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2025 College Crosscheck Week 7: Stanford at Virginia

April 3, 2025
David Seifert
Director of College Scouting

On the road again, this trip to Charlottesville for an ACC matchup of No. 20 Stanford at Virginia. During the series, the Hoos had a bat awakening, initiated by hitting for the cycle as a team in the sixth inning of Thursday’s opening game and loudly punctuated with 33 runs scored in three games. This could have been the kickstart that they’ve needed all season. And for the Cardinal, it was likely just a bump in the road as Stanford is loaded with talent in the lineup and on the mound.

VIRGINIA

A common question among scouts this spring – Henry Godbout or Henry Ford – who is the better prospect? Both entered the season as day one potentials with Ford having a slight edge. Seven weeks into the season, it’s still a close race, but Godbout has played his way to the front.

The second baseman led the team with a .372 average last year while posting a 1.117 OPS and is in similar territory this spring. Hitting from an open stance the right handed hitter has a polished approach. He tracks the ball well and uses all fields. There’s good rhythm to his operation and a swing that has produced a max EV of 108.3 mph this spring and 109.9 last. Most remarkable about Godbout is his InZoneWhiff% of just 8.8% last season and 7.2% to date this spring. He’s a bat-to-ball phenom with a skill that typically transfers very successfully to pro ball. On the bases he’s an average runner with strong instincts, although more of a situational base stealer (19-for-23 career) than a game-disrupter.

Defensively, Godbout is a solid defender who makes all the routine plays. He showed athletic actions, average range and average arm strength. He was slowed a bit this fall by a bone bruise on his shin suffered in the Cape Cod League over the summer, which prevented him from competing for the shortstop job, but looks to have just enough tools and actions to play there on a part-time basis. He could also be capable of handling himself at the hot corner. Possessing a combination of defensive versatility, bat-to-ball, developing power and strong makeup, Godbout is a lock to receive second round consideration. Emilien Pitre (Kentucky), a second round pick of Tampa Bay last summer, is a fair comparison to Godbout, although Pitre is a better defender with more foot speed.

Ford lived up to his billing as a blue-chip freshman last year, hitting .336/.409/.597 with 17 home runs, but has suffered a power outage to date this spring. His max exit velocity is almost six mph less than last season (2024- 112.4 mph / 2025- 106.7) and his Hard Hit rate is down 61% to 45%. On the bright side, he’s hitting for a higher average this year (.363 vs .336) and both his InZoneWhiff% (13.3% / 14.3%) and Launch Angles (13.3 / 12.9) are similar year over year. However, with reduced bat speed it’s just not coming off as hot this spring, and as a result his ISO has dropped from .261 to .108. As a corner prospect this ISO is nowhere near the desired target. An unknown injury isn’t the likely culprit, and other than hitting more upright this spring – he bent his knees and stayed in his legs more last season – there hasn’t been any major change to his swing. He continues to show good balance, stays behind the ball and extends through the ball to finish his swing.

Defensively, Ford converted from his prep position of catcher to first base last year, but immediately after the College World Series he started transitioning to right field. He looked like a natural fit during the Stanford series with plenty of athleticism, arm strength, range and sure hands to project as better than average as a pro. He also has off-the-charts makeup and has been a coaching staff favorite wherever he has played. He profiles as a prototypical right fielder when his juice at the plate returns. As a draft-eligible sophomore, Ford should have plenty of options on draft day.

Two more Virginia hitters are attracting day two attention. Aidan Teel is the team’s heartbeat from the leadoff spot. A well above average athlete like his brother, Kyle, a current Major Leaguer and former first round pick from UVA, Aidan is an explosive runner whose speed makes up for some nonlinear routes in centerfield. At the plate the 6-foot, 190-pound left handed hitter broke out this summer in the Northwoods League with a .387/.455/.671 slash line while belting 11 home runs and stealing 18 bases. Teel is not currently on pace to match those numbers this spring, but he is a very likely second half breakout prospect.

First baseman Chris Arroyo has power to all fields with a season high max EV of 112.5 mph. He can put on a show in batting practice and the 6-foot-2, 225-pound slugger has homered seven times this season. In order to get to his raw power more frequently, he’ll need to lift the ball more often. Arroyo has hit the ball on the ground almost half of the time (45.9% GB rate) this spring and has produced an average launch angle of just 8.6 degrees (25-30 degrees is optimal for home runs). For a slugger he limits strikeouts at a 15.6% rate and if he’s able to improve upon his InZoneWhiff which currently checks in at 18.5%, he would likely drop his strikeout rate even more. Currently a mid-day two prospect, Arroyo is another good bet to pick up his production the second half of this season.

