Brian Reilly & Joseph Kitlas Post Big Gains in Plymouth Meeting, PA
On Sunday, April 26 the Under Armour Baseball Factory National Tryout tour rolled through the Philadelphia area with a stop at the Ballpark at Plymouth Meeting.
A pair of 2016 first basemen, one a right-handed hitter and the other left-handed, showed the biggest tools.
2016 1B Brian Reilly
From October 2010 through the 2014 Under Armour All-America Pre-Season Tournament, 2016 Brian Reilly (Marlboro HS – Morganville, NJ) made steady progress, to the point where he was an up-and-coming young prospect. Like many players, his schedule got much busier with tournaments and showcases. We lost his trail until recently, and in the fifteen or so months that passed he made tremendous strides.
2016 1B Eli Needle
He now stands at 6-foot-3 and 210 pounds with a long and broad frame. His right-handed stroke was loose and coordinated, allowing for a combination of line drives all over the field and the ability to leverage the ball up in the air. This gives him a chance to hit, and to hit for power. He showed soft hands and fluid defensive actions at first base, along with more arm strength than required for the position. He isn’t much of a runner, but that’s the only chink in his armor.
We don’t have any history with 2016 1B Eli Needle (Lower Merion HS – Merion Station, PA), so it’s hard to put the tools he showed at our workout in context. He stands at 6-foot-1 and 215 pounds, and featured a strong left-handed stroke and standout raw power in batting practice. He showed athletic defensive actions, and ran a respectable 7.34 in the 60 yard dash. In a workout setting, only arm strength isn’t present at this point.
Top performers by measurable category appear below:
Fastball Velocity
| mph | Fastball Velocity Leaders |
| 86 | Kenneth Mendoza (2016 – LHP/1B – Clearview Regional HS – Mullica Hill, NJ) |
| 85 | Matthew Schneider (2016 – RHP – Upper Perkiomen HS – East Greenville, PA) |
| 84 | Patrick Hohlfeld (2017 – RHP – Boyertown Area HS – Schwenksville, PA) |
2016 LHP/1B Kenneth Mendoza
About six months ago in October 2014 at the Glen Burnie, MD Under Armour Baseball Factory National Tryout, 6-foot-3 215 pounds LHP Kenneth Mendoza threw his fastball 82-85 mph and featured loose, easy arm action. Most recently, he topped at 86 mph and again featured a clean arm stroke along with the makings of two solid secondary offerings.
2015 RHP Matthew Schneider topped at 84 mph in September 2014. A few months later at the 2015 Under Armour All-America Pre-Season Tournament in Mesa, AZ, his fastball was a tick slower — as is often the case for cold weather pitchers in January. Now, a few months later in April, he threw every fastball at 84-85 mph and showed a short, tight mid-to-upper 70s breaking ball along with a mid 70s change.
Raw Velocity
| mph | Raw Velocity Leaders |
| 88 | Jacob Breyer (2016 – C – Upper Perkiomen HS – Pennsburg, PA) |
| 87 | Corbin Dunnuck (2017 – C – Governer Mifflin HS – Mohnton, PA) |
| 87 | Joseph Kitlas (2016 – C/3B – Notre Dame HS – Yardley, PA) |
| 85 | Colin Mattice (2016 – SS – William Penn Charter – Erdenheim, PA) |
| 84 | Ryan Weller (2015 – C/OF – Boyertown HS – Gilbertsville, PA) |
2016 C/3B Joseph Kitlas
2016 C/3B Joseph Kitlas reached 70 mph raw velocity and posted a low pop time of 2.33 in May 2012, when we saw him as a seventh-grader. About two years later when we saw him next, he made a nine mile per hour jump up to 79 mph raw velocity, while his low pop time stayed about the same at 2.31.
Later that summer, in July 2014, he bumped his raw velocity over 80 up to 82 mph, and dropped his low pop time all the way down to 2.09. In October 2014, he kept climbing the raw velocity up to 85 mph, and got the low pop time down to 2.00.
Most recently, he got his low pop time down below two seconds to 1.94, while his raw velocity continued up to 87 mph. In a little under three years, his raw velocity has increased 17 mph while his low pop time has dropped nearly four-tenths of a second.
Catcher Release Time
| Sec | Pop Time Leaders |
| 1.94 | Joseph Kitlas (2016 – C/3B – Notre Dame HS – Yardley, PA) |
| 1.95 | Kevin Hoffmeister (2016 – C/OF – McDonogh School – Ellicott City, MD) |
| 2.01 | Corbin Dunnuck (2017 – C – Governer Mifflin HS – Mohnton, PA) |
| 2.02 | Ryan Weller (2016 – C/OF – Boyertown HS – Gilbertsville, PA) |
| 2.05 | Jacob Breyer (2016 – C – Upper Perkiomen HS – Pennsburg, PA) |
2016 C Darrius Garcia
When we first saw 2016 C Darrius Garcia (Manchester HS – Whiting, NJ) in March 2012, he posted a low pop time of 2.42 along with 68 mph raw velocity. One year later, he’d gained six mph raw velocity though his pop times stayed about the same.
By July 2014, his low pop time fell by over three-tenths of a second down to 2.10, while his raw velocity made a slight jump up to 76 mph. In October of the same year, he got the low end of his pop time range down to 2.00, while the upper end of his raw velocity range now was 81 mph.
At this most recent workout, he wasn’t quite as good as October 2014, but was in the same ballpark with a 2.15 pop time and 79 mph raw velocity.
Last month, we saw 2016 C/OF Kevin Hoffmeister post a low pop time of 2.09 — which at the time was the first he posted under 2.10. Now, about one month later, he didn’t record a single throw above 2.02 during his workout — while his lowest checked in at 1.95.
60 Yard Dash
| sec | 60 Yard Dash Leaders |
| 6.79 | Casey Rosier (2017 – OF – Strath Haven HS – Wallingford, PA) |
| 7.01 | Jake Reed (2017 – 2B – Quakertown HS – Quakertown, PA) |
2018 SS/RHP Jake Topolski
2018 SS/RHP Jake Topolski (Lenape HS – Mount Laurel, NJ) has steadily improved his 60 yard dash over the course of three events since last fall, starting from a 7.55 recorded in October 2014. A couple of months later in December 2014, he got it down to 7.47. Then, in his most recent workout, he posted 7.27 — marking an improvement of over a quarter-second in just six months.
Topolski has a chance to be a quality defender with some arm strength in the middle infield, and he has the makings of a solid right-handed stroke — giving him a chance for at least four tools.
The Under Armour Baseball Factory National Tryout Tour is rolling through all 50 states. Tryouts are held for players ages 12-14 and 14-18. Don’t miss your opportunity to Be Discovered.
Find an Under Armour Baseball Factory National Tryout near you and register online or call (800) 641-4487.
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