Game Report: Trey Benton Strikes Out Nine

Trey Benton is one of the top prospects in the Carolinas this spring. He has been on scouts’ radars for quite some time; he was a teammate of Rangers 2015 first-round pick Eric Jenkins at West Columbus High in Cerro Gordo, N.C., and has made steady progress since then.

Benton has a wiry frame, standing near 6-foot-4, with room for additional muscle in his lower half and in his lean, sloped shoulders. He projects to add strength as he matures—and he’s relatively young, with his 18th birthday coming a little over a week after the 2016 draft.

Baseball America had eyes on Benton on Tuesday night, when West Columbus took on Fairmont (N.C.) High. Benton’s performance was solid—he struck out nine batters (five swinging, four looking), walked one, hit one, and allowed four runs on four hits. He induced six ground balls and five fly balls. Benton took the loss, but scouts are more interested in evaluating the tools of high school players, and a less-than-stellar performance won’t necessarily skew a scout’s opinion of a player.

From the windup, Benton’s delivery starts with a hand pump toward his back hip. He then brings his hands to his chest as he lifts his front and prepares to stride toward home plate. His throwing hand goes down out of his hand, plunging toward his back hip and wrapping behind his body. His arm finishes across his body, and his head sometimes jerks as he releases, and mechanism that could be mitigated by additional strength.

Benton’s front side lands a bit closed off, and he spins off his heel as he follows through, putting him in good fielding position. While Benton is still learning to repeat his mechanics, he shows sound athleticism and found grooves of repetition at times on Tuesday night.

The East Carolina commit has made sturdy progress since last season, when he pitched mostly in the mid-to-upper 80s. Benton’s fastball reached 93 mph at the WWBA Championships in Jupiter, Fla., last October, and some scouts have seen him reach 94 this spring. On Tuesday, his highest fastball velocity was 92 mph, but he showed a much-improved breaking ball.

Benton threw his curveball as he warmed up in the first few innings, but didn’t unleash it in game action until the second inning, when he slammed a 73-mph curve through the front door to catch a righthanded hitter looking. While Benton will have to focus on staying on top of the pitch going forward, he showed the ability to spin the ball well, and it often showed late, 11-to-5 diving action.

The righthander also mixed in a changeup early in the game, showing feel for the pitch down and to his arm side. The offering features solid sink and arm-side run, and it induced some swings and misses for Benton on Tuesday night. Given the lateness of its movement, Benton’s changeup could be an affective ground ball pitch for him going forward.

Benton got into trouble when he elevated his fastball, but at times he had excellent command down in the strike zone, especially to his arm side. His fastball projects to add velocity, though it sat mostly at 87-89 later on in his five-inning stint on Tuesday.

Benton is headed in the right direction, and has a chance to endear himself to pro teams this spring if he can continue to make progress.