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Northern Wisconsin Fall ID: Quick Hits

October 23, 2025
Wisconsin Scouting Staff

On October 19th, the Prep Baseball Wisconsin staff hosted the Northern Wisconsin Fall ID at Impact Sports Academy in De Pere, WI. Around 35 players participated in a pro-style workout, gathering unrivaled access to data through our state-of-the-art tech partners, as well as in-depth scouting analysis from our Prep Baseball Wisconsin staff. The following players are some of the standout players at the event.

POSITION PLAYERS

+ INF Benjamin Smet-Cooper (Westosha Central, 2028) continues to shine in front of our staff. The sophomore infielder has a serious knack for the barrel and showcased his natural hitability by hitting rockets throughout his round of batting practice. Smet-Cooper’s max exit velocity of 99.4 mph and average exit velocity were both far away the best of the day. His smooth and quick left-handed swing plays both in the showcase setting and in game. In the infield, the feet and hands worked in rhythm with fluidity through the ball showing quality actions that paired well with plenty of arm strength across in the infield (84 mph) to be able to stick at the hot corner. There is a reliability and confidence that comes with watching Smet-Cooper field a groundball in the infield. Overall, it was another impressive look at the 2028 grad who is poised for a big winter showcase season.

+ OF Jackson Farina (Waukesha West, 2027) solidified himself as a prospect showcasing some loud tools on Sunday. Farina ran the second fastest 60 yard dash of the day at 6.97 seconds with an athletic and bursty running gate. His right handed swing during batting practice produced the third best max exit velocity of the day at 94.2 mph and the third best average exit velocity at 89.5. He displayed balance and barrel awareness throughout his round. During outfield defense, Farina’s 85 mph velocity from the outfield was the best mark of the day proving he can play all three spots in the outfield. It was an impressive look at the Waukesha West junior.

+ INF Elijah Yeager (Hortonville, 2027) is a projectable bodied junior who continues to impress our staff with the swing and the ability to impact line drives. His 91.6 max exit velocity was 5th best among the day’s participants. He also hit a ball 324 feet which is the 4th furthest ball hit on the day using his smooth right-handed swing. Currently Yeager is ranked 82nd in the class but continues to be an intriguing prospect with his feel for the barrel and his overall feel for the game, our staff can envision a jump coming this winter and spring.

+ INF Tenzin Pavlik (Shorewood, 2027) had a great day with the bat and with the glove. At the plate, he showcased the ability to really impact the baseball from his loose and fluid right-handed swing. His 93.9 mph max exit velocity was the 4th best mark of the day and his 89.8 average exit velocity was second best proving his ability to be consistently on the barrel throughout his round. On defense, Pavlik worked through ground balls with a quick first step laterally with an accurate arm that he can throw from multiple arm angles. The ceiling is high for Pavlik with his quick and twitchy athleticism and should fill out considerably with his long and wiry build that has considerable room to add.

+ INF Isaac Habetler (West De Pere, 2027) put himself on the radar after his showcase on Sunday. Habetler hit with a well-sequenced right-handed swing that produced the 6th best max exit velocity at 90.9 mph and the 5th highest average exit velocity of 84.6 mph on the day. In the infield, Habetler showcased smooth and fluid actions with an accurate arm.

PITCHERS/TWO-WAY PLAYERS

+ INF Keegan Cavanaugh (Assumption Catholic, 2029) opened some eyes on Sunday with his performances on the mound, with the bat and in the infield. The freshman started his day by running a solid 7.16 60 yard dash getting to his top end speed quickly. On the mound, he showed an athletic and repeatable delivery with feel for a fastball up to 78 mph, and a couple of different breaking balls he was able to command in and out of the zone. Next, the left handed swing was all over the barrel throughout the round of batting practice he took. His swing displayed fluidity and rhythm with impressive barrel awareness. In the infield, his quickness and athleticism was on display laterally and he showcased softness to his hands as he worked through the groundballs. The 5-foot-9, 140 pound freshman will surely see all the metrics tick up as he continues to add size and strength to his frame. Cavanaugh has proven himself to be an interesting prospect for the 2029 class.

+ RHP/INF Nick Minikel (Manitowoc Lincoln, 2028) opened some eyes with his work on the mound on Sunday. Minikel repeated an athletic delivery and pounded the zone with feel for a fastball that he was able to run up to 81 mph. He paired it with two different breaking balls including a sharp and late breaking top to bottom curveball that he displayed the ability to land for strikes and get below the zone. His slider was a lateral sweeping breaker that will force hitters to try to cover both sides of the plate with his late tailing fastball and sweeping slider. Additionally, he deployed a change up with late fade and depth and was thrown with a fastball intent. Overall, it was a very impressive look and arrow is way up for Minikel who should continue to add velocity as his frame continues to fill.

+ OF/RHP Liam O’Toole (Plymouth, 2027) is a smooth and explosive athlete and had a very good day on the mound and with the bat. He started his day by running the best 60 yard dash time of the event at 6.75 seconds. On the mound, the right-hander used a short arm path and an extremely effortless delivery and drove two-different fastballs to spots in the zone up to 81 mph. He threw a short and quick lateral breaking cutter off the fastball and a two-plane breaking curveball in and out of the zone. His change-up was thrown with fastball intent and has the makings of an effective out-pitch weapon to both left-handed and right-handed hitters. With the bat, the junior utility player was among the top performers of the day with registering a max exit velocity of 88.7 mph. His swing was repeatable and balanced with a short hand and bat path through the baseball. Overall, O’Toole remains a name to monitor as we look ahead to the winter showcase season.

+ LHP/1B Braeden Hermes (Kimberly, 2027) is a twitchy two-way left/left first baseman and left-handed pitcher who continues to impress our staff with his athleticism and skills on the field. He started his day by running the third best 60 yard dash time of the day at 6.98 seconds. With the bat, the ball jumped off the barrel and registered the second best max exit velocity 95.4 mph and the 4th best average exit velocity of 86.5 mph. Additionally, Hermes has good feel for first base defense and can handle the 3-6-3 double play. On the mound, he explodes with his lower half down the mound and is up to 83 mph with the fastball showing considerable life on the heater. He throws a two plane slider with late breaking action, a change up with fade and has a knuckleball to round out his arsenal. Our staff was not surprised that it was another good look at the talented junior.

+ INF/RHP Owen Pire (Neenah, 2027) measured in at 6-foot-2, 184 pounds with a lot of room left to fill out his athletic frame. He started his day by running a respectable 7.29 seconds run time. His short and compact left handed swing was all over the barrel during hitting and was hitting hard line drives to all fields. On the mound, Pire displayed carry on his upper 70’s fastball with quick arm speed with the ability to land it to spots. He deployed a short and quick breaking curveball with feel to land and a late fading change up that showed late fade and depth to the pitch. There is more in the tank from the projectable bodied right-hander and has some ceiling to his profile. Pire is a name we will monitor going forward and is on our staff’s radar going forward.

+ RHP/INF Ben Knickmeyer (Monona Grove, 2029) put himself on the map after his pitching performance at the event on Sunday. The 6-foot-1, 173 pound wiry strong freshman featured a four-pitch mix with a repeatable delivery. His fastball had late natural cutting action to it and was driven through the hitting zone making his fastball (73-77 mph) a deceptive pitch and one that will be difficult to square up for both left-handed and right-handed batters. He deployed a tight sweeping curveball and lateral sweeping slider with feel for the zone for both breaking pitches. He rounded out his arsenal with a change up thrown out of the same window as the rest of his arsenal.

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