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Chicago Preseason ID: Takeaways

February 25, 2026
Illinois Scouting Staff

On Monday, February 16th, our staff hosted the Chicago Preseason ID at the Pullman Center in Chicago, IL. This event was host to over 40 players from the surrounding area, and allowed our staff to get a look at these prospects in a pro-style workout before the spring fully kicks off. 

Today, we are highlighting some of the day’s standouts with this takeaways piece. Continue reading for scouting reports and videos on some of the day’s top performers. 

For a look at the full event page, click HERE. 

Position Players 

+ OF Andre Gordon (St. Rita, 2028) will be a name to follow in the coming years. The frame has plenty of room to add strength, standing in at 5-foot-11, 168-pounds. The left-handed hitter has a whippy swing with uphill intent, working the middle of the field while staying balanced, peaking at 95 mph for his EV. In the outfield, he showed smooth transfers with athletic actions and proper direction through the baseball. 

+ INF Ethan Gonzalez (St. Laurence, 2029) looks to be a promising young prospect to monitor throughout his prep career. He’s athletically built at 5-foot-9, 150-pounds, and the right-handed swing is athletic with loose hands and wrists. Working with a line-drive approach, he stayed balanced throughout his round with some feel to use the whole field. Defensively, he showed athletic actions with some twitch and bounce, pairing with clean transfers. 

+ OF Jordan Terrell (Lindblom, 2028) is an upside 6-foot-1, 169-pound left/left outfielder to know from the day. The swing is easy to dream on, showing loose actions while working on top of the baseball, using the whole field while staying balanced with a peak EV of 90 mph. 

+ INF Delval DeSavieu III (Homewood-Flossmoor, 2029) took one of the more intriguing rounds of BP on the day. The right-handed hitter projects into much more power down the road, currently standing in at 5-foot-11, 175-pounds. The swing is easy with strong hands and a flat path, creating whip through the zone while staying balanced through impact, peaking at 90 mph for his EV. On the infield, he showed smooth actions and clean hands with steady transfers. 

+ OF Curtiss Crossley (Lincoln-Way East, 2027) is an uncommitted junior to make note of, showing an athletic right-handed swing and sure-handed actions defensively. At the plate, he showed an easy, balanced swing that works on top of the baseball, flashing natural lift up the middle at times, showing feel to use the whole field with a peak EV of 94 mph - averaging 91 mph throughout his round. In the outfield, he showed proper direction through the baseball with intentful routes, gaining ground through the baseball. 

+ C Max West (Bradley Bourbonnais, 2029) looked to be one of the top catching prospects in attendance, showing a strong right-handed swing and quality actions behind the dish. There’s some present strength in his compact frame, and it’s prevalent in his swing with a peak EV of 96 mph, showing some natural lift pull-side throughout his round with strong hands. Behind the dish, he has clean transfers while working in-line, getting rid of the ball quickly and reaching as low as 2.01 for his pop-time (T73 mph). 

+ OF Jenaro Negron (Thornton Fractional South, 2027) showed some of the top raw strength and power in attendance. The frame stands out at 6-foot, 175-pounds with broad shoulders and lean strength throughout. The right-handed hitter showed some twitch with uphill intent, peaking at 100.6 mph for his EV with an average of 93 mph (T373’). Above-average runner with a 7.01 in the 60 and a peak run speed of 20 mph. 

+ OF Beckett Hulten (De La Salle, 2027), C Sean Merrill (St. Rita, 2029), C/INF Matejo Blakes (Homewood-Flossmoor, 2029) and INF/OF Samuel James (Chicago Hope, 2028) are some more names deserving of a mention from the day, and are all prospects to follow in the coming months/years. 

Two-Ways 

+ INF/RHP Ryan St. Louis (Harvest Christian, 2027) had an impressive showing on both sides of the ball. There’s plenty more room to add strength to his 5-foot-11, 155-pound frame, but he’s already putting up impressive measurables with a 97 mph peak EV in his round of BP. The right-handed hitter showed one of the cleaner swings on the day, staying controlled with a flat path and line-drive intent, using the middle of the field consistently. On the infield, he showed smooth and fluid actions with feel for the position. On the mound, the right-hander impressed displaying a three pitch mix, highlighted by a fastball up to 85 mph with heavy sink. Also, showed a high spin curveball and a heavy horizontal moving CH in the upper-70s. 

+ OF Nolan Hecht (DePaul College Prep, 2028) put on a show in his round of BP, and he will be a real power bat to monitor in the coming years. Standing in at 6-foot-2, 180-pounds, there’s some lean strength in his frame at the moment, but there is also still room for him to add in the coming years. At the plate, the left-handed hitter has a longer, flat swing with easy jump off the barrel, peaking at 104 mph for his EV with line-drives, also averaging 74.4 mph for his bat-speed. He showed steady, reliable actions in the outfield, pairing with a strong arm (T85 mph). On the mound, the southpaw showed a clean delivery with a three-pitch mix. The fastball ran up to 83 mph with natural run, and he showed two offspeed offerings with a changeup and curveball mix for strikes. 

PITCHING 

+ RHP Dominic Maloney (Loyola Academy, 2027) measured 6-foot, 205 pounds and tossed the loudest bullpen of the event. Maloney was the first arm to step on the mound at the event and was definitely one to remember. The right-hander has strength throughout the frame and has feel for three pitches. Maloney’s fastball was clocked up to 92.1 mph, an event best, while sitting 88-91 mph with heavy movement numbers. The curveball showed a 12/6 shape with tight spin and a downer action. Also, flashed a slider with higher spin rate numbers and feel for the zone. 

+ RHP Tyler Osmanski (Lincoln-Way East, 2027) showed well in his first showcase appearance of the year. The junior measured 5-foot-11, 153-pounds, and displayed a quality three pitch mix. The former State Gamer ran the fastball up to 86.4 mph, holding velo throughout the bullpen. The fastball showed to have armside run at an average of 12.3” HM avg. and was thrown from a ¾ slot. Osmanski flashed a high spin CB in the low-70s with sharp break at 2395+ avg. rpm, and showed a CH in the mid-70s with low spin numbers. 

+ RHP Alexander Aridas (Maine South, 2027) displayed athletic actions throughout his showing on the mound. The right-hander worked from the stretch throughout and showed impressive touch and feel for each pitch. Aridas started with a fastball in the low-80s with armside run, and showed feel for a CB in the low-70s with tight spin and sharp break. The right-hander wrapped up his repertoire with a CH that worked around the zone with armside run in the mid 70s. The athleticism and cleanliness of the delivery was eye-opening, more in the tank with added strength. 

+ LHP Alexander Barsky (Amundsen, 2027) showed as the top performing southpaw from the event, measuring 5-foot-7, 178-pounds with strength throughout. He showed a four pitch mix with a fastball sitting in the low to mid 80s, holding velo throughout with natural armside run. The curveball and slider played in the low to mid 70s with feel for the zone, both being thrown for 75% strikes. The changeup was thrown in the upper-70s with heavy armside run/sink and was kept low in the zone, and could be a dangerous offspeed offering. 

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