Kyler McMahan Makes Noise At Arizona Fall Classic

Kyler McMahan will learn from former Oregon State catcher Mitch Canham this offseason (Photo by Bill Mitchell)

PEORIA, Ariz.—Just like every other talented high school senior, Kyler McMahan might have a hard choice to make come June 2017. If a club calls his name during the draft, he’ll have to hunker down with his family and his advisers and decide whether his best course of action is to sign and turn pro, or spend three years in college.

Unlike other players in his position, however, he’ll have someone in his corner who faced the same decision. McMahan, a shortstop at Lynnwood (Wash.) High, is committed to play at Oregon State. If he winds up in Corvallis, he’ll join one of the most tradition-rich programs in the sport.

Before he enrolls, however, he’s going to spend the offseason training with Mitch Canham, a former Oregon State catcher who was part of the Beavers’ back-to-back College World Series wins over North Carolina in 2006 and 2007. Because he also spent seven seasons in the minor leagues and is now the manager of the low Class A Clinton Lumberkings in the Mariners system, Canham is qualified to provide advice about the benefits of both of McMahan’s options after high school.

McMahan spent this fall as part of the Mariners Northwest Scout Team, which is run by Seattle’s Northwest area scout Jeff Sakamoto, but that’s not how the Canham connection came about. Instead, the pair was joined by McMahan’s elementary school physical education teacher.

“Canham runs a facility out of Lake Stevens (Wash.) with Brent Lillibridge and thought it’d be a good idea,” McMahan said. “(Canham) knows the coaches and is really close with them and thought it’d be a good idea to get with him because he’s pretty knowledgeable about all of it.”

As a player, McMahan brings a prototypical shortstop’s skill set. He’s got quick feet, solid range and a strong arm and gets quick reads and jumps on the ball. He’s got speed enough to play the outfield if necessary, and he’s been clocked at 90 mph off the mound.

He hit .299/.440/.477 last year with seven doubles, a triple and a home run last year with Lynnwood and packs present gap power into a surprisingly sinewy frame forged by offseason training sessions with Jeff Millet of Northcore Sports.

“There’s some whip to the barrel, and he’s going to hit some home runs before it’s all said and done,” Sakamoto said while his team played at October’s Arizona Senior Fall Classic at the Peoria Sports Complex, the shared spring training home of the Mariners and Padres. “He’ll never be a big-time home run threat, but there’s gap power and he’ll leave the yard occasionally.”

Throughout his amateur career, which has included three district championships in Little League and a Continental Amateur Baseball Association title, McMahan has always played against older, more seasoned competition. He played in 18U tournaments as a 15-year-old, and has benefited from the experience even when the results weren’t there.

“It was eye-opening seeing the better pitchers out there and knowing that is what you’re going to be (facing) in a couple of years,” McMahan said. “It was pretty crazy, but you don’t want to stop when you get there. Once you get to their ability, everyone’s pretty much the same. It just makes you work harder to get above that ability and get ready for college.”

One of Sakamoto’s favorite qualities about McMahan was borne from that experience against older competition. He’s known him since he played in the Perfect Game World Series as a 15-year-old and watched him harden his mentality to better deal with the rigors of a long season. He’s watched McMahan have both success and failure, and has seen him become a better player for both experiences.

“He was a kid who had some success when he was young, but just being able to handle adversity, being able to handle failure,” Sakamoto said. “This is a game of failure. Striking out is an example, just flushing it rather than dwelling on it . . . He’s been challenged with us and has played up against some pretty good competition, and being able to handle failure is really an area he’s matured in.”

With showcase season over, McMahan will continue working to get stronger and more explosive in preparation for his senior season at Lynnwood. As long as he continues to develop his game, the next few years will be successful no matter if he ends up spending them at Oregon State or in the minor leagues.

“I really just want to continue working on the five tools, speed and power and just working on what pros look at,” he said. “Whether I want to go pro or I go to Oregon State, just keeping on my focus on getting better and not worrying about the future is the biggest thing.”

There were also a number of top players for this year’s draft class at the Arizona Senior Fall Classic. McMahan’s Mariners Northwest Scout Team also featured catcher Shane McGuire (brother of Blue Jays prospect Reese) as well as outfielder Isaiah Smith. Smith performed well during this summer’s Area Code Games.

The Mariners Southern California Scout Team also featured talent, including righthander Hans Crouse, who showed a fastball between 94-97 mph across the showcase circuit this summer.

Righthander Hagen Danner pitched for the Yankees Scout Team. He also pitched for Team USA for two summers and earned fame first during the 2011 Little League World Series, when he fanned 12 during 5.2 innings for Huntington Beach LL. He also was part of the Huntington Beach HS squad that won the 2016 National High School Invitational at the USA Baseball Complex in Cary, N.C.

Alaska Baseball Academy shortstop Johnny Homza has emerged as one of his state’s top players in years and could be the state’s highest-drafted player ever.

Lefthander Trevor Rogers pitched for Arizona Yankees Scout Team. A Texas Tech commit and showed a fastball up to 95 mph at this year’s Area Code Games. Rogers stands at 6-foot-6 and 185 pounds and has earned comparisons to Randy Johnson. Rogers is also the cousin of former big leaguer Cody Ross.