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Quality Over Quantity At Beast Showcase

Past participants have had success in MLB Draft sgsgsgsgsg

Photo by Cody Tomer The 31st Annual Beast of the East Showcase was held on Wednesday at the Patterson Baseball Field. West Virginia Monarchs’ Derek Black takes a strong cut during a hitting drill.

WHEELING –The Minnesota Twins drafted Matthew Swain 23rd in this year’s MLB Draft.

Just several years ago, Swain was firing fastballs at the Edgar Martin Beast of the East Showcase at Patterson Field.

On Wednesday, the 31st annual showcase kicked off at Patterson Field but with the lowest attendance that Paramount Scouting Bureau’s Personal Recruiting Advisor Ron Vrana has witnessed at the Beast.

“This is our smallest turnout here,” he said. “I want to see more guys and try to see more talent.”

Despite the low numbers, it gave those who were on the field a chance to shine in front of top scouts.

“We’re looking for speed around 7.0 or 7.2 in the 60-yard dash, arm speed between 75-80 and higher range and we’re looking for guys who are smooth and can get the ball across the infield or hit home from the outfield.”

A few years back, Swain met those requirements.

The right-handed pitcher out of Georgia hit 84 MPH on the radar guns at Patterson Field and is now firing his fastball at 96 MPH.

“There have been a lot of guys found here,” Vrana said. “Along with Swain, one guy that was seen here as a freshman was drafted second overall by Baltimore a few years ago.”

Although Swain could whistle a fastball at 84 MPH in his Beast of the East Showcase, it was his ability to locate pitches that got him noticed.

“If a pitcher can throw 102 MPH, that’s great,” General Manager and pro baseball scout for the Global Scouting Bureau Claudio Reilsono said. “But can he control it? That’s what we want to see.

“Our company deals with Major League, Independent and overseas markets. We have our hands everywhere.”

Along with blistering speed, strong fielding skills and a strong pitching arm, bat speed is also a key attribute that scouts are looking for.

“I’ve always looked at bat speed,” Reilsono said. “It doesn’t matter how big you are, it’s how fast those hands go from Point A to Point B.

“I tell my guys ‘violent hands short and quick to the ball.'”

Although it’s fun to see home runs blasted 460 feet and despite ESPN’s focus on the importance of exit velocity and launch angle, the big swing — which also leads to a monstrous number of strikeouts — is not what Reilsono was searching for.

“I personally don’t get into (exit velocity and launch angle),” Reilsono said. “I look for guys who can hit all pitches with no holes in his swing.”

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