Live Looks: Pac-12 Baseball in April

California is in a down year with collegiate talent for the 2022 Draft. However, the abundance of colleges here have allowed me to see talent come all through the West Coast. Recently, top Pac-12 teams have started to appear in Southern California for conference play, allowing me to see more of the West Coast’s talent for the 2022 Draft. Below are some of the players that have stood out in the early going, including a small school California arm.

RHP JAKE BROOKS, UCLA 4/1

Performance: 8 IP, 6 H, 2 R, 3 SO, 1 BB, 24.42% CSW

Opponent: University of Oregon

Jake Brooks showcased his four-pitch mix that induced loads of weak contact by Oregon all night long. Brooks repeatedly showed an ability to compete with hitter after hitter, constantly executing competitive pitches with purpose. Brooks was able to run his fastball with arm side run in on the hands of hiiters avoiding barrels. He gained a feel for his breaking balls as the outing progressed leading to a lot of ground balls and quick at-bats. The breaking ball shapes teetered around slurvey shape early on but quickly found their distinct identities as he settled in. The changeup plays well with his fastball, coming out from a similar arm-slot but with significantly more fade and sink than his fastball. Overall, Brooks was as advertised, a pitcher who can compete and get outs, but won’t overpower a lineup.

SS JOSH KASEVICH, OREGON 4/1

Performance: 1-4, 1 2B

Opponent: UCLA

Josh Kasevich consistently made loud contact all night long and was in the minority of Oregon hitters that found barrels off Jake Brooks. Kasevich rocketed a hard-hit line drive into the LCF gap in his first at-bat, generated from his plus bat speed and extension, but Malakhi Knight (‘24) tracked it down with ease. In his next at-bat, Kasevich made sure he wouldn’t get beat and once again, rocketed a Jake Brooks fastball down into the left-field corner for a double. Kasevich runs well out of the box, progressing to top speed fairly quickly with good baserunning actions. On the diamond, he stood out for his defensive preparation and light footwork before each pitch, showing that he has intangibles and a hunter’s mentality at SS. The Oregon SS has made a considerable effort in 2022 to elevate the ball more and tonight’s performance indicated that it is indeed true.

RHP CJ CULPEPPER, CAL BAPTIST 4/2

Performance: 5 IP, 7 H, 5 R, 6 SO, 1 BB, 25.81% CSW

Opponent: Seattle University

CJ Culpepper (‘22) of Cal Baptist getting his 4th whiff of the 2nd inning. Lots of 90-92s early on, showing good feel to command his SL early in counts , with good shape. @ProspectsLive pic.twitter.com/6rxKkmwoJN

— Jackson Thomas (@BaseballByJT) April 2, 2022

CJ Culpepper didn’t come out with his best stuff for the outing but he showed flashes of what can make him a day three arm in the upcoming draft. He has an ideal projectable pitcher’s frame with a slender build and long levers. Culpepper’s delivery has a slow-paced rhythm with a timed burst, letting his arm speed do the heavy lifting from a 3/4 slot. Culpepper did show a feel for commanding his slider early on in the game, showing lots of confidence in it throwing it early in counts and often to Seattle U hitters. The slider has a high spin rate and profound sweep, generating consistent shape pitch after pitch. Culpepper’s fastball has high spin and some arm side run, consistently sitting in the low 90s. It doesn’t have any prolific movement but has viability as a future bullpen weapon with added velocity, which Culpepper is capable of. Overall Culpepper shows promise as a day three reliever prospect with room to grow in his arsenal development and quality strike-throwing ability. 