It has been a rough season to date for leftfielder Harrison Didawick, especially coming on the heels of a highly successful 2024 season that ended with a .293 batting average, 23 home runs and 68 RBIs. Sophomore-eligible for last year’s draft he turned down considerable offers in order to return and improve his draft value which wasn’t optimized due to a 24.1% strikeout rate. So far he’s done just that with a 16.4% strikeout rate this spring, but it has come with great expense – he’s batting just .183 with one home run and a .070 ISO. With more than half of the 2025 season remaining, there’s still time for the athletic 6-foot-4, 215-pound leftfielder to heat up, but he’ll need to get it going soon.

The Hoos’ top 2026 position prospect is infielder Eric Becker. He began his collegiate career at third base last season, in deference to Griff O’Ferrall, but shifted back to shortstop this spring. Defensively, Becker showed average arm strength that played down due to a slower field/throw transfer. The ball tends to stick in his mitt. Also during this look, his range was below average and he preferred not to leave his feet on batted balls just out of reach. Moving forward he may be a better fit back at the hot corner, especially as he grows into his 6-foot-3, 190-pound frame. Regardless, his bat is his greatest strength with an ability to hit for both power and average. Overall, Becker continues to look like a day one prospect for 2026.

Virginia also has plenty of talent on the mound. Senior righthander Jay Woolfolk took the ball for Thursday’s opener and looked strong for 101 pitches, 65 for strikes. He allowed four runs on five hits in six innings while striking out five. Working exclusively out of the stretch his heater sat 93-95 from a high slot. After feeling his way through the first couple innings mixing numerous pitches, he shifted gears and attacked with a fastball dominant arsenal. His greatest success came in middle innings and he completed his outing by posting four zeroes in the third through sixth innings. Although he did not show a true out pitch, he missed barrels and produced some swing/miss with a low-spin splitty at 83-84. His feel to spin was also good, showing different shapes and velocities ranging from a 85-87 cutter, 84-85 slider and a very occasional 80-81 curve. Righthanded reliever Ryan Osinski showed plenty of velocity at 94-97 mph and high spin (2600 rpm), but was hit hard. He faced just five batters with three reaching base on 17 total pitches. Returning from an injury that caused him to miss much of the 2024 season and some early action in 2025, Jack O’Connor shut the door to close out Friday’s game two of the series. Outside of a couple misplaced pitches, the 6-foot-5 righthander dominated his two innings of relief with four pitches for strikes – a 92-95 mph fastball that showed common spin rates in the 2100-2200s and common IVB of 12-16”, a mid-80s slider, a 76-80 curve with spin mostly around 2500-2600 rpm and an 86-87 changeup at 1800 rpm. He struck out three in two innings.

Lefthander Evan Blanco was super sharp to open Saturday’s game three and it looked to be his breakout start after the beginning of his season was slowed by a return from injury. With a low effort level he located his 90-92 fastball to the mitt, working in/out and occasionally elevating up in the zone. However, it wasn’t nearly as easy from there as the 6-foot, 205-pound competitive southpaw grinded through five innings, allowing two earned runs on nine hits. He struck out five and walked one. His best pitch was an above average changeup at 79-81 mph and he mixed a 80-83 slider that showed good depth at times. Sophomore righthander Drew Koenen relieved Blanco in the sixth, but some sloppy defense inhibited his performance. His fastball sat 92-94 and he spun a tight 79-81 mph slider. Grad transfer Matt Lazendorfer was the next man up and the sidearm reliever touched 94 and subtracted with a lower-spin (1700 rpm) changeup at 85 mph in a scoreless inning. He might be older as a 23 year old graduate student, but he would be on my draft list for late on day three this summer. Fellow grad student Alex Markus touched 98 in his brief relief appearance on Saturday and he was another good reminder of how much the sport of college baseball has changed from just four years ago.



