Outside the Box — Episode 1: Chicago Trip to HQ, Brett Harrison Interview

[00:00:00] Speaker A: No better club in this area of the Midwest. [00:00:02] Speaker B: And that's why I chose this club. I feel like that's why I feel. [00:00:05] Speaker C: Like everyone should choose Top Tier. [00:00:07] Speaker A: There's a level of excellence that's expected by the coaching staff within Top Tier. The goal then is still the goal today. Build competitive players that can compete at a high level. Not just a younger team, but you're giving them skills that translate to older ages. What's happening, everybody? Welcome to Outside the Box, the official podcast of Top Tier Las Vegas. My name is Patrick Flowers. I'm the director of Top Tier Las Vegas. And tonight I'm joined by Brandon Katake, the fielding coordinator for Top Tier Las Vegas, and Nathan Urbach, also known affectionately by our players as Naderbach, the pitching coordinator for Top Tier Las Vegas. Gentlemen, how are we feeling this evening? [00:00:47] Speaker D: Let's go, baby. [00:00:53] Speaker B: I can't get over the intro first. Pollen Juice. [00:00:57] Speaker A: That's it. That is that. That is an 80 grade intro. Fellas, just so you're. Just so you have a reference point moving forward. So first episode, quick rundown for the viewers. Obviously we all work for Top Tier Las Vegas and this is very much a Top Tier Las Vegas podcast, but it's a little bit more than that. As you can tell by the name, it's outside the box, right? Baseball in itself, youth baseball and player development and collegiate recruiting and everything that goes along with it is as intense and as involved as it's ever been. And we feel like the conversation surrounding that should match it as well. So we're going to try to provide an outlet for our players, our parents, our families, and just general baseball community people to have meaningful discussions, real discussions with real professionals about everything that this game encompasses. This first episode is a great example. We have a fantastic guest on for this first episode. Brett Harrison, the West coast supervisor for prep baseball, will join us later in the episode. We'll talk everything about the new rankings for prep baseball, 2026 events to circle on your calendar. And. And tonight we're even going to have a live Q and A on the Top Tier Las Vegas Facebook and Twitter and YouTube, you can follow all of those at Top Tier Las Vegas. You can jump on, watch, ask Brett anything you want. He'll answer the question. If you're a person who's new to the whole scene and maybe has never attended a prep baseball event before and is curious about what you know, how to run a good 60 time or why my kids should be involved in this, this is your time. This is your opportunity to ask A question to the person who makes those decisions and has a lot of influence in that. But before that, we're going to talk a little bit about something that the three of us were a part of this past weekend that was really special to us and really special to our program. Kind of what sets Top tier apart from other programs is the, you know, the giant ecosystem we all live in with our actual, you know, headquarter franchise. We took our 13 new Americans team out to Chicago. A lot of those guys, they saw snow for the first time, they walked around freezing temperatures for the first time. But more importantly, they worked out at HQ every day while they were out there and they were able to take part in the top tier 2026 youth select tryouts. You gentlemen were there for that. It was a lot of things. Fun was one of them. Brandon, cold. Cold for you as well. Give me your, give me your thoughts, your, your general overall takeaways from this weekend. [00:03:50] Speaker D: For me it was, it was, it was dope to see the family vibe. You know, we talk about how Top tier is different and set apart and you could really feel that in the community between the different coaches and kids, even from different parts of the country. That was, that was a nice revelation in a sense that getting to see it for the first time where, okay, these coaches and directors actually do talk to one another and they are working together to help these kids get better. And that, that attention to detail in the process and in the habits is something that was super and like, like encouraging for me to hear, to see that, you know, oftentimes there's this gap between skill acquisition and the actual in game application. And to see these guys, you'll know when, when someone knows how to help these kids connect the dots and help fill that gap. And to hear the coaches out there, the directors out there, the coordinators out there saying those things, saying those cues that actually help these kids go from acquiring the skill in a drill to actually being able to apply it in game was super comforting and reassuring that you know, these guys genuinely care and about the kids development, but also they know how to develop kids. And so sometimes, you know, you feel alone on an island, but being around other dudes that are like minded was, was super dope. [00:05:38] Speaker B: Yeah, for me it was, I mean, a lot of similar stuff to what Brandon's saying. [00:05:42] Speaker A: I think the. [00:05:46] Speaker B: As a coach, first and foremost, being able to kind of just watch some of the other coaches and how they operate and how I can maybe take that into our philosophy and what we do out here. You know, obviously all three of us have been coaching for a long time now