OFFENSIVE CATEGORIES: BATSPEED The ability of an athlete to generate bat speed at the most critical part of the swing just prior to contact and maintain bat speed thru contact is very important characteristic of great hitters. Bat speed is one indicator of the hitter’s ability to sequence all of the body parts together to maximize the amount of transfer of power. SWING PATH The quality and consistency of the swing path measures the hands from swing initiation thru the contact zone and follow thru. The swing path is clearly one of the most important components in evaluating a hitter’s ability to transition to a higher level of competition and better pitching. PRESENCE Presence is based purely on the amount of confidence and aggressiveness that the athlete presented at the plate and during the rounds. How an athlete responded to a poor swing also feeds into the perception of that hitter as an athlete in stressful situation that often deals with high levels of failure. POWER Power generation is clearly a valuable asset offensively and can vary from hitter to hitter. Hitters were rated as to the consistent power generated from their contact. The quality of the swing was not rated here, just the power generated during the rounds of swings or the at bats. VISION A hitter’s ability to track a pitch and attack strikes is a direct component of their vision. In this category, the hitter’s ability to swing at good pitches in the strike zone is very important as well as their ability to make contact with pitches that have lots of movement. RATING SYSTEM: SS-Small School LM-Low Major MM-Mid Major HM-High Major OFFENSE DATA MONDAY.pdf (CLICK TO VIEW) DEFENSIVE CATEGORIES: FOOTWORK Defensively, the footwork category includes a combination of several skill sets. Set up: which includes strength and consistency of the foot placement during fielding/catching position. Range/Mobility: The ability for the defender to move laterally when fielding. GLOVE WORK Defensively the Glove work rating includes a couple of skill sets. The HANDS are rated as to receiving the ball and how well the glove and hands work together in receiving. BACKHAND specifically address the consistency and quality of the hand position when receiving a ball on the backhand side. TRANSITION is the ability of the athlete to move the hands and glove from the field position into a throwing position. THROWING The throwing category deals with the qualitative aspects of the throwing motion. Both arm speed and glove to glove pop times are recorded separately and are listed quantitatively in another category. RELEASE of the throw from position is rated as to the smoothness and efficiency of the throwing motion. STRENGTH of the arm and ACCURACY are also reviewed from the field position and are rated qualitatively. BLOCKING Blocking scores have been broken down into two specific categories. Blocking TECHNIQUE address the positioning of the body when in the blocking position as well as the relative quickness and efficiency with blocking balls in the dirt. PITCHING: FASTBALL MECHANICS Pitchers were evaluated in the quality and consistency in the following areas: Leg Drive, Arm Circle, Body Posture, and Spacing. CHANGE UP Pitchers were evaluated in the quality and consistency in the following areas when throwing their change up: Deception of the motion to disguise the pitch, speed change from the fastball and control of the pitch. MOVEMENT PITCHES Moving pitches were evaluated in several areas: quality and tightness of the spin of the pitch, the control of the pitch execution, and the amount and quality of the movement resulting from throwing the pitch. RATING SYSTEM: SS-Small School LM-Low Major MM-Mid Major HM-High Major DEFENSE DATA MONDAY.pdf (CLICK TO VIEW) STRENGTH CATEGORIES: GRIP STRENGTH Athletes were tested with their dominant hand and scores are listed as pounds of pressure. GLOVE TO GLOVE Athletes were tested by their position for a throw made at 75 feet. The time was calculated from first touch of the ball to the fielders glove to touching the receivers glove. Additionally, the arm speed is measured in MPH. VERTICAL LEAP Athletes were tested on a vertical leap testing pad and is calculated in inches off the ground. MED BALL THROW Athletes were tested by tossing an 8 LB medicine ball on their dominant side for distance and measured in feet. HOME TO HOME RUNNING TIME Times are calculated in seconds. STRENGTH DATA MONDAY.pdf (CLICK TO VIEW) It is important to remember that the following quantitative and qualitative ratings are a “snap shot” for each athlete on ONE day. Ratings are based on evaluation from a minimum of 4 Div 1 coaches from various schools. Ratings are also based on the athletes relative strength in specific skill sets as compared to other athletes in the same graduating year across the country nationally. All the Div 1 coaches are recruiting athletes from across the nation and these scores will give each athlete an understanding of how their specific skill sets rank nationally based on this one day evaluation. Ratings are confidential and individual coaches or universities are not responsible for debating or discussing what the athlete did or did not do well. *** This feedback is intended to be used by athletes, parents, and coaches to better train specific skill sets to improve ratings in the future evaluations. RATING SYSTEM: SS - Small School - This rating would equate to the smallest college or university programs in the country/region that would include non Div 1 programs, two year and limited resource or specialized instruction institutions. LM - Lower Major - This rating would equate to smaller colleges or universities including some NAIA, Div 2, Div 3, and some smaller Div 1 schools MM – Mid Major - This rating level would include four year colleges and universities with more substantial enrollment and would include larger Div 2, Div 3, and highly competitive NAIA schools along with Div 1 universities. HM – High Major - This rating would be the highest rating given out and would equate to the top tier of recruits nationally across the country.