2020 Drop 100: Bonus 20 in '20
There were plenty of fast pitch players with interesting or noteworthy seasons - far more than 100 - in 2020. Below are twenty players that did not make the top 100 but are nonetheless notable for one reason or another. Some are young players competing locally, some are young players on the rise, and others are established players that missed the top 100 for one reason or another. There were far more than twenty players worthy of writing about in this section, but the line had to be drawn somewhere (or else the 2020 Drop 100 might not have made it out until 2022). These are not the 101 - 120 top players of 2020, but just a somewhat random sample of additional players who had interesting years.
Patrick Gallagher — California — NR, NR
The Outsiders (AVWL)
The Amador Valley Wiffle®Ball League — a group of high school age players in Pleasanton, California — held their annual Tawny Classic tournament this past June. The league has drawn comparisons (from more than one veteran player) to the Ridley Park Wiffle® League circa-2018 in terms of having a large array of quality arms all from the same local area. Among the players that stood out at this year’s tournament is lefty Patrick Gallagher. Gallagher appears to be a one-pitch pitcher at this stage but that one pitch is a great building block. He throws a slider/riser with good movement and while it is probably more effective against left-handers, he drew his fair share of inside swinging strikes and outside edge looking strikes against right-handers. Gallagher begins his delivery with his right shoulder pointed towards a left-handed hitter which adds a little extra deception. Sticking with the Ridley Park comparisons, the most obvious comp is probably Nate Smith, especially if you focus on everything after the pitching motion begins. Like Smith, Gallagher steps out with his lead foot and to the point that it he is essentially going right towards a left-handed hitter as he releases. His left-handed slider thrown from an overhand or ¾’s arm slot is also reminiscent of Nate. Also like Smith, Gallagher is a rare left-handed thrower that bats from the right side. He has a nice swing and natural pop to go with it.
Zak Finn — Illinois — NR, NR
YISH Prime (NWLAT)
The Yish had a solid NWLA Tournament debut this September, winning their first two pool play games (versus GBL and Wild & Wonderful) before stumbling the remainder of the day on Saturday. They spread around the pitching duties but the most impressive pitcher on their roster that weekend from a pure stuff standpoint was Zak Finn. Finn starts his delivery with a light rocking motion and comes straight over the top with a hard clean slider that has some natural sink to it. Zak really only stumbled once in the three games he appeared in and that was a 3-run home run off the bat of Caleb Jonkman. When one of the sport’s best players was not taking him deep, Finn more than held his own. He shut down the Mothmen over two innings, did the same to Kalamazoo in an inning of work, and recorded five of his six outs against GBL on strikes. His solid velocity combined with the sink he gets on the slider make him a fun pitcher to watch.
Wyatt Zuspan — West Virginia — NR, NR
WWW Mothmen (NWLAT, WILL), Replacements (UW)
Going back a couple of years, Mothmen captain Brice Clark has talked up teammate Wyatt Zuspan as someone who could succeed in places other than the NWLA Tournament (where Wyatt has competed with the Mothmen since 2018). It wasn’t until this past year that Clark was able to convince his friend and teammate to really branch out. In 2020 – in addition to the NWLA tournament – Wyatt competed in WILL, at the Mid Atlantic draft tournament, and at the United Wiffle®Ball National Championship. While his numbers in all of those tournaments do not necessarily jump off the page at you, Wyatt showed notable pitching and hitting upside in each of them. Zuspan was thrown right into the fire at the MAW draft tournament, getting the start in his very first game on a team that also included Jordan Robles and Sean Steffy. He tended to aim the ball a little too much in 2020 and was much better – both from a velocity and movement standpoint – when he left the ball fly. Wyatt made his NWLA Tournament pitching debut this year and threw well. He looked good in his lone start against the Yish, dropping a close 1-0 game. The next step is to find more consistent command, but the talent and upside is clearly there.
Brett Caladie – Pennsylvania – NR, NR
Balls Deep (MAW Winter Classic), Slaughterhouse (UW)
Slaughterhouse overcame a shorthanded roster at the United Wiffle®Ball National Championship to finish with a respectable 2-3 record and a win shy of advancing to the final 24. The team’s biggest victory came against the Shortballs on Saturday evening. Behind the pitching of Brett Caladie, Slaughterhouse defeated the Shortballs by a score of 6-4 to earn a chance to advance to the final 24 with a win over Way Too Beautiful. Caladie started that game as well, running out of gas in the second and eventually being relieved by Nick Pugh after allowing a home run to Brett Poulton.