at various levels. I know for me, I've only been coaching youth baseball for, you know, maybe four or five years. And the rest of my time was more, you know, collegiate level driven and, you know, maybe some scouting and stuff like that in other areas. But it was cool to see just how like, they are able to kind of take certain drills or certain philosophies or even just like certain lingo and bring that to the table and, and be able to take that home to Vegas and, and preach that to our kids and then on like the kid perspective. And I think we all three of us talked about this over the weekend. It was cool to see our guys specifically, like which ones really went into it and treated it as a business trip and, and most of them did. I mean, kudos to our guys. We have a lot of really good players on our 13 new teams and a lot of. On our 13 new team and a lot of driven players. But it was just kind of cool to see the different ways that each kid attacked. What, how they were gonna, how they were gonna do that. You know, were they gonna maybe go to multiple spots? Maybe they don't pitch for us as often as maybe another kid does or play shortstop or third base or outfield as much as another kid does. But they went to that spot just because they're like, hey, let's, let's see. Because they don't. These guys in Chicago or in Iowa or Indiana, those coaches that are there, they don't know what I play or know what I'm about. Maybe I can make a name for myself at that spot. And I know we're going to get into a little bit further, but I know Brandon always talks about train like a shortstop. And we're talking about this today a little bit with our guys. And it's like, okay, maybe you're not a shortstop, but if you train like one now all of a sudden you take that to third base or first base or catcher or outfield or even on the mound and be an athlete, you'd be surprised. You know, maybe you're just going to be that guy that, that shines in a different spot in a different location. [00:07:57] Speaker A: There's so many things said in this game by us and those in this industry and those in a coaching position. The game in itself is heavy on superstitions and heavy on sayings. But I will tell you that for as long as I've been doing this, Brandon's train like a shortstop. Quote is probably one of the most powerful and relatable things that I've ever heard. Like, it just. I was actually, I was watching the other day, just real world non youth baseball thing, you know, the White Sox got the number one draft pick Chicago White Sox did in the draft lottery. And Rock Chalowski is the clear cut number one prospect in the draft in 2026 and he's a shortstop. Last year, the White Sox drafted Billy Carlson, who is, you know, perhaps the best defensive shortstop we've seen in, in many years. And they also have Coulson Montgomery at the major league level. So people were like, well, what are they going to do with all these shortstops? And right then and there I thought about Brandon and I was like, what does it matter? Who cares? Train like a shortstop. Like all of these dudes will go play in. You know, two of those three dudes will go play another position. And it is what it is. But like, they're there in that set because they trained like a shortstop. So just hats off to you, Brandon, because for as many things as I've said and as many things as I've heard, that's one of the things that probably sticks truest most. [00:09:21] Speaker D: I think that's the trend, though. Like, I mean, I can't take credit for that. Like the, like the Padres, right? How many short stops do they have? [00:09:29] Speaker A: Yeah, played the outfield. [00:09:32] Speaker C: He was. [00:09:32] Speaker A: Short stop coming up. Yeah, 100%. Oh, no, it's. It's dope. I mean, so the trip to Chicago had a little bit of different meaning for everybody, whether it be coaches, players and whatnot. I mean, for you guys, you got to get your first taste of HQ and the player development staff over there. Players, same thing. They got really, really cool stuff. I mean, in. In addition to just being there physically in person and working out and being on the field and being in the pitch lab upstairs in the weight room and hitting tunnels downstairs and. And doing all of that. Something we don't really have out here in Vegas where the climate hasn't traditionally or historically necessitated a facility like that. They got to do all that, but they also got to rotate in and out of their cage reps with D1 guys and pro guys, and they got to watch pro guys throw pens. The boys got to see Jack Bauer throwing off to the side one of the days, you know, and I told him, I was like, hey, don't act like a weirdo, but that's Jack Bauer over there. And of course, all of them ran over there like weirdos and Circled around. But like, it just goes to show you like the power and the reach of, of top tier and the type of dudes that come out of this program and then stay in this program. And in, in the past few days I've talked to a few parents about, you know, what they're going to do, what their plans are for their children in the spring season, in the summer season and whatnot. And I was just, I just kept coming back to like, this is a place, this is not a place to play. This is a place to be here for a long time. And like, that's proof, you know, proof in the pudding there where we were out there on a random weekend in December and you have all these dudes that don't play for top tier no more, but they're still in the facility every day doing their