Burton's Scout Blog: Week 7
April 30, 2026
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Throughout the VA/DC high school season, our staff travels far and wide to identify the best players in the Commonwealth. In additon to that, our staff delivers evaluations and video to assist players in their recruiting process. Every week our staff members provide notes and video in an assortment of scout blogs. Jason Burton, the Virginia/DC Scouting Director, will be delivering his weekly scout blog on some of the players he saw during his travels.
In week seven, the scout blog takes us a little of everywhere across the state and unpacks some notes on nearly two dozen players from seven different teams.
Burton's Scout Blog
Abingdon
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Will Allen SS / 2B / Abingdon High School, VA / 2027Square stance to start, higher set hands, and a short step to stride on line. Starts to clear the hip and front side pretty quickly. Shorter hand load and a level path through the zone. Thinner athletic frame with room to add strength. Was 2-3 with two singles, drove in three, and scored two runs.
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Hayden Reed LHP / OF / Abingdon High, VA / 2027Reed is the highest ranked uncommitted player in the 2027 class and is surging through the spring. Did not pitch on Friday, but from a distance, it appears he is excelling on the mound just as much as he is at the plate. Offensively on the day, Reed had two hits, one legitimate one and the other came via an outfielder not picking up a ball off the bat. Square stance at the plate and gets the weight down into his lower half a little more. Hands set back, very short hand load, and small stride staying on line. Did a nice job going with a few outside pitches to the backside, one of them resulting in a RBI single. The biggest takeaway from Reed in the few times we have seen him or been around him the last year, is that he is a vocal leader. Wants everyone engaged, seems to stay locked in, competes in the box and on the mound, and wants to be succesful. First base/DH left/left profile with two-way potential at the next level.
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Aiden Smith 2B / SS / Abingdon High, VA / 2026There has always been something that stood out about Smith, a lot of it having to do with his athleticism and some of the versatality he offers. At the plate it is a slightly squatted stance, closed off, and a shorter and later hand load. Shorter path to contact and barrel tends to get out around, creating some pull side tendency to the swing. Smith reached all four times today, a walk, HBP, a single, and a homerun. The King University produced five RBI and scored three runs.
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Landon Turman LHP / OF / Abingdon High, VA / 2026The East Carolina commit and standout Falcon senior was on the mound last Friday night. Early on he ran himself into some harder contact and runners on, but seemed to get stronger as he went. The stuff remained the same as he got into the outing, but the execution of the pitches tended to get better. Higher lift in the delivery, longer arm swing, shoulders get slightly uphill, and works from a three-quarter arm slot. The fastball was 85-87 for the first two innings of work and it was certainly a more fastball heavy pitch usage. Struggled to land the breaking ball early on, tending to miss up and arm side. Did show a few mid 70's changeups, but most of his success came off of the fastball.
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Atlee
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Maxwell Baedke SS / 2B / Atlee, VA / 2026Was not a ton to takeaway from today, but the one thing that stood out is the pace and intensity he plays the game with. Atlee certainly overmatched their opponent that day, but if you watched Baedke play, you would think it was the state championship game. Even in his second at bat when Atlee was up by 6+ runs, Baedke hit a triple to left center and had a 4.41 turn. He gets out of the box and seems to take every at bat and every groundball with the same intensity and purpose, two things that carry over to the next level.
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Jayden(JD) Dillane SS / RHP / Atlee, VA / 2027Taller and narrower setup at the plate, medium lift to stride, and lands tall in his stance. Hands stay short and tight to the body, slots the back elbow and more knob to ball bat path entry. Shorter path to contact and with his posture and position, works more flatter path and tends to be top half of the ball, especially on pitches in upper portion of the zone. Had two hits on the day, including a hustle double down the third base line.
