DII Report: DII baseball must-see prospect JP Gates, Valdosta State, and other takeaways
I went to watch a DII baseball game and walked away very impressed with what could be one of DII baseball's best all-around players in 2023.
I went to the Shorter Hawks game against nationally ranked Valdosta State on Saturday, March 4, with my normal expectations. Those are to have a few takeaways from each team and a few players to write a detailed report from the game. However, the Blazers’ JP Gates put on a show, and quite honestly, if you follow DII baseball, he is someone to have on your radar.
(Please note: Many people know I covered minor-league baseball for a decade. I want to make sure it is clear that I am not a scout. The below are observations from ONE viewing of Gates, and even after that decade spent writing about MLB’s top prospects, I know half of what a scout does… if I’m lucky.)
JP Gates, the Skinny
Gates came to the Blazers this season from Miami (FL), so there is no doubting his talents. He was even named a preseason All-American by Perfect Game entering the 2021 season, one which was cut short by injury. Fun fact: Gates once pitched a perfect game in which every out was a strikeout.
The graduate student comes to Valdosta State as a true utility player, with the ability to pitch and hit, both of which he does very well. He’s listed at 6-foot-2 and 230 and pretty much looked it.
After Saturday’s game, Gates is hitting .439 with three home runs and 18 RBI in his DII debut and has recorded at least one hit in 12-straight games. He’s also made six appearances out of the bullpen and has a 2-0 record.
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Gates powers Valdosta State to win
So, what was so special about Gates’ performance that I decided to write my first individual prospect profile ever for this newsletter? Well, his box score speaks enough to that: Gates finished the day 2-for-5 with two home runs and three RBI and picked up the win, pitching 5.2 innings of relief. The second home run came in the top of the tenth and effectively won the game.
At the plate, Gates is a mature hitter. He seems to have good bat-to-ball skills, and the power comes pretty effortlessly. He disperses his weight well, so paired with the swing, he has the ability to launch the ball. One of his home runs went to deep center (the centerfield wall at Shorter reads 388 and it cleared it by at least 10 more) and the other went to right. So, we are talking about a hitter that has natural power to all fields, and that is not good for opposing pitchers.
On the bump, he is efficient, but it’s also important to note that he had major Tommy John surgery not long ago and may not be back to what he once was just yet. The command takes time to return for any pitcher that has undergone Tommy John surgery, but when you pair that with not having a full-time pitching schedule in the rotation it takes even longer. His fastball popped hitting the upper 80s for the early innings and the velocity came pretty easy. His breaking ball (which if I’m being honest, I thought was a wipeout slider with curveball tendencies at times, but may in fact be two separate pitches) was nice, effective, and he took a quite a bit of velocity off of it, making it a pitch he can confidently land for strikes. His changeup was used less and looked like he hit the upper 70s.
There isn’t much to his delivery, so he’s able to repeat it pretty consistently, and again, it doesn’t seem like he overthrows too often. That said, he does need to tighten up the command, as his pitches were inconsistent. Some were extremely tough to hit, others were off the plate. Again, that should probably come with longer and more appearances.
Two-way players are always fun to watch, and it appears Gates is pretty good at both hitting and pitching. It seems like in his early career he was scouted as a pitcher first, which is not surprising as a hard-throwing (at the time) lefty reliever. But he is going to hit a ton in DII, so he is one to keep on your radar, especially with Valdosta State in the top-25 conversation.
More players to watch from the game
Valdosta State has a pretty solid defense. They were able to make most of the plays, minus a run-scoring misjudgment from 1B Connor Morgan. That said, shortstop Nick Gonzalez, another transfer, made a lot of plays and looks the part at the plate as well. Trent Lewis flashed some glove at third as well.
Speaking of defense, you can circle in Blazers’ catcher Jacob Harper as a prime candidate to see at the next level. He only had one hit when I watched but made loud contact when he connected. Defensively, though, he is one of the most polished catchers talent-wise the division has to offer, and his arm is unbelievably strong, throwing out five of nine attempted base thieves thus far in 2023. He had a throw yesterday that was a strike to second base and appeared to beat the runner, however, he was called safe. Harper threw him out trying to steal third on the next play.
Shorter is currently ravaged by injuries and lost its ace to graduation, so there are a lot of unfamiliar faces. I still like that this team fought and took one of the nation’s best teams to extra innings. It shows a lot of the culture being built in Rome, GA.
That said, the outfield is pretty solid with veterans Kobe Jones and Jacob Pajer. Pajer, who was my 2021 NCAA.com freshman of the year, had a pair of hits yesterday, while Jones drove in a run. Jones is currently leading the team in hitting and after a slow start, Pajer is coming on with hits in seven of his last eight games.
And since we all like home runs, Shorter’s first baseman Tyler McWillie launched his third of the year. He seems like he’ll be a pretty consistent source of home runs for the Hawks this year, so he’s obviously one to watch.