Brett has relatively limited fast pitch experience and should only improve with additional innings. He has a live arm but lacks consistency pitch to pitch. When he was at his best at both United Wiffle®Ball and the Mid Atlantic Winter Classic, his stuff – a standard drop and a riser – looked top tier all the way around, but command and velocity varied often pitch by pitch. Brett and his brother Anthony were the top rookies in their home league, BWBL, in 2019 and have bright fast pitch futures ahead of them.
Brendan O’Sullivan — California — NR, NR
Asstastic (AVWL)
Brendan O’Sullivan was taken first overall in the 2020 AVWL Tawny Classic draft. That proved to be a wise pick as O’Sullivan led his team to the tournament title this past June. He has the look of an advanced, almost fully formed pitcher with a wide arsenal of pitches and a good idea on how to use them. O’Sullivan’s bread and butter is a screwball that he can throw on two separate planes. One acts more like a traditional drop/screw with heavy sink and the other moves mainly laterally for more of a backdoor slider effect. He also throws a slider and riser and will change speeds on the slider. He makes good use of all those weapons by going heavy on screwballs to left-handers and leaning more on the riser and slider to righties. O’Sullivan had a monster game in the tournament finals, hitting a couple of home runs in addition to pitching a shutout.
Ben Schafer — Louisiana — NR, NR
Pinecone Gang (SPW), Anarchy (SEW, UW)
For the second year in a row, the SPW commissioner took home the top offensive honor in the league. Ben was named the SPW Silver Slugger thanks to his .341 batting average and six home runs during the five-tournament season. Although he is technically a switch hitter, Schafer seems to be more comfortable and productive from the left side of the plate. He is a solid contact hitter and whether in his home league, playing under the yellow bat rules in SEW, or competing at the United Wiffle®Ball National Championship, Ben displayed a solid to above average ability to make contact. He also has some pop from the left side, which was on display in Anarchy’s 5-1 victory over Galaxy at the SEW Open. Ben drove in all five of Anarchy’s runs in that game on a pair of home runs to left and right centerfield, respectively.
Jordan Bohnet – Nevada – NR, NR
Las Vegas Wifflers (UW)
Over the years, few teams have been as scrupulous with their roster makeup as the Las Vegas Wifflers. Case in point, the national championship veterans worked out their newest addition pre-tournament – the son of one of their longtime team members, Adam Bohnet – before deciding to make the long trip out east. The LV Wifflers did decide to add Jordan Bohnet to their 2020 United Wiffle®Ball tournament roster and it proved to be a good move. Jordan went 2-1 in pool play on Saturday defeating Chaos and the NY Dragons. Bohnet’s pitch selection was rather basic in his first major competitive tournament, but it was effective. He showed nice velocity and commanded the zone well. His only slip up of the tournament – if you can even call it that – was a game winning solo home run to Chandler Phillips in his team’s second game of the Contenders Bracket. If he chooses to pursue it, Jordan has a bright future in competitive Wiffle®Ball.
Tim Beck — New Jersey — NR, NR
POC (MAW), Degenerate Gamblers (UW)
Tim Beck ended the 2020 MAW tournament season with a significantly higher OPS than Kyle VonSchleusigen, Tyler Nachbar, Colin Pollag, Jimmy Cole, and Austin Bleacher, to name a few. That is not necessarily a surprise. With the exception a power outage during the 2019 season — which appears to be an outlier — Beck has been an all-around above average hitter during his four seasons in Mid Atlantic. He is a consistent offensive performer but does tend to get lost in the shuffle between his more prolific teammates on POC and the Lemonheads and his unassuming approach at the plate. In 2020, he posted a solid slash line of .225/.319/.350, which as previously mentioned, outpaced several of his more prolific MAW peers.
