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On Tuesday, July 8th, the Prep Baseball California team hosted the Central California Summer ID at Ventura College in Ventura, CA. This was an open event for high school classes (2026-29), and gave our staff an ample look at the development of some of the top talent in the area and introduced our staff to new names to know after their performances.

38 players made their way to Ventura College this past week and participated in a pro-style workout, gathering unrivaled access to data through our state-of-the-art tech partners (VALD, Blast Motion, and TrackMan) as well as in-depth scouting analysis from our Prep Baseball California staff.

Today, we will be looking at analysis of the catchers in attendance at the event and for more information including stats from the event, click here.

Central California Summer ID: Catchers

Top 5 Overall (in order):

Quinn Melton C / 1B / San Marcos High, CA / 2028 Rankings  StateRank: 26 / POS: 2 OverallRank: 176 / POS: 17 Positional Profile: C/1B  Body: 6-1, 199-pounds. Sturdy, tall, athletic frame with noticeable definition. Hit: LHH. Strong, wide base. Imposing stance. Hands held behind ear. Front foot angled offset. Moves barrel heavily during load. Hinge at hips. Loads in back leg. Generates torque at hips. Snappy barrel. Powerful pull-side bat. 69.7 mph bat speed with 20 G's of rotational acceleration. Power: 102 max exit velocity, averaged 96.4 mph. 392' max distance. Arm: RH. C-71 mph. INF-70 mph. C: Whip-like arm action with long follow-through. Shows heavy recoil. Over-the-top arm path. 1B: Long arm path with high 3/4 slot.  Defense: 2.12-2.25 pop times. C: Quick, agile lower half. Stays in athletic position. One step in front of other leaning forward.

Davin Arth C / Foothill Technology, CA / 2027 Rankings  StateRank: 110 / POS: 17 Positional Profile: C  Body: 5-9, 142-pounds. Compact frame, athletic, room to fill. Hit: RHH. Balanced, slightly narrow foot stance. Knees bent. Hands held low just beneath shoulder level. Toe tap stride. Medium front foot extension. Body slightly leans over during swing. Line drive bat. 66.7 mph bat speed with 11 G's of rotational acceleration. Power: 98 max exit velocity, averaged 82.5 mph. 324' max distance. Arm: RH. C-77 mph. 3/4 release. Pauses ball high before releasing. Quick, short arm action. Defense: 2.09-2.18 pop times. Quiet feet coming from stance. Projectable quickness popping up from stance.

Griffin Arnold C / 3B / Santa Barbara High School, CA / 2028 Positional Profile: C/3B  Body: 6-1, 170-pounds. Long, athletic build room to fill. Hit: LHH. Tall, balanced stance. Knees slightly bent. Hands held back. Quick, snappy barrel. Uphill swing plane. Long finish. 64.8 mph bat speed with 6 G's of rotational acceleration. Power: 96 max exit velocity, averaged 86.4 mph. 327' max distance. Arm: RH. C-76 mph. INF-76 mph. High 3/4 release. Long arm path. 1/2 circle windup. Defense: 2.11-2.30 pop times. C: Balanced crouched stance. Sets up feet from stance quickly. Okay transfer. INF: Lower half stays active. Steady, smooth movements. Shows projectable range.

Blake Johnson C / RHP / West Ranch High, CA / 2027 Positional Profile: C/RHP  Body: 6-4, 225-pounds. Sturdy, tall-postured frame with much projection. Hit: RHH. Tall, postured stance. Front foot is offset. Hands held back behind back shoulder. Small leg lift stride towards pitcher. Slow, winding load in back leg. Upper half heavy swing. Upward swing plane. 67.2 mph bat speed with 6 G's of rotational acceleration. Power: 100 max exit velocity, averaged 88.1 mph. 321' max distance. Arm: RH. C-77 mph. High 3/4 release. Quick release using a long arm path. Accurate thrower with good trajectory. Defense: 1.99-2.08 pop times. Stays tall in stance. Smooth, quick gather. Efficient transfer showing urgency.

