Joe
Kelly

RHP Joe Kelly (Loyola Academy, 2026) is a well-built 6-foot-1, 191-pound frame, Kelly was attacking hitters with his full arsenal Wednesday afternoon. The right-hander worked from an easy rocker motion, strong lower half, drop and drive motion with a whippy arm working from the ¾ slot. The fastball was sitting 87-88 mph, with 19.3 IVB, and the slider was 73-75 mph, with sweeper shape. As Kelly got deeper into the outing, the command followed as he began to overpower bats and locate in the zone.

RHP Joe Kelly (Loyola Academy, 2026) is a name familiar to our staff who remains uncommitted. Standing at a sturdy and well-proportioned 6-foot-1, 191-pounds, Kelly showed intrigue with his three-pitch mix. His fastball sat 85-87 mph with armside run and carry through the zone. His slider played with slurve-action and high-spin (avg. 2425 rpm) at 70-72 mph. Kelly turned over a 74-76 mph changeup that played with sink (avg. 2.7” IVB) to round things out.

Positional Profile: 3B/RHP
Body: 6-1, 191-pounds.
Delivery: Clean, easy mover, medium leg lift with tuck, tall/fall down the mound.
Arm Action: RH. Long, loose, quick arm action from a 3/4 slot.
FB: T87, 86-87 mph. Arm-side run, carry through the zone. T2202, 2017 average rpm.
SL: 70-72 mph. Slurve type breaking ball, above average spin. T2516, 2425 average rpm.
CH: 74-75 mph. Decel action, turns over for sink action. T1825, 1735 average rpm.

3B Joe Kelly (Loyola Academy, 2026) took a loud round of BP from the right side. He uses some intent with a high leg-lift that coils his body into a long stride, firing through with an average bat-speed of 72.5 mph and average hand-speed of 24.9 mph. He worked his max EV up to 95 mph, averaging 86.4 mph with a max distance of 350’.

RHP Joe Kelly (Loyola Academy) is an arm to know in the state’s incoming-junior class. Standing at a sturdy 6-foot-1, 191-pound frame. Kelly featured a lively arm-side running fastball in this look at 82-85 mph that missed bats and induced chase out of the zone. He had feel to spin a 72-73 mph slider with 2397 rpm (T2521) on average. He would then round out his mix by turning over a changeup at 69-73 mph with arm-side fade (avg. 15.1” HM). Kelly would go on to punch out three batters over his two innings of work.

Positional Profile: 3B/RHP
Body: 6-1, 191-pounds.
Delivery: Controlled gather into a medium leg-lift, coils into back hip, works in-line.
Arm Action: RH. Long, loose arm swing into a 3/4 release, quick arm.
FB: T86, 82-85 mph. Has some life, thrown mostly glove side. T2243, 2085 average rpm.
SL: 70-72 mph. Sharp, late break with horizontal action. T2521, 2397 average rpm.
CH: 70-72 mph. Lots of depth, notable speed differential. T1919, 1822 average rpm.

Positional Profile: 3B/RHP
Body: 6-1, 191-pounds.
Hit: RHH. Crouched, open setup, high leg kick trigger, quiet hands load, aggressive lower-half. Strong hands, upfill path, elevated contact to all fields. 71.6 mph bat speed with 5 G’s of rotational acceleration.
Power: 94 max exit velocity, averaged 86 mph. 310’ max distance.
Arm: RH. OF - 87 mph. Long arm path, quick, 3/4 slot.
Defense: Attacks the baseball in-stride, fields out front, athletic, confident actions.
Run: 7.32 runner in the 60.

RHP Joe Kelly (Loyola Academy, 2026) threw his fastball at 84-86 mph while averaging 16 inches of horizontal movement on the pitch, the second-highest mark of the event. Off that, Kelly consistently landed a tight 3-74 mph slider for strikes at 2500+ RPM. To round out his arsenal, he effectively limited both spin and lift on a 75-78 mph changeup that averaged 15.2 inches of horizontal movement.

RHP Joe Kelly (Loyola Academy, 2026) stands in a well-built frame at 5-foot-10, 190-pounds. His fastball sat 84-86 mph with arm-side run (16” avg. HM) and he attacked the zone with strikes (71%). He throws his slider with intent, which features quality spin (2404 rpm avg.), sitting mostly 72-73 mph. To round out his three-pitch mix, Kelly threw a mid-70s changeup that had quality fade (15.2” avg. HM), and he threw the pitch for strikes (80%).

Positional Profile: RHP/OF
Body: 6-0, 179.9-pounds. Some present strength, evenly proportioned.
Hit: RHH. Slightly open setup, works back to even with a controlled stride, some rhythm in the hands. Easy, loose hands, flat path, intent to elevate up the middle, used the whole field. 70.6 mph bat speed with 7 G’s of rotational acceleration.
Power: 93 max exit velocity, averaged 87.4 mph. 268’ max distance.
Arm: RH. OF - 84 mph. Medium arm circle with a high 3/4 release.
Defense: One-hand gather off to the side, moves well into crowhop, steady actions.
Run: 7.32 runner in the 60.