STANFORD

Stanford was swept in the three game series, but it was more due to not making the play or pitch when it was needed as opposed to lacking talent. Their 2025 draft prospects are led by righthander Matt Scott. He certainly looks the part of a pitching staff ace at 6-foot-7, 245 pounds. However, it was not the greatest look at Scott who was once considered a first round prospect. There’s still work to do and a lot of projection involved. And there is a lot to work with. A highly regarded prep from Connecticut, Scott has struggled to find consistency with both his control and the quality of his stuff throughout his two-plus seasons in college. It all begins with a slower-paced delivery into a quick arm path with a moderate-paced finish from a high three-quarter arm slot. His arm is loose, but his multi-speed operation and “checkpoints” throughout the delivery produces an off-time and out of sync delivery. Scott also uses his lower half very little during his stride down the mound and instead relies upon the “tall and fall” mechanical philosophy. He showed feel for four pitches with his 82-83 mph split changeup (900 rpm) as his greatest bat-misser on this look. His 92-95 mph fastball was also flatter-shaped and there was more present control than command. A marginal athlete, Scott also showed an 88-89 cutter and an upper-70s curve. Overall, Scott remains much more of a project than a polished college junior who has nearly 200 collegiate innings and time with the USA CNT each of the past two summers.

The centerpiece of Stanford’s sophomore class is another tall, large-framed righthander. Similar to Scott, Joey Volchko arrived on campus as a highly regarded prep. And like Scott, Volchko has yet to find his groove with consistency of stuff or control. Against Virginia he was very good outside of a four-run third inning ambush by the Hoos. Over six innings Volchko threw 93 pitches, 64 for strikes. He sat 95-97 and touched 98 with his four-seamer that spun into the 2600s rpm. He’s a supinator who naturally turns his fastball into a cutter in the 94-95 range. This cutting heater has both advantages and disadvantages. Its cut is tough to barrel by the hitter, and its movement is tough to control by Volchko. His ability to cut when he wants and straight spot-up is a big key to his development and will greatly enhance his performance. Volchko’s slider spun even tighter, maxing out in the 3100s. It flashed plus at times with late action and swing/miss, but with repeated near misses just off the plate to his gloveside, it can also be a pitch that hitters just simply eliminate and lay off. His best pitch on this look was a plus changeup. It’s thrown with a Vulcan grip and arrives firm at 93-95. It plays like a heavy two-seamer and has produced a 75% ground ball rate this spring.

The quantum leap that Paul Skenes made during his sophomore to junior year is very rare, but Volchko stuff-wise is ahead of Skenes at the same age. If he puts it all together, he’s easily a top five overall pick prospect for the 2026 draft. And 1-1 isn’t out of the question at this point in the process.

Fellow sophomore righthander Aidan Keenan showed good stuff out of the pen on Saturday with a 94-95 mph fastball and a barrel-missing, mid-80s changeup with a 1700 rpm spin rate.

Freshman first baseman Rintaro Sasaki anchored the Cardinal lineup from the three-hole. The 6-foot, 275-pound lefthanded hitter couldn’t get much going over the course of the series (2-for-14) but it was a good first look at the highly-heralded prospect from Japan. He will be draft-eligible as a sophomore in 2026.

Rightfielder Brady Reynolds continued his breakout sophomore season with five hits in his first seven at-bats of the series before finishing the three games 8-for-13 with a double, one home run and three RBIs. The 6-foot, 210-pound lefthanded hitter sets up with an open stance and stays balanced and behind the baseball. He uses all fields with average power. It’s not as silky smooth as Mark Grace’s swing back in the day, but it's a good one and the approach is very similar. Reynolds’ backside home run traveled 397’ to left centerfield after exiting the barrel at 103 mph. He currently leads the team with a .371 batting average and SLG at .674.

Frosh outfielder Tatum Marsh caught my eye with his consistent hard contact and simple, flat swing at the plate. He also looked to be a gamer/grinder that will play above his talented toolset. Marsh connected for three hits in the opening game and finished the series with six hits in ten at-bats with three RBIs. He’s currently second on the team with a .361 batting average.

Seniors Temo Becerra and Trevor Haskins set the table for the Cardinal atop the lineup, while another senior, catcher Charlie Saum, provides some thump in the middle. His 117 mph fly out to rightfield during the third game of the series was the top EV I’ve witnessed to date this spring. Shortstop Becerra has quick hands, athletic feet and a strong arm. He’s likely to play a long time at the next level at his current spot. At the plate he’s a handsy righthanded hitter who could stay behind the ball better in order to increase his power production. Becerra is fourth on the team with a .344 batting average and is a day two prospect. Haskins has the ability to hit for both average and power. He’s fifth on the team in batting average (.329) and first in home runs (8) and RBIs (26).