thing, working out, throwing pens, hitting, talking to the guys. So to me, I mean that was super cool for the, the players to get that experience and you guys as colleagues and fellow coaches for you guys to see the things that I've been talking about for, you know, since the day I met you guys, about the family aspect of it and you know, that you really feel that bond. You know, it doesn't matter if you're from HQ or McHenry county or Vegas or Iowa or Indiana or Kentucky. Doesn't matter when we all get into that building and we're all wearing the same hat, we're family. And I feel like that was pretty apparent out there. So that was cool for me to see you guys have that interaction with those guys and, and feel that it. [00:12:05] Speaker B: Felt to me very like college or high school alumni driven. And I'm talking like the top, the top ones like the Bishop Gorman's, the modern days, like you. And then obviously you go to like, you know, any college around the country that's well run and you get those alumni that come back like I was thinking all weekend. I'm like, you don't see that with other programs and it's like it's no knock on the, on other programs. There's a lot of really good programs across the country that might just be local or you know, even if they are national, whatever it may be. Right. But like, I feel like you just don't see that. Like we've all coached with different, with different, you know, organizations in the Vegas area, me and Brandon and I know obviously Patrick, you and you in the Chicago area specifically, but there's just like, yeah, you just without getting, I guess too wordy about it, like you just, you just don't see that everywhere. I feel like. And that, and that was cool because it had like that alumni, like everybody's catching up feel and then us who, like, I know Patrick, you know, a lot of them, but like me, Brandon Grant, you know, all of us coaches that were there, Benny as well, all those coaches that were there, like, we didn't know any of those guys, but we felt welcomed, you know, from the get go. [00:13:19] Speaker D: So yeah, I think it was dope how the, how those guys that did come back, Those alumni guys, D1 guys, pro guys, they just took our guy, took our dudes under their wing like and started talking to them, giving them pointers and even taking reps with them. I think that was, that was super cool, like to, to your guys point about that community aspect. [00:13:44] Speaker A: Yeah, 100. It's super cool to see. And you know, we've, we've had a couple workouts since then with the guys and you know, heard nothing but great things. But, and we'll put together some stuff, you know, where we sit down with the guys and talk to them about what that trip to HQ meant to them and what they took away from it. And I'm sure a lot of those, those answers will, you know, echo the same sentiment. So that was a really good time. And who knows how the, you know, select rosters will shake out. We'll find out in the coming, you know, weeks and months and whatnot. But I mean, quite honestly, if, if none of our guys make that team, it wasn't a wasted trip, in my opinion. I think the guys learned a lot and I think we did too. And it was, it was a good time. But that said, I, I have no doubt that some of our guys are going to make that team. And I think a lot of that, a lot of that can be traced back to or attributed to the winter program. I mean, obviously we're seven weeks into our winter program right now, I believe. Seven weeks into the winter program, the winter program is strictly player development. You know, we've been three to four days, depending on the age level or the way the schedule for that week shook out in the gym, obviously over time on the field, working on our defensive stuff, we've been hitting, we've been doing all that, but no games. Just focusing on getting better, getting stronger, getting healthier, moving better, working a lot on pitch design and mechanics, working a lot on swing design and, and it's been a huge, huge, huge difference maker for a lot of our guys. We haven't done any sort of baseline testing in the last few weeks, and we'll probably wait till the week or two after we come back from the holidays to do so. But I was thinking about it earlier today. I'm super anxious to do it because I know that we're going to see some really, really, really big gains from all of our guys. [00:15:40] Speaker B: Yeah, I mean, I think you can already see it. [00:15:42] Speaker A: Yeah. [00:15:42] Speaker D: I mean, just in those field. Those fields. [00:15:49] Speaker C: Yeah. [00:15:49] Speaker A: Brandon, you were telling me the other day, you're like, man, this guy and this guy and this guy, just. Just watching them come across the infield on throws. The ball's just flying out of your hand better than it did two months ago. [00:16:02] Speaker D: It's different. It's different for sure. You can see it is different for sure. It's pretty cool. [00:16:10] Speaker A: We got. I mean, obviously this is kind of new. You know, this is a little bit new out here, and there was a little bit of. What's the word I'm searching for here? There's a little bit of pushback maybe from some of the families out here about apprehension. Yeah, a little apprehension about not playing games for this period of time. And I knew that was going to come. And we talked about it internally as a group, and yeah, I was just like, whatever, we're gonna do it, we're gonna do it. It's either gonna work or it ain't. I'll wear it regardless. But I think that