Brendan Baranoski — Michigan — NR, NR
West Michigan Wiffleballers (MLW Wiffle in the Mitten)
The West Michigan Wiffleballers made a bid to go back-to-back at MLW’s Wiffle in the Mitten tournament this August, but ultimately came up a bit short as they were outed in the semi-finals of the 16+ age division by the eventual champions, MLW White (Trevor Bonham, Chris Cheetam, and Liam Jackson). West Michigan has been the most consistent non-MLW team at MLW tournaments the past two years, winning Wiffle in the Mitten in 2019 and finishing in third this past summer. Leading the charge for the Wiffleballers is Brendan Baranoski. Baranoski is a hard thrower — particularly from 42 feet away — with a bulldog mentality that shows through even on video. He attacks hitters with a hard slider. There is not much movement on the pitch (it gets on hitters too quickly) but he has generally been able to overpower hitters with it. West Michigan brings a well-balanced offensive attack, of which Baranoski factors into significantly.
Erik Detmar – Indiana – #46, NR
GBL Legends (NWLAT), Squints Sluggers (LWA), Noodlers (CCW)
A year after throwing 14 shutout innings in GBL’s runner up finish at the NWLA Tournament, Erik Detmar was not quite as sharp at this year’s event. The younger Detmar brother lost GBL’s tournament opener to The Yish in what – pool play or not – can only be described as an upset. Erik allowed three runs on four hits and three walks in that game. He bounced back somewhat with two low stress innings in a blowout of the BYW All-Stars Saturday evening, but it still must have been a disappointment after his superb 2019 performance.
Detmar had a more typical year in Leroy. He allowed 14 runs in 32 innings while striking out 60 batters. Statistically, he had his best offensive year in seven season in Leroy, reaching career highs in batting average, slugging, and home runs. Erik made his Circle City debut this past summer appearing in two games for the Noolders at the end of June. He didn’t hit much but allowed one run in a complete game win in his only CCW start.
Tyler Roush — West Virginia — NR, NR
Mothmen (NWLAT, WILL), Replacements (UW)
While the unadjusted statistics indicate that 2018 was Tyler Roush’s best NWLA Tournament, after adjusting for quality of competition this past year’s tournament likely tops it. Playing for Wild and Wonderful Wiffle®, Roush batted .273/.448/.455 in 2020, compared to a line of .483/.595/.690 in 2018. However, while he feasted off some below-average competition three years ago, Roush’s performance in 2020 came off several of the tournament’s best pitchers. Five of his six hits were had off pitchers higher up on this year’s list like Kalamazoo’s David Ayers, MAW’s Noah Silverman, and WILL’s Gino Joseph. Roush just missed another hit or two against Silverman with several would-be hits pulled just foul — an accomplishment made more even more impressive given that Silverman was one of the harder throwers in the tournament. Roush has quick wrists and an uncanny ability to barrel up with a yellow bat, which makes him quite the threat in a yellow bat environment no matter the pitcher. Roush is still adjusting to bigger bats outside of the NWLA Tournament, but his skill set suggests he should eventually be able to eventually make the transition with more reps.
Vince Carullo – Indiana – #86, NR
Fabulous Flamingos (LWA)
Vince Carullo has put together back-to-back outstanding pitching seasons in Leroy. There is a strong argument that Vince has been the league’s second-best pitcher during that time frame, trailing only Caleb Jonkman. He was 4th in ERA and SO/6 IP among full time pitchers. Carullo was much more hittable than he was in 2019, but the ability to pick up a strikeout when needed – he recorded just about two strikeouts per inning pitched – help keep his ERA a healthy 2.36. While pitching is his strength currently, he finished the summer with an above league average batting average and slugging percentage as well.
Jerry Hill — Virginia — NR, NR
New School Risers (MAW), York Yaks (UW), Sultans of Squat (CFOT)
For much of the three seasons prior to 2020, Jerry Hill bore the burden of captaining the consistently short-handed Barrel Bruisers in MAW. That not only meant scrounging for additional players on a tournament-by-tournament basis, but also often having to take the ball himself because there simply were not any other pitching options. Jerry admirably turned himself into a decent pitcher, but by his own admission it also took away his focus and energy from his preferred skill - hitting. His numbers - which also undoubtedly were impacted by an increase in pitching talent across Mid Atlantic in 2019 - took a tumble as a result.