Jack Sweeney SS / C / St. Augustine Academy, CA / 2027 Positional Profile: C/OF  Body: 5-11, 140-pounds. Long, lean frame, with much projection remaining. Hit: RHH. Balanced, strong lower half stance. Upper half remains relaxed with bat behind ear. Small inward leg twist initiating load. Loads in back leg. Transfers weight slightly early. Level swing plane. 68 mph bat speed with 7 G's of rotational acceleration. Power: 91 max exit velocity, averaged 79.8 mph. 220' max distance. Arm: RH. C-70 mph. OF-75 mph. 3/4 arm slot. Short arm back path. Heavy recoil. Low trajectory thrower. Defense: 2.01-2.21 pop times. Athletic stance. Quick pop up from stance. Quick, efficient transfer.

All Catchers (listed alphabetically):

Mark Alcala, Warren High (CA), 2028
Positional Profile: C/OF 
Body: 5-7, 146-pounds. Lean athletic frame.
Hit: RHH. Wide stance with knees bent. Front foot slightly offset. Hands held just above shoulder level. Loads weight in back leg early. Explodes on time with pitch. Quick hands through zone. Line drive hitter. 64.4 mph bat speed with 13 G's of rotational acceleration.
Power: 90 max exit velocity, averaged 83.9 mph. 339' max distance.
Arm: RH. C-73 mph. Short arm action. Quick arm path. Consistent release.
Defense: 2.01-2.11 pop times. Explosive from stance. Agile lower half. Quick transfer.

Braydon Blackmore, Monrovia High (CA), 2027
Positional Profile: C 
Body: 5-11, 167-pounds. Athletic, tall frame, well-filled out.
Hit: LHH. Tall, wide stance. Front foot offset. Hands held back with bat angled towards 1st base dugout. Medium leg kick with large stride toward pitcher. Front foot lands on time. Upward swing plane. Developing power. 64.9 mph bat speed with 12 G's of rotational acceleration.
Power: 89 max exit velocity, averaged 83.3 mph. 316' max distance.
Arm: RH. C-76 mph. High 3/4 release. Long arm path, with quick fire. Slight pause in arm path.
Defense: 2.17-2.26 pop times. Lower half stays heavy. Projectable quickness from stance.

Cru Hopkins, Thousand Oaks High (CA), 2027
Positional Profile: C/1B 
Body: 6-0, 191-pounds. Athletic, well-filled out frame, broad shoulders.
Hit: RHH. Wide, crouched stance. Hands kept behind ears. Bat angled towards 3rd base dugout. Large toe tap stride towards pitcher. Hands cast outrward. Hips generate okay torque. Developing power bat. 64.9 mph bat speed with 12 G's of rotational acceleration.
Power: 93 max exit velocity, averaged 85.6 mph. 337' max distance.
Arm: RH. C-66 mph. INF-60 mph. Short arm path with slight pause. Accurate throws, ball tends to arc. Developing arm strength.
Defense: 2.55-2.66 pop times. C: Calculated movements. Stays under control, feet play first before throw. 1B: Long strides approaching ball. Plays with tall posture.

Akira Tamura, Hueneme High (CA), 2026
Positional Profile: C/RHP 
Body: 5-11, 196-pounds. Strong, stocky build with present strength throughout.
Hit: RHH. Laid back upper half. Strong, balanced lower half stance. Front foot offset. Bat rested on back shoulder. Medium leg lift stride toward pitcher. Extends well with front foot. Casts hands outward. 64.2 mph bat speed with 11 G's of rotational acceleration.
Power: 87 max exit velocity, averaged 77.0 mph. 311' max distance.
Arm: RH. C-75 mph. Over-the-top arm slot. Short arm path. Release can improve quickness.
Defense: 2.11-2.19 pop times. Lower half is heavy. Smooth exchange. Deliberate motions.

Tyler Weber, San Marcos Senior High (CA), 2029
Positional Profile: C/3B 
Body: 5-5, 140-pounds. Compact frame with balanced, athletic build for age.
Hit: RHH. Balanced, shoulder-width stance. Front foot offset. Hands held slightly above back shoulder. Medium, leg lift stride. Lands offset with front fot inward towards plate. Transfers weight well. 64.2 mph bat speed with 12 G's of rotational acceleration.
Power: 86 max exit velocity, averaged 76.7 mph. 278' max distance.
Arm: RH. C-64 mph. Short arm path. Low 3/4 slot. Arm strength shows projection. Ball has high, but developing arc.
Defense: 2.29-2.49 pop times. Lower half stays engaged. Athletic stance. Slight pause in transfer.

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