LHP COOPER HJERPE, OREGON STATE, 4/8

Performance: 6 IP, 4 H, 0 R, 9 SO, 0 BB, 2 HBP, 35.87% CSW

Opponent: University of Southern California

Oregon State’s Cooper Hjerpe (#33 on the @ProspectsLive top 400 2022 Draft Board) , posted 6 whiffs in the 1st inning , stranding 2 runners with 1 K. Pounding the K-Zone early on. pic.twitter.com/ricTu1POmX

— Jackson Thomas (@BaseballByJT) April 9, 2022

Some Hjerpe open side, up-tempo delivery with rhythm , short sling shot like arm action with above average arm speed. Really enjoyable to watch tonight. pic.twitter.com/23deyW4Qne

— Jackson Thomas (@BaseballByJT) April 9, 2022

Cooper Hjerpe put on a very enjoyable pitching performance showing his ability to throw three pitches for strikes and get ahead early in counts. In the first time through the order against USC, The Beavers’ ace relied heavily on his fastball while slowly gaining a feel for his slider. Hjerpe has an ideal fastball pitch profile for generating whiffs, with a great combination of a -4 vertical approach angle, 18 inches of horizontal break, and funky deception. This was proven the case as USC hitters were overmatched against his fastball, whiffing against it 12 times on the night. After the first inning, Hjerpe locked in his slider with tight spin and good sweeping depth, showing he can spin it in any given count. The slider showed flashes of plus and is a true swing and miss pitch, generating a whiff rate of 50% against The Trojans. Hjerpe’s changeup began to appear the second time through the order and he maintained great arm speed while generating late darting fade.

He is able to repeat his delivery very well and pitches with a confident mound presence. What is most fascinating about Hjerpe’s repeatable delivery is its innate uniqueness. Hjerpe has one of the most deceptive deliveries in the college ranks with his upper body rotation, sling-shot like arm action, plus arm speed, and low 3/4 arm slot. The entire package of Hjerpe looks like a pitcher that will get outs at the major league level with two potential plus offspeed pitches. I’m all in for Hjerpe continuing as a SP in pro ball and believe he will add a couple more MPHs to his FB. Hjerpe would be a great comp round pick and I find it hard to believe he lasts far into the 2nd round.  

OF JACOB MELTON, OREGON STATE 4/8-4/9

Performance: 2-7, 1 2B, 2 RBI, 2 BB, 1 SB

Opponent: University of Southern California

Jacob Melton (#90 on @ProspectsLive 2022 Draft Board) takes a FB to LCF for a RBI 2B. Good adjustment in AB after swinging over a CH. pic.twitter.com/DM9E3Vkj5V

— Jackson Thomas (@BaseballByJT) April 9, 2022

First and foremost, Jacob Melton has a great physical presence, with noticeable strength through his 6’3” frame with projection for another 5-15 lbs of muscle. During my two-game look at Melton, he consistently demonstrated a methodical and patient approach at the plate, approaching each at-bat with a plan and intent to act upon it. He is very comfortable spitting on pitches and waiting to attack on pitches he feels he can bang. In both games, Melton was consistently on time with all of his pitches, with good bat to ball skills letting him fight pitches off. Melton also has above-average bat speed and extends on-plane through contact well, as he smoked an opposite-field double through the LCF gap. He handled CF on Saturday showing solid range and gliding route running ability into the gaps. The Beaver OF definitely has the offensive tools to succeed in pro ball with likely a future in a corner OF spot. Overall he is one of the higher upside senior draftees in the upcoming draft.

OF JUSTIN BOYD, OREGON STATE 4/8-4/9

Performance: 4-10, 1 2B, 2 R, 1 RBI, 4 SO, 1 BB, 2 SB

Opponent: University of Southern California

In a two-game look, Justin Boyd showed he can do a lot of things well as a player and prospect. He has a filled-out physical frame with noticeable strength throughout his body and solid athleticism. During his at-bats he demonstrated a patient approach with a high intent to mash any pitches that came over the plate. Boyd has average bat speed but pairs it with good bat-to-ball skills, letting him spray balls across the entire field and run up pitch counts. Defensively Boyd was able to make quick reads on flyballs letting him camp under with ease. The knock on Boyd is that he really doesn’t have any plus tools, but there aren’t any noticeable weaknesses in his game. Boyd could greatly improve his status as a prospect if he came back to the Beavers next season to improve his bat speed in the hopes of unlocking more power, as a little would go a long way given his current skillset.