So who's the "Top" teams in 3-A this year?

Top 3A Teams

Rocky Mount is at the top in my opinion. The pitching staff is very tough, as stated earlier. East Rowan will be good as always, but I'm not sure if they are ready to take on a team the caliber of RM early in the season. East Rowan returns 3 players from the Rowan Legion team who placed 3rd in the nation last summer, including pitchers Preston Troutman (ASU signee) and Parker Gobbel. Thomas Allen is a big, hard throwing righty that will also anchor the staff. The hitting will be carried by Troutman and another ASU signee, Noah Holmes. Holmes is as good a third baseman as you will find.

 

Eastern Wayne, the 3A runnerup last year returns alot of players! Colton Fulghum, Josh Frederick, Cambric Moye, Zach Mozingo, Jose Ponce, Zach Beachem, & Hunter Newsome all are back. Robert Faucette was another strong hitter for the Warriors, but I'm not sure if he graduated or not. Someone from Eastern Wayne needs to help me out on his situation. Big question mark is how they respond without John Wooten (ECU) & Walker Gourley (MLB). That's two big losses!

 

patton should get a test early in the season as they play defending 3a champ lake norman at lkn. all though lkn lost 10 seniors last yr.

 

Don't overlook West Rowan either. You don't hear much about them all year, but they always make the playoffs, and usually make some noise.

 

How could you guys forget DH Conley. They are always a contender, not sure who they have. Rocky Mount though by far has the best pitching rotation IMO.

 

I agree that Rocky Mount should be a strong leader in the 3 A. Eastern Wayne still should be at the top of list also. I dont think the loss of Wooten or Gourley will affect as much as some think. The loss of Wootens time on the mound and his powerful at bats will be missed. Josh Fredrick has proven to be very dependable on the mound and with Moye behind the plate they should be a strong contender.

 

Josh Fredrick was filthy on the mound this Fall....

 

Eastern Wayne

EW will not be the same team without Wooten and Gourley. Not only were they the two best sticks on the team but there is no replacement for either of their gloves. Frederick's effectiveness will be determined by how long he can go, staying out of their bullpen. The jury's still out on Mozingo. A lot of hype late last season, but he was hurt this fall and didn't pitch. Will be interesting to see if he can pick up where he left off. Offensively, they have a pretty good leadoff type (Fulghum), and some guys who can hurt you long, if your pitcher makes a mistake (Moye, Faucette, Ponce), especially on their field. Defense is a major question mark. It was not their strong suit last year, with the exceptions of shortstop (Gourley) and third (Wooten), and could be their achilles heel this season. With the level of talent in their new conference, they better bring their "A" game. As it looks now, there will be a couple of good teams out of that conference sitting home come playoff time. That being said, if they can find a third pitcher with some consistency, get some hitting from down in the order, and improve on their propensity to kick the ball around, they should be one of the top four teams out of the conference.

 

Very good report..Welcome to TBR rhs91. I hope we hear a lot more from you in the future

 

Are you staying on as the head recruiter?