The Bruisers - one of the original MAW teams - called it quits after the 2019 season with Hill and longtime teammate Chris Owen jumping to the New School Risers. The move freed up Jerry to concentrate on his offense as Owen, Dave Capobianco, and Jason Capobianco handled the pitching duties for the Risers. While his final numbers from the MAW regular tournament season are not the best, Hill’s bat was key in many Risers’ victories. In NSR’s seven wins during the summer season, he had game winnings home runs in two and scored the winning run in three additional 1-0 victories. That clutch hitting continued into the post-season. Hill forced Nick Lea out of the game in the Risers’ first game of the day at the Mid Atlantic Championship with a decisive early-game home run. Playing with the Yaks at the United Wiffle®Ball national championship in October, Hill homered off his Risers’ teammate, Dave Capobianco, giving the Yaks a chance to pull off any early round upset.
Caden Irwin – Michigan – NR, NR
Islanders (WSEM), WSEM Dads (NWLAT), WSEM Dream Team (UW)
The 2019 WSEM rookie of the year recipient was not quite as good in his sophomore year. Offensively, all of Irwin’s 2020 numbers were below his rookie year stats, with the exception of a walk-driven increase to his on-base percentage. Likewise, his pitching numbers were down almost entirely across the board, with the exception of a dramatic increase in strikeout rate from 33% in 2019 to 49% in 2020. Irwin still played well in WSEM this past summer, he just did not quite match the success of his rookie season.
Irwin gained his first national experience this year, competing with WSEM teams at both the NWLA Tournament and United Wiffle®Ball. He didn’t get a chance to pitch very much in either tournament. In Canonsburg he threw one 3-inning game against Circle City and struggled to find the strike zone, walking 12 batters total in the shortened pool play game. Irwin got into one game in York in October, entering in relief of Chandler Phillips against the Bomb Squad. Irwin was a little bit better there, allowing two inherited runners to score on a Rich Guillod single, but otherwise holding down the dangerous Bomb Squad bats for an inning and a third.
Kyle Gagliardi – Indiana – NR, NR
Barnstormers (LWA), Outlaws (CCW)
Kyle Gagliardi was one of several Leroy/Griffleball players to venture over to another Indiana league, Circle City, for the first time in 2020. In terms of Griffleball & Leroy players debuting in Circle City, Gagliardi was arguably the second most productive player in that group behind Caleb Jonkman. Out of players who appeared in more than one game in CCW in 2020, Kyle was 5th in ERA (2.12 in 17 innings). He also hit well in his brieft stint, compiling a .400/.400/.720 line over 25 plate appearances. Gagliardi also had his best all-around statistical season in Leroy. He set career bests in WHIP, walk rate, and batting average against, batting average, and slugging. He has only made one trip to the NWLA Tournament – a three at bat cup of coffee in 2019 – but based on his good numbers across multiple leagues this year, it seems like he could be of some assistance one of the Indiana leagues in 2021.
Mike Bucci — New York — #76, NR
NY Dragons (MAW, UW)
A year after winning Rookie of the Year honors in the Palisades WBL, Mike Bucci had a strong first season in MAW. Bucci hit .178/.394/.356 and was thirteenth among qualifiers in OPS. Bucci’s patience at the plate — his 26 walks were the fourth most in Mid Atlantic — made up for lower-than-ideal batting average. Bucci went hitless eight times in fifteen games but failed to reach base in just two out of fifteen games. He uses a low, crouched stance which generates legitimate power (half of his hits in MAW last season went for either a home run or a triple). Bucci does not throw that hard and at this point he still struggles to throw consistent strikes. That seems like a recipe for disaster but when you watch him pitch there looks like there is enough there that he could eventually turn himself into serviceable fast pitch pitcher.
Behn Worley — Pennsylvania — #92, NR
Cardinals (RPWL), Royals (RPWL), Blue Jays (RPWL)
Behn Worley had a breakout season in the Ridley Park Wiffle®Ball League in 2019 as a pitcher, pitching to a 1.43 ERA in 49 two-out innings. While there were some signs that his ERA was not sustainable - he walked five more hitters than he struck out, for example - there was enough progression in both his numbers and stuff to suggest that he had turned the corner. As it turns out, 2019 may have been an anomaly. Despite striking out more hitters on average in 2020 compared to the year before, all of Worley’s other key numbers (ERA, walks, hits) went in the wrong direction in 2020.