RHP/INF Joe Kelly (Loyola, 2026) provided another impressive look on both sides of the ball this weekend. The 6-foot, 175-pound sophomore was a standout at the Illinois State Games in August, and continued to show real two-way potential in Rantoul. In the first matchup of the weekend, Kelly provided all the offense that was needed for Top Tier. He launched a three-run home run over the left-field wall to lead his squad to a 3-0 victory. On the mound, Kelly worked his fastball in the 80-84 mph range, topping out at 85 mph. To pair off the fastball, Kelly went to a low-70s curveball with late break and a fading changeup in the mid-70s.

RHP Joe Kelly (Loyola Academy, 2026) is another former member of Team Illinois at the 2022 PBR Junior Future Games that was in attendance this weekend. The 6-foot, 175-pound prospect seemingly gets bigger and stronger each time we see him. In a relief appearance, Kelly showed an easy and fluid delivery with a quick arm to pair. His fastball sat 83-86 mph with fade, and his curveball sat in the low-70s with a range of 2500-2600 RPMs.

3B/RHP Joe Kelly (Loyola Academy, 2026) is a to-be sophomore that showed intriguing two-way potential throughout the event. Kelly stands at a sturdy 6-foot, 175-pound frame and exhibited some power at the plate. It started with a loud round of BP in which he had a peak exit velocity of 93.5 mph and a max distance of 337 feet. Kelly would translate that loud contact into gameplay, launching a no-doubt home run along with multiple barrels against older competition. He also gave an upside look on the mound, topping at 83 mph parlayed with a sharp breaker that spun in the 2400 RPM range.

Positional Profile: RHP
Body: 6-0, 175-pounds. Physical, well-proportioned.
Delivery: Up-tempo, repeatable, high leg lift with tuck and slight coil, drop/drive delivery, works in-line, foot lands slightly closed.
Arm Action: RH. Medium arm circle, loose, 3/4 slot.
FB: T83, 81-83 mph. Firm out of the hand, has slight arm-side run. T2243, 2065 average rpm.
CB: 69-71 mph. 11/5 shape, located down. T2478, 2428 average rpm.

Positional Profile: 3B
Body: 6-0, 175-pounds. Physical, well-proportioned.
Hit: RHH. Open setup, high leg kick into forward move. Aggressive and intentful swing, quick bat, direct to the ball, accurate barrel.
Power: 93 max exit velocity, averaged 90.1 mph. 337’ max distance.
Arm: RH. INF - 83 mph. Short, compact arm, high 3/4 slot.
Defense: Steady actions, active footwork, clean transfer.
Run: 8.16 runner in the 60.

Former Junior Future Gamer, OF Joseph Kelly (Loyola Academy, 2026), showed true two-way potential this summer but only hit and played the outfield at this event. Listed at 6-foot 175-pounds, Kelly has been steadily adding on strength since we first saw him over a year ago and it continues to translate in the right-handed batters box where he has flashed pull-side power. He works with controlled fluidity, big leg-lift trigger and stays on balance with loose, athletic hands and a heavy barrel. His furthest batted ball traveled 324’. Follow 2026 prospect.

RHP/3B Joseph Kelly (Loyola Academy, 2026) showed one of the more dynamic fastball/breaking ball combos in his class. An 11/5 bender that showed both above average horizontal and vertical break, it spins above average for his age, and pairs a low 80’s fastball at 81-82 mph. The fastball led the charts in average horizontal movement to arm side.

Positional Profile: OF
Body: 5-11, 175-pounds. Athletic build with strength.
Hit: RHH. Tall, balanced setup,big leg-kick trigger. Swings with  controlled intent, length through the zone,occasional uphill loft with some innate strength.
Power: 91 max exit velocity, averaged 84.8 mph. 288’ max distance.
Arm: RH. OF - 81 mph. Loose arm action, 3/4 slot and throws flashed carry.
Defense: Deliberate actions, soft hands through the ball.
Run: 7.76 runner in the 60. 

Positional Profile: RHP
Delivery: Hands work up and over his head before moving into an up-tempo leg-lift, slight drop/drive lower-half, works in-line.
Arm Action: RH. Above average arm speed, high 3/4 slot.
FB: T82, 81-82 mph. Runs to arm side. T2161, 2075 average rpm.
CB: 66-67 mph. 11/5 shape, above average action for age. T2371, 2281 average rpm.
CH: 72-75 mph. Plays with sink action. T1735, 1612 average rpm. 

Junior Futures Games: Team Illinois got back in the win column to finish up pool play with a 9-1 win over Team Missouri. RHP/UTL Joseph Kelly (Loyola Academy, 2026) was sensational on the mound for Team Illinois, firing a six-inning complete game in only 61 pitches while surrendering just four hits and one earned run. The right-hander showed impressive control over the zone for his age, not allowing a single walk while filling up the zone with a fastball that sat 77-80 mph, and reached a high of 81. He also went to a sharp 11/5 breaking ball at 64-66 mph that he was able to land for strikes and to put hitters away. 

Positional Profile: INF
Body: 5-10, 156-pounds.
Hit: RHH. Knee-knock stride. Hands held low and close to the body.   Loose/fluid arms through the zone, drops hands slightly at footstrike, uphill path with an up-the-middle and opposite-field approach.
Power: 80.8 max exit velocity, averaged 73.4 mph. 288’ max distance.
Arm: RH. INF - 74 mph. Low 3/4 arm slot, quick release.
Defense: Plays with tempo, glove plays out front.
Run: 7.90 runner in the 60.