Over a dozen Major League Baseball scouts took to Dozer Park Wednesday to evaluate the individual talents of Bradley’s baseball team. Scouts came to Bradley to evaluate player’s skills in a two and a half hour showcase, and the players certainly did their best to impress the scouts.
“It’s a way for the scouts in professional baseball to put a name to a face,” head coach Elvis Dominguez said. “[Bradley players] are guys the scouts have been following in high school and they’re seeing them develop now.”
Scouts look for five skills, or tools, in a position player to evaluate their talent: speed, hitting ability, hitting for power, arm strength and defensive ability. Pitchers are typically evaluated on their fastball velocity, location and their off-speed pitches, such as their curveball and changeup. Each player had the opportunity to display their skills Wednesday.
The scouts were attentive throughout the afternoon because Bradley has developed a bit of a reputation among MLB evaluators.
“In the last couple years, we’ve been able to put guys into the next level,” Dominguez said. “This gives [scouts] an opportunity to see them early, see where they are and how they progress going into the spring.”
Former Braves Tyler Leffler, Cameron Roegner and Matt Dennis were all drafted in the 2016 amatuer draft. Currently, there are 12 Braves in the minor leagues and one in the majors, Rob Scahill with the Milwaukee Brewers.
Various players, including senior third baseman Spencer Gaa and senior pitcher Nathan Stong, hope to follow the lead of their former teammates. Both flaunted their skills at the scouting combine as Gaa mashed a couple of homeruns during batting practice while Stong’s fastball regularly sat at 92 to 94 miles per hour, according to the team.
Dominguez said the scouts were also likely focusing on sophomore outfielder Andy Shadid, senior pitcher Eric Scheuermann and sophomore pitcher Ben Cilano, among others.
Though it may seem counterintuitive for the players to showcase their skills in the offseason, Dominguez noted that if Bradley players want to be professionals, they have to prepare to play long seasons.
“These guys have been playing baseball since January, and we won’t finish until the end of October,” Dominguez said. “But if you go to the Major League’s, it’s the same thing. [The scouts] are kind of looking at it from that standpoint of how guys hold up … so it gives them kind of a gauge of how they’ll hold up during a whole season.”
