Tournament Of Stars: Eder Impresses On Day Three

CARY, N.C.—On the third day of the Tournament of Stars, several arms showed promise, and lefthander Jake Eder (Atlantic High, Port Orange, Fla.) had one of the strongest showings.

Eder, a Vanderbilt signee, first earned national attention at last year’s WWBA World Championships in Jupiter, Fla., where he showed a loose and easy delivery and a projectable body. He also showed well at last week’s Perfect Game National Showcase.

On Thursday, Eder’s delivery was free and easy. From the windup, his delivery starts with a hand pump to his hip, and he transitions smoothly to a high leg lift before driving his front side forward. Eder lands very slightly closed, though his front toes are pointed directly at home plate. His arm action includes an abbreviated arm circle with his shoulder opening up slightly in the back. He fires through a three-quarters arm slot and finishes across his body, though the recoil of his arm is not violent and his head remains still after release. Eder also gets his torso over his front side, giving him impressive extension.

Perhaps the most impressive part of Eder’s delivery was that he was able to throw both his fastball and curveball from the same release point and with identical mechanics. His fastball operated mostly at 89-91 mph and touched 92 a few times. Eder’s curveball showed flashes of above-average spin, showing sharp 1-to-7 break. He was able to locate his breaking ball effectively, showing a proclivity for back-dooring the pitch to righthanded hitters.

Eder stands at 6-foot-4 and 213 pounds. His combination of stuff, athleticism and his impressive delivery could allow him to establish himself as one of the better arms in this year’s class.

Other strong pitching prospects emerging from Thursday’s action:

• Righthander Alex Scherff (Prestonwood Christian Academy, Plano, Texas) wasn’t as explosive as he was at last week’s Perfect Game National Showcase, but he did show flashes with three pitches, including a fastball that sat at 91-93 and bumped 94.

• Righthander Kyle Hurt (Torrey Pines High, San Diego) pitched at 88-91 and touched 92 mph with his fastball. He also threw a changeup with tumbling action and a darting 10-to-4 breaking ball. Hurt has a slight wrap in the back of his arm action and throws from a lower three-quarters arm slot, giving his fastball sinking movement.

• Lefthander Mitchell Stone (Deer Creek High, Edmond, Okla.) is looking like one of the more fascinating athletes in this year’s class. He weighed in at 6-foot-10 and 247 pounds, but has rare athleticism and coordination for a player of his size. Stone pitched downhill with his 87-91 mph fastball. Stone has made impressive strides over the past year; at last year’s Tournament of Stars he pitched in the mid-80s and lacked the control and composure that he showed on Thursday. Stone’s curveball also showed flashes, looping out of his hand at times but showing hard and late three-quarter break at others.

A few position player prospects also showed promise on Thursday, but middle infielder Brady McConnell (Merritt Island (Fla.) High) particularly stood out. He made solid contact in all four of his at-bats.

• AB1 (vs. Justin Bullock): Hard-hit line drive to center field (F8).
• AB2 (vs. Justin Bullock): Broken bat ground ball to second (4-3). 4.33 seconds from home to first.
• AB3 (vs. Alex Scherff): Fell behind 0-2 without swinging, then shot a 92-mph fastball on the outer half down the right field line (2B).
• AB4 (vs. Kyle Hurt): Pulled a front-door slider with authority down the third base side (2B).

McConnell also made one of the most impressive defensive plays of the tournament on Thursday. Playing second base, McConnell ranged deep to his right for a ground ball off the bat of Anthony Servideo, fielding it cleanly and making an accurate jump throw to rob Servideo of an infield single.