Camryn Williams

Going into the February 7 weekend of Under Armour Baseball Factory National Tryouts in Alabama, California and Texas, only three players had posted raw velocities 95 mph. SS Camryn Williams (Odessa, FL) stood alone atop the top 2016 class, while SS/OF Bryce Bonnin (Baytown, TX) and 3B J.D. Brooks (Las Vegas, NV) were tied for the lead in the class of 2017.

C Hunter Brittain (Brewton, AL) — a South Alabama commit — joined that group at the Mobile, AL tryout on February 7, and muddied the waters even further atop the 2017 leaderboard. A talented all-around player, Brittain recorded two additional measures that qualified as among the best in his class — his low pop time of 1.81 ranks among the top five we’ve seen, while his exit velocity of 91 mph earned him a spot on that leaderboard.

Jeremiah Jackson

A tender arm prevented 2018 SS Jeremiah Jackson (Mobile, AL) from throwing when we saw him one year ago in Mobile, but this year he touched 91 mph to join a group of five tied for second place among 2018 graduates. Jackson also turned in an exit velocity of 92 mph, good for another top ten placement among his graduating class.

The 2017 raw velocity lead wasn’t the only one to be threatened on February 7. At the Tomball, TX tryout, OF/RHP Logan Letney (Spring, TX) joined a group of three others atop the class of 2019 at 86 mph. Among the most talented all-around players we saw over the weekend, Letney qualified for leaderboards in three additional categories — 60 yard dash (6.96), exit velocity (82 mph), and fastball velocity (84 mph).

Also in Tomball, 6-foot-2 RHP/1B Joe Kibbe (Katy, TX) reached 88 mph raw velocity to tie for the fifth highest number we’ve seen so far from the class of 2018. His fastball peaked at 83 mph to qualify for inclusion on that leaderboard.

At the San Diego tryout, 2018 RHP/OF Mason Pelio (San Diego, CA) posted a rarely seen velocity combo. Normally, raw velocity comes in higher than fastball velocity when both measures are collected from the same player — though technically pitchers aren’t supposed to participate in raw velocity testing, since we will capture a velocity for them off the mound. Pelio did both however, as was his option, and as it turned out his raw velocity (87 mph) was actually less than his peak fastball velocity (88 mph). If there is ever an indication of an effective delivery, that would be it. Remember, players may use whatever footwork and arm stroke they wish for raw velocity (think running start, or a crow hop before firing a throw into a net) — whereas fastball velocity is measured off the mound, where the measurement is collected within the context of a standard delivery of a pitch.

CLICK HERE for the Top Raw Velocities from Baseball Factory and Team One events through February 7, 2016.

The Under Armour Baseball Factory National Tryout Tour is rolling through all 50 states. Tryouts are held for players ages 12-14 and 14-18. Don’t miss your opportunity to Be Discovered.

Register online for an Under Armour Baseball Factory National Tryout near you or call (800) 641-4487.