Pitching steals show at 2023 National High School Invitational

The National High School Invitational is a team event, and congratulations are in order for Huntington Beach HS (Calif.) for winning its second NHSI title Saturday. But it’s also become a must-stop for the scouting industry, giving evaluators the chance to see top talent, not only for this year’s Draft, but for ones in the future as well, in a high-stakes, team-focused event.

Below is a list of top performers for the 10th edition of the NHSI. Most of the focus is on top 2023 Draft prospects, but there are a few others who snuck onto the list just because of how well they played. I’ve included some underclassmen as well, names you can store for the time being and track how they develop through the rest of their high school years.

• MLB Pipeline | Top 100 prospects | Prospect video

There were a couple of high-level 2023 guys who did show glimpses of their premium athleticism and tools, but didn’t perform quite up to expectations. So while Eric Bitonti from Aquinas HS (San Bernardino, Calif.) has legit raw power and Adrian Santana from Doral Academy (Fla.) made scouts check their stopwatches with his home-to-first times, neither did enough to land on this list.

1. Noble Meyer, RHP, Jesuit HS (Portland, Ore.)
Thought to be the top prep arm in the Class of ’23, Meyer (No. 16 Draft prospect) certainly didn’t do anything to dampen the excitement. Starting against Florida powerhouse Calvary Christian HS (Clearwater, Fla.), Meyer allowed just two hits and two walks while striking out 10 and yielding three unearned runs. He also threw 16 of the 20 hardest fastballs in the tournament, ranging from 95 mph up to 96.5. He also lit up Trackman with the spin rate on both his slider and newer curve, topping 3,000 rpm with 26 of his breaking pitches. More »

2. Ralphy Velazquez, C/1B, Huntington Beach HS (Calif.)
While Velazquez ended up 6-for-13 (.462), he went 6-for-8 and drove in five of his six runs in the first two games to carry Huntington Beach into the semifinals. He showed off some surprising athleticism while legging out a triple and there were at least some scouts who felt he showed enough behind the plate -- he caught the first two games and played first the other two -- to at least maybe start him out at the position he starts his pro career. But it’s his bat teams will want and he recorded five of the top 15 exit velocities of the week, all over 100 mph. More »

3. Trent Caraway, 3B, JSerra Catholic HS (San Juan Capistrano, Calif.)
Caraway (No. 59 Draft prospect) entered NHSI action as one of the top three hitters in attendance and left with the same standing after going 7-for-16 (.438) with three extra-base hits. He doubled twice in the championship game and was barreling up the baseball consistently in all four games. The infielder recorded five exit velocities between 97.7 mph and 102.3, the highest of which put him in the Top 10 exit velocities for the NHSI. More »

4. Landen Maroudis, RHP, Calvary Christian HS (Clearwater, Fla.)
As the tournament began, scouts had been saying Maroudis might now be the best pitcher on a loaded Calvary Christian staff, but they didn’t get a very long look at him. He closed out the win against Meyer and Jesuit on Wednesday and he didn’t appear in another game. In his two-inning save on Day 1, however, he did strike out a pair with a fastball up to 94 mph and a 77-81 mph breaking ball, generating swings-and-misses with both in his brief outing.

5. Easton Shelton, 1B, Bishop Gorman HS
Area scouts in Vegas told me that “he can hit,” and he did during the NHSI as Bishop Gorman reached the semifinals. The corner infielder doesn’t have a huge Draft profile, but the UNLV recruit hit the ball very hard in North Carolina, going 5-for-13 (.385) and recording five of the Top 15 exit velocities for the week, all 100.9 mph or higher. He had the hardest hit ball at 107.6 mph and three of the top four.

6. Hunter Dietz, LHP, Calvary Christian HS (Clearwater, Fla.)
Dietz (No. 73 Draft prospect) dueled Meyer on Wednesday and walked away with the win. While he struggled with his command, walking four, he also only allowed one run on three hits and struck out seven. His fastball sat around 88-89 mph and touched 91, with some sink and his upper-70s breaking ball missed bats both in and out of the zone.

7. Aidan Knaak, RHP, Bishop Verot HS (Fort Myers, Fla.)
Knaak gave up just one run on four hits, walking one and striking out nine in a complete-game victory. The 6-foot-1 right-hander touched 93 mph with a fastball that shows good sink when down in the zone and was still reaching back for 92 in the seventh. He has the chance to have a really good changeup and his spike curve is getting better, though he didn’t land it for strikes as consistently.

8. Andrew Dunford, RHP, Houston County HS (Warner Robbins, Ga.)
If you like size and arm strength, then Dunford might be the prospect for you. He’s 6-foot-7 and can throw hard, with a fastball that touched 96 and averaged 92.4 mph. He’s the only pitcher not named Noble Meyer to show up on the Trackman velocity Top 20, with five pitches north of 95 mph. The rest of his performance was spotty as he gave up four walks and three runs over five innings.

9. Collin Clarke, RHP, Santa Margarita Catholic HS (Rancho Santa Margarita, Calif.)
Clarke had an NHSI-high 12 strikeouts in his start Wednesday, tossing six shutout innings while allowing just five hits and a walk in Santa Margarita’s opening-round win. Clarke’s fastball topped out at 89 mph and sat 86 and he got a ton of swings-and-misses with his low-70s curveball while also mixing in an effective 76-77 mph changeup.

10. Ty Starke, LHP, St. Xavier HS (Louisville, Ky.)
Take this name and stash it so you can see how much he’s developed after three years at Louisville. The gangly 6-foot-5 lefty currently has a fastball that sat around 83 mph but he put on a “feel for pitching” clinic by shutting out Doral Academy in an 80-pitch, seven-inning shutout. He gave up just two hits and walked none and absolutely screams projectable left-handed.

Underclass notables

Tyler Bellerose, RHP, Huntington Beach HS -- 2025
Matt Champion, RHP, JSerra Catholic HS -- 2024
Jake Gregor, RHP, St. Xavier HS -- 2024
Trent Grindlinger, C, Huntington Beach HS -- 2025
Burke Mabeus, C, Bishop Gorman HS (Las Vegas) -- 2024
Michael Torres, OF/LHP, Doral Academy -- 2024