On Sunday, January 19th, the ScoutConnect staff traveled to Ina, IL, to the campus of Rend Lake JC to check-in on the Warriors’ program and gather more information and metrics on some of their uncommitted sophomores. We collected both TrackMan hitting and pitching data, as well as Diamond Kinetics bat sensor data, on 10 players from the Rend Lake JC program.
For all of the stats collected at the event, click HERE.
Interested in a JUCO event with ScoutConnect or want more information on what we can provide to your program? Please reach out to Diego.solares@sportsbarn.org
Below you will find our scout notes, and video, on all of the players our staff saw in this past Sunday’s look.
**All of the players mentioned below are uncommitted sophomores**
POSITION PLAYERS
+ OF Nathan York is a top returning offensive player for the Warriors, bringing back a .321/.403/.474 triple-slash and four home runs, as well as a team-high 36 RBI. York put together one of the day’s more physically impressive days at the plate, posting the event’s highest exit velocity mark at 104.8 mph, and his furthest ball traveled 357 feet, per TrackMan. Aside from his peak mark, York produced seven other batted balls at 100+ mph, and 11 of his 17 barrels came off his bat at 98+ mph.
+ C/1B Drew Bradley has all sorts of physicality at the plate and was at, or near, the top of several of our offensive categories from the event. Bradley doesn’t lack any size or stature, checking in at 6-foot-2, 200-pounds, and that inherent strength translates at the plate. His max exit velocity (103.3 mph) and his average exit velocity (94.6 mph) were both the second-highest marks on the day, while his furthest batted ball (372.5 ft.) and average batted distance (259.47 ft.) comfortably led his peers. Digging deeper into the numbers, Bradley had seven barrels come off his bat at 98+ mph and he had four batted balls travel more than 350 feet, per TrackMan. From a bat sensor data perspective, Bradley had the highest peak average barrel speed (73 mph), peak average hand speed (27 mph), and the highest acceleration on average (39 g) as well.
+ MIF Colin McClure returns as the Warriors’ starting shortstop and looks to be an anchor on both sides of the ball for Rend Lake in 2025. One thing that stood out at first glance was the strength that McClure’s tacked onto his frame, standing at a stronger, more physically filled out 6-foot, 190-pounds. He was all over the barrel from a simple, balanced right-handed swing that mostly produced backspun line drive gap-to-gap contact. McClure’s peak exit velocity (94.60) was fairly close to his average mark (90.50), which tends to be an indication of feel to hit and an accurate barrel. He took a brief round of infield defense in this look, moving comfortably with a presence to him and soft, sure-handed actions that work quick to release. McClure does a little bit of everything, providing positive value in all areas of the game and should be a name that college coaches need to monitor this spring.
+ C Dominic Davis may have put together the most polished BP session of the event, finding the barrel with regularity and spraying line drives almost exclusively back up the middle of the field. It’s a simple and balanced right-handed swing without added movement that’s capable of staying on the barrel often with a max exit velocity mark (97.50 mph) that was near his average (91.15 mph).
+ INF/RHP Kemper Whisman looked the part on both sides of the ball and should be an impact name for Rend Lake in 2025. The 6-foot-1, 180-pound sophomore generated some of the highest hand speed on average (26 mph) of his peers and worked uphill to contact and on the barrel throughout both of his BP rounds. He consistently elevated the baseball gap-to-gap, posting a peak exit velocity of 93.3 mph, though averaged 89.3 mph per batted ball, and his furthest ball traveled 316.9 feet. Should he continue to add strength and muscle mass, Whisman could be a true power threat for the Warriors this spring and for his future four-year program. He took reps on the infield after BP and showed soft, confident hands and clean footwork that played in rhythm on the move.
+ OF Braden Pingel holds plenty of strength inside a compact, muscle-bound 5-foot-10, 175-pound frame and is a toolsy, uncommitted sophomore to watch for Rend Lake in 2025. Pingel has run as fast as a 6.6 in the 60-yard dash, and he also chipped in 14 stolen bases last spring, and swings a strong right-handed barrel that produced a peak exit velocity of 98.7 mph in this look. He had the third-highest average exit velocity (91.4 mph) of the group and tied for the second highest average hand speed (26 mph) as well.
+ C/OF Devin Kiebler produced in a regular role for the Warriors in 2024, batting .310 with a .366 on-base percentage over 100 at-bats. He’s an athletic 6-foot, 185-pound sophomore with lean strength that worked mostly on top of the baseball and stayed up the middle of the field in this look, barreling his hardest ball up at 95.3 mph.
+ LHP Tim Cansler looks the part of a left-handed arm that can throw quality innings for the Warriors this upcoming season. In this ‘pen, Cansler pitched at 84-85, touching 86 mph, with true backspin carry that played at the top of the zone. Off that, Cansler showed a firm low-80s changeup that played with late dive and exclusively to his glove-side of the plate, drawing uncomfortable swings from his right-handed opponents. He covered the arm-side of the plate with a low-70s breaking ball that had heavy horizontal action, and he was able to backfoot that pitch to right-handed hitters with consistency in this brief look.
+ RHP Mason Wargel has the potential to be a competitive bullpen arm for Rend Lake, providing a unique look from a sidearm slot that created several uncomfortable swings. Wargel did not throw a fastball with less than 16 inches of horizontal movement on average, pumping the low-80s pitch around the glove-side corner of the plate with late action. His breaking ball has the potential to be his out-pitch, however, as it’s a tight, low-70s slider with late horizontal break that helps him split the plate.
+ RHP Eric Bergquist is a 6-foot-1, 185-pound sophomore that consistently landed both of his breaking balls for strikes, using both corners of the plate to keep hitters off balance.