at this point right now, I don't think there's a lot of families that are going to say that was a waste of time or, let's not do that again. You know what I mean? And. And that's good. [00:16:55] Speaker C: And that's not. [00:16:56] Speaker A: That's not a us thing or a, you know, dunking on people thing. That's just simply a natural evolution of. Of the game out here out on the west coast in the mountain west region, and, you know, trying to bring something new in and it working out well. And at the end of the day, all that matters is it worked for our guys and that. That's. That's what's most important for us. So, you know, we're gonna go into our holiday break now, enjoy Christmas and New Year's with the families. Guys will still be working at home independently with their schedules on track, and then we'll come back and finish out the winter program and get into game blending stuff and. And whatnot. And I actually had the stray thought today, and I'm the last guy in this group to have that stray thought, but I did. I was like, I'm ready to see these guys get out on field and, like, play a game, whether it be an inner squad game or a scrimmage game that was set up or manufactured by us in another program to kind of control things, or, you know, three weeks from now or a month from now, we're playing. We're playing in a tournament again. I'm kind of ready to see where we're at right now with the boys because they. They, to their credit, have worked really, really, really hard to soak everything up and. And really do a good job during this winter program. [00:18:15] Speaker D: Yeah, I mean, I said that last night, dude. Like, I was like, yo, I'm ready to get on that field. Like, it's been. It's been a minute. And, you know, I know the. I know the boys are itching to get back on there, but I think more like, in addition to that physical and mental toughness that they're gaining through the. Through the winter program, like, you see them start to build relationships, you start to. You start to see them build trust in one another, because there's a lot to be said about when. When you're in the gym working hard and you look at your teammate and they're over there working hard, and you look at the other corner and those guys are working hard and getting after it, there's trust building that, you know, like, I can trust that you're gonna. You're gonna do the right thing, because I seen you put in the work. I'm gonna trust that you're gonna give me everything you got because I seen you do the work. I was right there with you. And to see them build that camaraderie around this winter program for me has been. Has been special, especially with our group of guys coming in and rallying around one another. And that. That PR Day was. Was lit. That was fun, man. [00:19:23] Speaker A: That was a good time. And the high school guys have theirs. Well, they had theirs tonight or last night, so I'm sure they had. They had an equally. Equally good time. It's good. Competing is good. Guys like to compete. And when you're in the winter and you're in the facility three, four, five days a week and working out, and there's not the on field, you know, on the dirt competition, you only have each other to compete with, so that's. That's a lot of fun. So you, Brandon, obviously, you. You worked a lot in the youth age levels for years now. What is the biggest benefit of a controlled winter period or development period for. For youth guys, particularly and, and Nate, that. I'll, I'll talk to you about the older guys and the pitchers here in a minute. But Brandon, youth guys, exclusively, where, you know, your bread and butter, your wheelhouse, biggest benefit there for them, I think. [00:20:22] Speaker D: It'S the opportunity to clean stuff up, whether it be movement, whether it be skill acquisition or fundamentals. Right. That lack. We, we had a, like a abbreviated fall season by Vegas standards. Right. And. But the sample size was big enough to understand deficiencies and strengths and how we're going to attack it in this winter program. So for me it's, it's having that luxury of time to, to get kids stronger. Obviously, that's the consensus that was across the board. Like, yo, if we're gonna move into this 14U 1690, we're gonna be swinging BB cores. Like, our dudes gotta get stronger and within the context of that strength to be able to make them more mobile, make them more stable and more explosive out of those movements. Right? Like, and then clean up running form to clean up just that process of how they go about their daily grind. Right? Like to be able to give them these things stripping away. Oh man, we got to figure out rotations. We gotta, we gotta get ready for this game. We gotta run this, we gotta run that. Like. Nah, just, just getting back to the development, the fundamental development and skill work so that when we do jump back in games, they're a little bit more equipped to execute. Right to that to our expectations. [00:21:59] Speaker A: Yeah. 100. Nathan, you've been working a lot with the older guys. Obviously you have your role with the 13s and you've worked with them as well. And they're junior high guys and we here kind of mush together our high school guys and our junior high guys in the sense of like preparing for now for the high school guys is kind of the same for our youth guys. We're preparing for what's a year down the line and, and getting them ready for that. But your time with the 16, you guys, what is the winter program been like with them and what is the biggest