professional route. 

+ Justin Fallon: Southpaw arm that was given the ball to close game two against Louisiana. Fallon packs a punch with a strong and compact frame that offers a lot of durability and potential as he continues to grow into the athlete that he is. Fallon, listed at 5 foot 10 and 180 pounds, naturally has a feel for using his entire body to create impressive life on his fastball. The naked eye shows that his four seam carries a lot of bore, which seemingly surprised hitters with how much it jumps on them. Once checking the data, it really starts to make sense with just how good of a fastball he actually has as he ranked second statistically out of every Future Game pitcher on fastball IVB.. an astonishing 22.4 inches on average; this to go alongside about 10 inches of run. All while his fastball never dipped under 90 mph. Impressively, Fallon was able to also work in a breaking ball at 72-74 mph for put aways that really gave right handed hitters trouble. Final stat line showed 1 IP with 0 H to go alongside 2 K’s. Fallon currently has two-way potential at the division 1 level but may even surprise himself with reasonably having higher upside on the mound. A Tommy John injury sustained a few years back limited his early ability to develop the ability to go deep into games, but may actually be something that helps him in the long run as he hasn’t been overused and can be a reliable arm at the back end of a bullpen to win a game. I personally believe that he has the confidence and demeanor to grow into an elite level closer.. Crazy, maybe, but think Billy Wagner. 

+ Harrison Cassle: Electric 5 foot 9 athlete at 155 pounds that has natural subtle twitchiness to a frame that may reach its full potential at 185 pounds. Really clean body mechanics that offers a lot of maximization of his body. Castle was given the ball to start game 3 against a really solid Alabama lineup. More of a thrower at this stage in his development, but the potential is eye-catching. This is a guy that primarily plays shortstop during his high school and summer ball seasons, which ultimately has aided in his progression of having impressive arm speed to go with really clean feet. The young righty has a slow methodical initial leg lift to push off that allows his hips to turn over smoothly and give his arm time to trigger late as a catalyst. Cassle worked two innings, while giving up 2 ER off of 1 hit. He got himself into trouble mostly as anyyoung arm does with walks, but overall managed to limit the damage. Cassle is still a work in progress on the mound but I believe ultimately will be where he shines at the next level. His fastball worked 86-88 MPH, while showcasing the ability to touch 90 mph at right around 2000 RMP’s. His best pitch in terms of pitchability and overall shape was a tight spinning 12/6 curveball that bit late and was used as his primary put away pitch gardening 2 K’s from the offering. He can be max effort at times and take his eyes away from home plate with a jerky head, but there is a reason a frame that is light in stature is able to produce serious velocity. Ultimately, he has ample opportunity to improve his game, which I believe can be a high level arm sitting in the low to mid 90’s at the next level with the potential for an average to plus secondary pitch in his curveball. 

+ Connor Hamilton: The mature right hander standing at 6 foot 4 and 200 pounds definitely looks the part and continued to build on his breakout summer where his velocity has slowly continued to tread higher and higher. Hamilton operates from a short arm that he syncs with a late handbrake. He has fluid hip turnover for a guy that big still coming into his frame. He hides the ball extremely well, while he averages just over 6 feet of extension. Hamilton went two innings, while giving up 1 R on 3 hits to go with 2 K’s. This is a guy that just needs more experience regardless of the outcome. Mentally, he is a really confident kid that wants the ball, but just hasn’t had enough time pitching in big games. His fastball held 89-90 mph pretty easily at just around 2100-2200 RPM’s with ASR. He really was able to make hitters uncomfortable when he worked down in the zone and allowed his fastball to work for him. He backed his fastball up with more of a show me curveball currently at 72-74 mph that lacks some true bite. I think his arm path makes it hard at times to not get on top of this pitch and he lacks some perception of release point with it. This was truly the difference between a great outing and a good outing. He got behind in counts or allowed hitters back in counts, in which they were able to sit dead read fastball. I truly believe that he has a lot of talent to work with and will take off once he pairs his heater with a sharp biting slider at 81-82 mph with his arm path and the way he pronates at ball release. This is something that I believe he currently possesses the ability to be able to do and will rack strikeouts up at a 1-2 clip per inning. 

+ Aidan Niggl: Long and limber frame at 6 foot 3 and 185 pounds. Body holds a lot of athletic components and ability to create lag in the arm at foot strike to create length and shoulder/hip separation. Niggl didn’t have his best outing and struggled with command. He got behind hitters and was inconsistent landing off speed for strikes but I still believe the outing was good for his development in the long run. I have been in his shoes where things don’t seem to be going right and it can feel like you are out there on an island by yourself with all the eyes on you. I added him to this because I think he handled struggling in that pressure environment maturely and was still able to show up and be a great teammate for those around him. He didn’t get the results he was necessarily wanted to achieve but I still think he is a high caliber arm that is learning to handle being a guy for a team. It doesn’t happen overnight and any pressure experience is overall great experience for him. Niggl sat between 86-88 mph on his two-seam fastball that actually generated quality spin right around 2000 RPM’s. The kicker however and a reason why I am still high on him is his ability to create ASR that has a chance to be an outlier on the charts. He was second among all Future Game pitchers in fastball horizontal movement on average at 17 inches, with multiple two-seam fastballs over 20 inches. That is a pitch that is hard to hit and will induce an enormous amount of ground balls. Ultimately, it comes down to him to trust his body, not necessarily overthrow and allow his ball to work for him in the zone. This means getting ahead and putting himself in better positions to succeed. His slider showed some potential and was able to get some IZM’s and put away strikeouts with velocity ranging from 77-79 mph. This is a kid that has a lot of talent and a very projectable frame that just needs refinement, as the confidence is there. 

+ Eli Dickey: Strong built frame at 6 food 3 and 215 pounds. Dickey comes in durable to handle a workload of innings and mentally has an idea of what he is trying to do with the ball when he steps out on the mound. Really had an impressive inning to close out Team Tennessee’s win over Alabama with sword induced swings and uncomfortable at-bats. Dickey has a lot of feel for spin, whether that is with his fastball or breaking ball, while also showcasing the ability and feel for killing spin on his changeup. His fastball mostly sat in the 86-87 while showcasing his ability to spin it at 2200-2400’s of RPM’s. He really attacked the zone and has a very easy and repeatable delivery that stays stacked over his body and finishes really well. He hides the ball well and allows the hips to trigger through before his arm path lines up to deliver. He has a uniqueness to his initial hand break where he cups the ball to gardner late flexion before getting back into efficient pronation. His best pitch overall may have been his curveball that maintained a tight 11-5 shape that came in heavy at 76-78 with high 2600 RPM’s and some in the mid 2700’s, which is really advanced. Not only did he show feel for landing that offering in the zone for swing and misses, he was able to land those just right on the plate for strikeouts. All in all, Dickey impressed many and will be a big time arm coming through the ranks over the next few years with MLB bloodlines and tutelage from his dad, who won a Cy Young award during his playing days.

 

Upcoming Events

SHOWCASE DATE LOCATION
Tennessee Senior Games 9/23 Trevecca Nazarene University - Nashville, TN
2023 Southeast Senior Games 10/7-10/8 Choccolocco Park & Jackson State University 

 

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