However, Worley seemed to have discovered his stroke in 2020. Never much of a hitter prior to this year, Worley’s slash line of .220/.371/.520 landed him among the top dozen Ridley Park hitters in batting average, slugging, and OPS. He continued that strong production into an abbreviated post-season for the Cardinals. The Cards bowed out in two games to the Angels, but Worley did his part in game one of that series as he went 2-4 with a home run in a close 5-4 loss against Nate Smith, Dylan Harshaw, and the rest of the Angels. Was Worley’s 2020 offensive breakout a one-time outlier like his 2019 pitching breakout looks to have been? Perhaps, but it is deserving of recognition.
Mike Collins — Pennsylvania — NR, NR
Cardinals (RPWL), Blue Jays (RPWL), Dirtballs (MAW)
An excellent start to the season at the plate for the Cardinals’ Mike Collins – 5 hits, 11 walks, and 4 home runs in 6 games/34 plate appearances – drew the attention of first year Blue Jays captain, Cam Farro. At 4-3 and with nine of the ten RPWL teams still very much in the playoff hunt, the Jays were looking for a spark to not only get them to the post-season, but to improve their chances once there. Farro shipped Behn Worley – who had three scoreless innings to his name at the time of the trade to go along with a breakout 2019 pitching season – to the Cardinals for Christian Gallo (along with two draft picks each, with the Cardinals receiving the both the nearer term and higher picks). The trade gave the Jays the league’s three leading top home run hitters and a surplus of power.
Of course, as these things often go, Collins did not hit a single home run and picked up only 2 hits in 12 at bats in his three regular season games with the Jays. The Jays rolled post-trade, however, and won 4 of their 5 final games to enter the post-season as the 4th seed. It was there that Collins really proved his worth to this new team. Mike went 9-41 at the plate (an above average batting average in Ridley Park) with two home runs and six walks to help the Jays to the title in their first season as an RPWL franchise. Perhaps just as importantly, he gave Farro a small – but much needed – rest for nine playoff innings. Collins pitched well during those innings, allowing just four runs and giving his team a chance to win each time out.
In addition, Collins gained valuable experience in MAW in 2020. While he didn’t hit much, Mike held his own on the carpet. He threw 8 1/3 innings to a 4.32 ERA against top tier teams including C4, NY Dragons, ERL, and New School Risers. To take the next step as a pitcher, he will have to find a way to throw strikes on a more consistent basis. Collis walked 1.6 batters for every hitter he struck out between RPWL and MAW.
Garrett Torres — New Jersey — #34, NR
OG Goon Squad (MAW), Diamondbacks (MLW Battle of Boston)
Garett Torres — a staple of the Palisades Diamondbacks for many years — played only twice during the 2020 Drop 100 period. The first came [last] December at the MLW Battle of Boston tournament. Playing alongside his brother and their longtime teammate, Kenny Stengel, Garrett helped the Diamondbacks to a second-place finish in what was a very competitive field. It was at that tournament that the members of the Diamondbacks were introduced to the OG Goon Squad (fourth place finishers in Boston). Stengel ended up playing with the Goon Squad in Mid Atlantic this summer. When that team needed some help as they eyed a late season run towards the playoffs, they brought in Torres. Although he didn’t have much to show for it in terms of wins, Garrett pitched well in a pair of games at the MAW Backyard Brawl tournament in August. He suffered a tough luck loss versus the Waves in the with the bases automatically loaded in the sixth to start his day, but the extra innings made a difference. The Goon Squad reached the semi-finals that day and earned enough points to overtake the York Yaks for the final MAW Championship Tournament spot.
Riley Brown — Pennsylvania — NR, #65
Expos (RPWL)
The 2018 Ridley Park Wiffle®Ball League MVP unexpectedly had a franchise dropped into his lap following the drama that went down on the 2020 draft night. Riley had little to no say in the construction of his roster and instead was handed a 4-man roster with two rookies and not much at all in the way of pitching. Nonetheless, the Expos defied expectations by winning their first two games of the season back in June, with Riley leading the way offensively (3-8 with 10 walks). He played an even bigger role in the Expos third - and as it would turn out, last - victory of 2020 a couple of weeks later. In that game, Brown shutout the Astros for seven innings while picking up three hits and three walks against the Astros’ Dennis Donegan and Teddy Drecher. Unfortunately, Riley’s taped together team could not keep it together the entire season and forfeited the final half-dozen games. In the half-season that the Expos did compete, however, he was well on his way to once again being a top 5-player in that very competitive league.