takeaway you have with that group from this winter? [00:22:38] Speaker B: Yeah, I think we've done a really good job of starting the, the prep process for these guys that are closer to, you know, making collegiate decisions, how to prepare for that. Like, you're gonna have a grind of a season. It's going to be in college, you know, 56, 60 games. If you, if you benefit from playing pro ball, it's going to be, you know, 100 plus games. No matter what level you're at and kind of going off what Brandon said. I think a lot of the times people forget to teach because you get in that grind of the everyday grind. You know, you get into that everyday grind where it's just game, game, game, game, game. Maybe you have a practice here and there, you know, at the youth level or at the collegiate or high school level, but once you get into that season, it's just, it's a grind. And you, in order to prepare for that grind, it's almost like you have to have the rest and recovery. And people don't understand that. They're like, oh, I have to grind, grind, grind, grind, grind to get to that, to where I know I can do it on an everyday basis. And it's like, no, your body needs rest, your body needs teaching or your mechanics, your, you know, the coaching needs to be able to sit back and say, hey, what did I learn from these last three months of watching you play that maybe I wasn't able to apply on a day to day basis with you because we frankly just didn't have the time to do it. We don't see the guys every day. And I think with me, I was talking to my wife about this the other day. Like I feel like with the winter development program, even though it's supposed to be a break from baseball, it hasn't really been a break from baseball. It's just been a different type of. A different type of grind. Right. So you know, we have the guys, like the high school guys. We have a Monday through Wednesday. I know you guys have. Or for 13, you. It's like Monday, Wednesday, Thursday if I'm not mistaken. And then obviously we have everybody on Saturdays. And so we're still getting them on a field, we're still getting them in the weight room. But now like, I think for me, like the ability to just kind of sit back, watch maybe you know, some even just like slow mo film. Like we were out on the field the last couple weeks really working on who, who's a, who's a supinator and who, who's a natural pronator on the pitching side. Yesterday I was working with some of our high school guys that frankly I have, I haven't really been able to see pitch that that often. I mean, I mean just to kind of guess a little background. Like I started with top tier in August and I was still kind of going through some things with my previous organization. So it kind of took a little bit to really get into some of our guys. So I got on the tail end of the fall season, got to see a few guys pitch, but not everybody. And now, you know, and then maybe I saw some video here and there, but now I've had that one on one time with a lot of the guys and I'm able to kind of sit there and say, okay, what does this guy have in his repertoire? What needs to be fixed? What needs to, you know, maybe what's a strength, what's a weakness? How does he throw? And then how can we kind of go off of that? And it's hard, like I said, it's just really hard to do that when you're like, okay, who's pitching today in the game we have, you know, we're playing so and so this guy has to be on the mound and maybe some of those other guys get lost. [00:25:52] Speaker A: Always you're thinking about what's the lineup going to be today, what's the pitching rotation going to be this weekend, who's going to play, you know, who's going to play the outfield when so and so is on the mound. It's, it's, it's always look, the workload doesn't decrease to your point, Nathan, which the conversation with your wife, nothing decreased, but it's just different. And we get an idea, we get an opportunity to kind of zoom out a little bit and think about some things that we aren't necessarily thinking about in season. And to that point, both you mentioned that in, in your takeaway, whether it be the youth or the high school level. So my question or challenge in a sense to you guys is what do you take away from the winter program and bring into the spring and summer season? From a coaching standpoint, from a day to day player development standpoint. [00:26:51] Speaker D: I think when we talk about certain things it'll stick better because we've had these opportunities to take our time and strip the game down into different facets and when we it, we can address, address it through a verbal cue versus explaining the whole deal, which we didn't have time for in the fall. Now it can be a quick cue and be like right back in it, right? Whether it be focus, whether it be effort, whether it be attitude, whether it be different in game situations or a skill, a skill set or a play required in that moment. You did this, but maybe we should have done this and we don't have a lot of time always to, to get through all those things. But having gone through this winter program, it makes it, I think the correction will be quicker to recalibrate back and I Think for this kind of set the momentum so that we can continue these in season lifts and you know, build on the throwing program and keep that rolling. Which by the way, that throwing program is ridiculously amazing. Dud. Like it's, it's legit and I'm, I'm glad that our dudes are on it, but it, it'll, it kind of, it added, what do you call