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Zorro Hott RHP / OF / Atlee, VA / 2026Four solid innings of work from Hott. Was in the zone a decent bit, throwing 61% strikes on the day. The fastball sat 84-87 and touched 88 in the first two innings. The slider is the winner for the Richard Bland commit. More sweeper with lateral movement profile. Sat 73-75 on the day and again, was able to land it a decent clip. The biggest takeaway for Hott, he has the stuff to compete in the zone, sometimes it is just a matter of keeping it in the zone. Sometimes seems to try and chase something more, but the stuff he shows, when under control, he does not have to nibble and pick his spots with, especially at the high school level. The slider alone is an above average pitch at the high school level and will get plenty of hitters out, while it also allows the fastball to play a tick up.
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Brayden Robinson 3B / RHP / Atlee, VA / 2027Athletic stance at the plate, has some twitch and explosiveness in his actions, and a medium length swing. The path itself has a little uphill finish and can get out of the zone quick, but has some lean strength that allows for a little more impact to his frame. Gets out of the box well and plays the game at a good pace, similar to a lot of the Atlee players.
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Benedictine
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Hayes Corbitt 3B / RHP / Benedictine College Preparatory, VA / 2029Strong athletic makeup and physically put together as well as any freshman you will see. Short relief on the mound. Arm strength over pitchability. Medium length arm path and a delivery that has fairly normal effort. Fastball was up to 88-89 and sat more 84-87.
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Cooper Crabtree C / 2B / Benedictine College Preparatory, VA / 2029One of the best hit tools currently in this class. Does not seem to get overwhelmed in the box. Competes every pitch and has a solid feel for the strike zone and his approach, especially in comparison to other hitters in his class. Shows some alterations when it comes to two-strike approach. Gets rid of a smaller lift to stride and goes to just a heel lift and replace, simplifying his pre-pitch operation to become more bat to ball oriented. Is not a runner, but with the intensity and pace he plays at, it allows the run to play a little better in game. Athleticism has improved since the summer. Will need to continue to evolve athletically and defensively, not that he is a poor defender, just more so to find where that positional fit actually is long term.
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Braylon Rogers RHP / OF / Benedictine College Preparatory, VA / 2029Slower paced buildup in the delivery with late intent. Medium length on the arm swing, arm gets up on time, and lands slightly closed down the mound. Above average arm speed working from a three-quarter arm slot. There is some late effort in the delivery, but does get to the velo somewhat easy and under control. The fastball had a wider range if you are looking at the duration of his outing, sitting more 85-88 over his 3+ innings of work, but saw a fair number of 90's in the first two innings. while touching 91 once. Both breaking balls showed flashes of being a current average pitch, but it was the changeup that was the best current out pitch (outside of the fastball). I'm calling it a changeup because the spin was a little high for a split, but could certainly be for of split-change, or kick change. It is firm and has more dive than tumble action out of the hand. The shape, action, and firmness of the pitch certainly do not lean straight change or even circle due to the hard downer shape it showed. One of the more impressive non-spin secondary pitches I have seen for a freshman.
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Briar Woods
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Cole Harris C / OF / Briar Woods High, VA / 2028
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Maxwell Henry 3B / OF / Briar Woods High, VA / 2026
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Dani Jensen RHP / OF / Briar Woods High, VA / 2027One of the better outings I have seen this spring, especially when it comes to uncommitted arms. Started the game off with a 84 mph cutter that I was not 100% sure if it was the fastball, generally because you don't see too many high school arms start a game with a cutter, especially an 84 mph one, but the next two pitches after that were 88 and 89 mph fastballs. Jensen went on to dominate the next 5.2 innings. He allowed one hit and walked one, while striking out seven. Although he did not have massive strikeout numbers, a fair portion of the contact was bad contact. Out front weak hit balls on pitches down, jamming hitters in, multiple whiffs in and out of the zone, and the stuff still played in the 6th inning. The velo was up to 91 early and was still grabbing 90 in the 4th and 5th. Jensen threw a cutter, slider, and changeup to go along with the fastball, and landed all four of them. He is one of, if not the best, remaining uncommitted arm in the 2027 VA/DC class. There may be some others that are longer and offer some more projection, I cannot think of an arm that offers as much pitchability, comparable arsenal, and can hold velo like Jensen showed. Certainly due for a bump come rankings update in a few weeks.
