Belmont Abbey Showcase Camp

I dressed appropriately for the coldest day in November since 1970; 5 layers of pants, 8 shirts, 4 pairs of socks, 3 jackets and a toboggan and left for my trip to Belmont Abbey. But when I got there I was shocked…it was balmy. Sure, it was a little cool, but the players had worked up a sweat and the parents didn’t seem to be complaining.

I watched some of the players running their 60 times and was shocked that some of them were sub 7’s. I remember that Michael Accettullo (Va) and David Ijames (East Rowan) both ran 6.8’s and it was still in the frost stages when the boys were running. I decided to go watch some of the infield/outfield action when something caught my attention. East Rowan sent a plethora of players to this camp (I believe it was like 9 players, but it could have been 11), but this is what I noticed. Their head coach, Bryan Hightower, was there to watch his boys. He came onto the field to encourage and give advice to his young men. Of the many camps/showcases I have attended, I rarely ever see that. Talking about a coach that helps his kids and goes far beyond his responsibilities, Coach Hightower demonstrated to me that he loves his players, his job and his commitment to the program. Wow…I was impressed. I hope this becomes a trend for all HS coaches to make appearances at these events.

Belmont Abbey does a great job in holding this event. They tried to hold the number of players attending to a reasonable number, but this camp has become very popular and Coach Anderson can’t say no---he doesn’t want to turn anyone away. I believe next year he is looking at having a two-day event. He, realistically, could have had 200 players to attend. Also, what some people may not understand is that the D1 schools can’t attend. Yet, there were many coaches requesting evaluations on certain players. There were 10 schools that attended and Freddy Suggs made his list of schools to call….plus (I have to be real quiet about this) I made my list of players to send specifically to Wingate coaches and other schools that I have a relationship with.

I’m going to say this: It was the most talented camp in the 4 years BA has been doing this. The number of quality pitchers and catchers far exceeded the total of years past. The number of one’s that caught everybody’s attention was gratifying to see. There were many talented ballplayers that attended and I’m going to give a sample of the players that caught my attention.

Pitchers: In no specific order. Keep in mind when mentioning stats for pitchers many of them have shutdown for the year and it was easy for their arms to tighten up that day.

Jon Sharpe- Watauga FB 86-87 CU 76-78 CB 72-73
Not only Jon has great stuff, but his composure and poise sets him apart from others. I know this because I’ve seen him pitch games

Taylor MacDonald- Pinecrest FB 84 CU 77 CB 70
He’s an athlete. Runs a sub 7 and has a strong arm at 3rd base. He is built like a pitcher

Phillip Williams- Scotland FB 82-83 CU 71 CB 70
I absolutely love this kid. He is not someone that blows you away with his velocity, but I’ve seen him pitch and he is a competitor that throws strikes. The kid can pitch in college and he has good size with a young body. He will grow into an athletic body and his makeup is off the chart.

Patrick McMahon- Butler FB 81-82
I love lefties and I knew Patrick, so I didn’t get all his numbers. But this ’10 is special. He is the only LHP I know that comes over the top. I thought that was impossible for them to do. Patrick has something that you like to see in all pitchers…..he’s confident and pitches with an attitude. I’m really looking forward to see his progress this season. He has the ability to grow and to make my predictions come true.

There were other pitchers that were outstanding, but they were attending as BA recruits and I don’t believe I should mention them. There was one other pitcher that I will mention later.

 

Catchers—I did not get POP times. I was looking at how they received the ball, footwork, mechanics and strong arm. This group was the strongest overall

Trey Davis- Person
Trey showed well. Strong arm and receives the ball well. Will be Coach Evans QB on the field for them

Austin Shull- East Rowan
Great feet, very quick, loved his arm strength. Needs to develop his upper body strength to get ready for college. A lot of schools attending liked him

Dakota Irwin- North Brunswick
I liked everything about him. Good size, athletic and very quick. Will be a solid college catcher.

Tom Dobbins- Reagan
This is the 2nd time I have seen Tom. Quite frankly, he is one of my favorite players, but what is there not to like; extremely athletic with a strong arm. But he stands out because of his command of the game. He takes control of his pitchers and knows what buttons to push to motivate. This kid is like a coach on the field. Wherever he decides to go, the coach who gets him, needs to let him manage the pitchers. He gets it.

Infielders/Outfielders- Way too many players for me to list. There were literally 30+
players that could play college ball. But there were two that caught everyone’s attention. One I will mention in closing

David Ijames- East Rowan
Strong is the word to describe David…in everything he does. The kid has a pro body with an arm to match. When he gets to hit, everyone watches. He attacks the ball.

As I said, there were many next level talented players attending. By far, the most I have witnessed at Belmont, but there were two that showed to be major D1 talents and possible pro guys.

Johnny Walker- North Lincoln-- Junior
Easy name to remember, this Maiden native was arguably the best catcher, but as a pitcher, he caught everbody’s eyes. Remember that the weather was cold and it was hard to get loose, but this kid was effortlessly bringing it in at 89. I’ll be disappointed if this kid is not throwing 93-94 by the time he is a senior. Easy to remember his name---Johnny Walker

Cal Sutphin- Southwest Guilford—Junior
Pro body that is smooth as silk in the field. Reminds me of Josh Horton with his size and profile. The kid has a very strong arm, great feet, smooth mechanics and a bat to match. I never heard of Cal before I attended…I will never forget him now.

I don’t know where these guys are playing their summer ball, but if I were an elite team, these would be the 1st two I would call.

I’d like to thank the coaches at Belmont Abbey for letting me attend again this year. It is always fun because those guys are so great. They make everyone feel comfortable and welcoming at the Crusader Camp.

 

why werent D1 coaches allowed to attend the event at Belmont?

 

Quiet Period

 

Was Robbie Ijames, David's brother, at the event? David hit .462 with 4 HR last year while Robbie hit .548 with 9 HR. Was just wondering your impression of Robbie. East Rowan is going to be very good next year.

 

What can I say, he's an Ijames. They're all good. Robbie was an outfielder and I was watching the 60's times when he was throwing and I did not get a chance to see him hit. But everybody knew him...and knew of him.

The good thing is everybody was evaluated. You just have to give Coach Anderson a week or so to get the evaluations.

 

Robbie played short last year at Salisbury, but is a more natural outfielder. I was thinking that R. Ijames would take Justin Roland's place at short and D. Ijames would take Micah Jarrett's position in the OF. I guess Coach Hightower has other plans. Even though East lost J. Roland (Charlotte) and Jarrett (Wake Forest) they return everyone else from the state runner up along with the addition of the Ijames.

Will these evaluations be published anywhere?

 

Sutphin..

I think he just transfered to SWGuilford for Grimsley.. GBC player i think... and yes he was very impressive..
Braves thanks for the nice words again ...