it? Added. It added not value. But the kids bought into it because they got to see like, oh, dude, this thing's working right? So it's, it's easier to reinforce, easier to calibrate, recalibrate back and also like we're not stopping, right? We're not stopping the lifts. The lifts are going to look different, right? Because now we got to take into consideration, oh, coming off a tournament, going into a non playing week or going into a playing week, like obviously those things will look different. But the kids now have an understanding like, okay, this is part of our DNA. [00:28:56] Speaker B: This is what we do. [00:28:59] Speaker A: That, that right there. For me personally being somebody who's done this for a while as, as far as this calendar, right, this period in the calendar has done that for a while and seen it. That right there, the fact that you're 100, right, it's one thing for us to see it and say it. It's not a whole nother thing for the kids to see it and say it. And there's no doubt that they've said that and said that. And that for me is the most important takeaway from this is like, because I had a bunch of dudes. We had a bunch of dudes. And I, I say I being you know, the outsider per se, like I've felt a little bit like an outsider through some of this process just because I am like, I'm new here and the things that I, the things that I think are important are new here and, and so like to see the guys start to really buy into it and eat it up and, and, and start asking me questions about like, well, okay, I did this much in X amount of weeks and how much is it going to take me, how long is it going to take me to get to this, this next level, you know, this next plateau or next benchmark. I don't know, it just personally feels really good because I think the dudes are just, you know, kind of buying in, which in turn makes me feel more included in what we're doing as a guy who felt like an outsider with these kids in this group. So. [00:30:21] Speaker B: I think for me it a Lot of the same thoughts, but like I, I obviously go back to like the pitching side of things and I, I kind of touched on this last segment, but just the idea of like really being able to understand what each kid has because like I said like in, in that grind of the season, it's really hard to kind of pick up on that unless you're you know, really getting the game tape and, and finding ways to, you know, get different angles or, or whatever or having like enough, like I said, like I didn't have enough of, of that I guess to start. But now being able to go into the spring season and say hey, like I know exactly what this kid can do and, and like Brandon said, like having those triggers and having those one on one times with those kids where like I remember having a conversation with one of our 13 you guys in the fall and he's not a pitcher, good athlete, one of our, you know, really good player, plays middle infield for us. I won't start staying saying names and stuff like that, but he, we were talking about just different ways to hold or grip a certain pitch because he wasn't, he's never really had that one on one time with the pitching coach before. And just in that one little segment in the fall, one game that I had for him proved effective in that game and then cut to the winner program got more one on one time with this, with this kid. And again, he's still probably not a pitcher long term. That's not a bad thing to say. He has a lot of other strengths, but at the high school level he can absolutely be an effective pitcher for whatever team, whatever high school he plays for. And just being able to have that, that specific one on one time and say, hey, like let's try this, let's try that. And then it's just that simple. Cue, get in a dugout and say, hey, how, how are you gripping that pitch? Or how'd you attack that player? You know, and he goes, okay coach, like I know we've talked about this and he, he has that and we're able to kind of sit down and dug out when he's on the mountain that day and you know, while other guys are hitting and be like, hey, how three four fives coming up. You guys, you guys, you guys probably have seen this same team four or five times this year. So we know these guys or you've played with them your whole entire life. How can we attack? And I think that's hard to do, you know, obviously if you don't know the picture and you don't know the, the scouting reports of the other guys, but I think the winter program, outside of like the strength and just like the learning, the grind aspect of it, being able to have that with your players because now they trust you to implement that plan for them because it's already there. I don't know if that made any. [00:33:11] Speaker C: Sense, but there you go. [00:33:15] Speaker D: To that point too. To that point too. Getting to know your guys, right? Like it's, it makes it, it made it easier for us to know them in, in their different strengths and deficiencies so that we can better take that into their cage session, right? Better take that into their bullpens, better take it into their field work, right? And being able to truly provide them with that effective individual player development plan. [00:33:52] Speaker A: No doubt about it. And I mean, and everything we do here, boiled down to its simplest form, is individualized. So you gotta have that, that key information there to be able to help these guys develop long term into, you know, potential prospects. Look, everybody who plays this game wants to play it for as