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Blake Mingo SS / 2B / Briar Woods High, VA / 2027Lean frame with longer levers and proportional strength. Square stance, small lift to stride, and simple, repeatable actions in the swing. Hands are fairly quiet on load and he is short to contact. Average to slightly above average bat speed with some solid barrel feel. Had some well hit balls on the night with nothing to show for it.
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Bryce Stanford LHP / OF / Briar Woods High, VA / 2026Short work for the Longwood commit. Down and out delivery, low three-quarter slot, and lands slightly closed. Fairly normal effort to the operation. Fastball sat 86-89 and touched 90 during his brief outing. Stanford also showed what appeared to be two different breaking balls.
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Culpeper
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Tucker Bowyer SS / 2B / Culpeper County High, VA / 2028Count me in on the sophomore athlete. Played shortstop, profiles more outfield for me (potentially CF). Has some power-esque tools that could translate well in centerfield, including footspeed and ability to impact the game at the plate. Square stance at the plate, strides forward and stays on line, good posture throughout the swing, and delivers a short to medium length level path through the zone. Aggressive early in counts and looks to do damage. Has the physical makeup that will carry strength well. Was 0-3 on the night, but really got into one in his first AB, but was tracked down in deep center.
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Clayton Golden LHP / LHP / Culpeper County High, VA / 2026Basically a year apart and much remains the same. As easy as it gets to get to the velo, can win with the fastball in the zone, and gets chases on it out to the arm side. Makes for a somewhat uneasy at bat for hitters from either side. Effectively wild is maybe a fair representation. What he lacks in pitchability and present command, he more than makes up with in the department of ceiling and projection. Fastball was 84-87 over the course of two innings. Threw very few sliders at 76-78 mph. Slider offers a different look, but obviously it is far behind the fastball, as displayed in the usage rate and confidence levels of each pitch. After a leadoff walk in the 6th, the Mary Washington commit mowed through the next six hitters, striking out five of them.
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Michael Orahood OF / RHP / Culpeper County HS, VA / 2027Evenly distributed weight in the setup, simple heel lift and small stride forward, minimal movement with the hands, and generates average bat speed in a tight window. Was 1-3 with a double on the night.
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Independence
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Reid Hydock SS / RHP / Independence High, VA / 2027Long wiry frame. Athletic, good mover, and lateral range at shortstop. Certainly passes the look test. Got to a few groundballs, especially to the gloveside, that you do not see a ton of high school shortstops get to. Above average arm strength and enough to stay on the left side. Some upside to the offense, but seems to chase a little more power over hit. Does not get cheated, especially anything prior to two strike counts. Does make some adjustments deeper in counts, but still some slighly above normal effort in the swing and some moving parts.
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Matthew Son 3B / RHP / Independence High, VA / 2027Square stance at the plate, hands set back amd load even deeper to a slight arm bar, and a flatter bat and path through the zone. Son was one of the very few hitters on the night that saw some success versus the Briar Woods arms, specifically Jensen. While the box score does not necessarily show some of the success in the box, he was one barrel multiple times, including a flyout to deep left and a lineout to center. Showed that he is a hitter that coaches should continue to track the rest of the spring and into the summer.
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Aidan Spagna C / OF / Independence High, VA / 2026Is having as good of a spring season as any catcher in the state. Did not have much offensive production this night, but most AB's were deep and competitive at bats. For quite a while he has been a difference maker behind the plate, but it has gotten even better. Quick exchanges, accurate to the bag, not afraid of throwing behind runners. Feet work well behind the plate and gets himself into a good throwing position quickly. Solid receiver and blocker. Continues to add defensive polish and the offense, and impact of it, has certainly taken a step forward, especially in the second half of the season.
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Glen Allen
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Cooper McPherson C / 3B / Glen Allen High, VA / 2027Saw and wrote about McPherson a few weeks back, but the raw strength and in game power continue to impress. He is a physical human, and he has real impact at the plate. Both games I have really locked in on him have been versus average to slightly below high school arms and so sometimes that can leave some room for questioning what level of arm he will be able to handle long term, but make no mistake, the power is real and the impact is something that keeps you coming back.
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