SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. -- Salt River Fields played host to Wednesday's Prospect Development Pipeline Premier event, where many of the top high school baseball players from Arizona, Colorado, Nevada and New Mexico showcased their skills.
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The Prospect Development Pipeline is a collaborative effort between Major League Baseball and USA Baseball to establish an official identification and player development pathway for amateur baseball players in the United States. The players participated in several activities, including an athletic assessment, a vision test, batting practice, infield and outfield work, and a live game.
There was a group of big league scouts who attended the event. They had about five hours to get a look at the talent that was present.
Here are some names to know from the event:
Terrell Hudson, 3B/RHP
Hudson, who will be a senior at Barry Goldwater High School in Phoenix next year, impressed the most at the plate. In the live game portion of the event, he blasted a home run over the left-field fence. Hudson had a solid session of batting practice, but in the eyes of scouts, that can sometimes be deceiving. When he faced real pitching, he didn't disappoint. One scout said Hudson's raw power is difficult to come by these days, so the fact that he has it and is showcasing it means he is ahead of the curve for his age.
Brock Selvidge, LHP/OF
Selvidge just finished his freshman year at Hamilton (Ariz.), but he's already making a mark on scouts' minds. Selvidge's fastball sat at 86 mph and one scout in particular was impressed by Selvidge's arm strength. He has nice, easy arm action and a repeatable delivery. What's most exciting about Selvidge, though, is his future. One scout said it is easy to predict he will have an average Major League fastball that sits in the low 90s when he's a senior. A number of rising seniors at the event were not able to reach 90 mph with their fastballs. Prep Baseball Report lists Selvide as the No. 6 prospect in the nation for the 2021 class.
Zach Martinez, RHP
There weren't more than a handful of pitchers at the PDP event who showed solid velocity. Martinez, however, was one. A scout said Martinez was the only player at the event who showed an average MLB fastball, in terms of velocity. Martinez's fastball sat at 92 mph early on in the event. Next year, he will be a senior at Mountain Ridge (Ariz.), a school that produced left-hander Matthew Liberatore, poised to be selected near the top of the first round in the 2018 Draft.
Davis Heller, RHP/1B
Heller is one of the top 2019 prospects in Arizona. He's also a University of Oklahoma commit. One scout familiar with him said he didn't pitch with as much velocity as he is capable of, but he was still able to showcase a bit of what he can do. That particular scout saw him during the state playoffs this season and said he came away impressed. Scouts also want to see if someone looks the part, and Heller does, at least physically. He's listed at 6-foot-8, a dominant presence in the mound. He is a name to watch moving forward.
Chandler Murphy, RHP
When asked about what he wanted to showcase, Murphy pointed to his composure on the mound. He feels he has good movement on his slider and curveball, and solid run on his two-seam fastball. One scout said that Murphy, a rising senior, is a guy he'll be looking out for in the future. Murphy won a state championship with Liberty (Ariz.) this season.
The next PDP Premier event will be in Arlington on June 8.