long as they possibly can, at the highest level they possibly can. And they, in order to do that, it's got to be individualized. You got to know the person to be able to get the best out of that person. You know, speaking of, of getting to that point and where everybody in this game wants to go, it brings me back to, you know, what we talked about at the beginning of the show, our guest for this week, and we're going to get into that in just a second here, you know, we're talking to Brett Harrison, who is. When I came out here, when I, when I started, when I took the lead on Top Deer Las Vegas, Todd Fine said to me and CEO of Top Tier, he was like, you got to sit down with Brett Harrison. He's Mr. Baseball Las Vegas. He knows everything about baseball in Las Vegas. He knows every person out there. Two years, you know, a year and a half later, roughly, man, no truer words have been spoken before we talk to Brett, just to give him some flowers here. There's not a dude in Vegas that one, knows more about the baseball players and the baseball scene in Vegas and two, cares more about the baseball players, you know, a lot of times prep baseball, pg, other similar entities, bodies get a, get a bad rap for their, their role in the game of baseball and the, the industrialization of it or the monetization of it. But Brett himself, man, he absolutely, genuinely cares about these dudes, knows all of them. And it's just been pretty Refreshing breath of fresh air to, to meet and work with him so closely as we've. We've been fortunate enough to do. And I think that Brett truly has our guy's best interest at heart and, and is constantly looking out for what's best for them. I don't know about you guys. I've had a little bit more face time with him, but you guys have had the opportunity to meet him. Nathan, you went to school with him, so you, you have plenty of experience with, With Brett. [00:36:06] Speaker B: Well, I always tell people, and I know he won't hate this because he probably finds it to be true. I think me and Brandon were talking about this the other day. Me and Brett weren't like super close in high school. Like, we went to high school together, we played ball together growing up. We knew who each other were, but we weren't super close. And, and kudos to him. He was one of those guys that just lived, breathed everything baseball. And there's a reason he's gotten to where he is, whether that be D1 scholarships, getting drafted. I think it was an 18th round draft pick out of high school, took the, you know, decided to go instead of going to college, played for a few years. I know he had some injuries and what, that maybe derailed him from going a little bit farther than he wanted to. But then right after he retired, I guess, quote unquote from, from playing, he. He got right into being a guy with, I mean, maybe two years later, he was already pretty high up with prep baseball. And, and that's just because of that grind he's had since he was a high school player. And I remember in high school thinking, I'm like, man, like, what the, what the heck, man? Like, like, I, I just, I couldn't do that. It took me a while to get to that point. And now I see it in my coaching and it. Now it bothers me when I see a player just like not putting in the work because I know that these. [00:37:33] Speaker A: Guys, these guys think we're picking on them when we tell them, you know, all the time, like, hey, you got. It's got to be better. It's got to be better. I don't care what we're talking about. We're talking about on the field, we're talking about in the classroom. We're talking about something as simple as putting in your, your wellness questionnaire, your arm health on your track every day, like, just heavy. We're like, it's got to be better. [00:37:54] Speaker C: It's got to be better. [00:37:55] Speaker A: And they're just, you know. I know, I know. Look, we were all teenagers once. We all played high school ball. We all played ball out there. We all know what it is. We all. We all know how they're looking at us and listening to the things we're saying. And we know they're in their head, like, man shot up, like. But it is true. Like, it is so true. I can't emphasize this enough. I. I mean, I almost wish I didn't have to. I kind of feel like the grim reaper every time I come around a different age level or something, I'm there to tell them about what they're not doing, right? But, like, brother, I'm doing it because I love you. Like, and I know what this takes. [00:38:31] Speaker B: Well, I think it goes to show that there's. I've never been a big pro. Like, I've never really liked the phrase that, like, it's 90 mental or what, whatever the phrase is, right? I can't think of it off top of my head, but I think it goes to show that it's both. Like, I always saw the game at a young age from a cerebral standpoint, and that was always a big strength of mine. I was able to get away with a lot of just, like, being smart, how I did things, but I didn't necessarily grind until I was in college and even post college in, like, the weight room and my diet and different things like that. How I could have in high school to prepare myself for the upper levels of baseball. And other guys did both. And some guys were maybe all, you know, all weight room driven, all baseball driven, and then maybe their career derailed at some point because they didn't have the cerebral part of it and the smarts behind it that you needed. But what I learned very quickly is, is that you can have the smarts for it, but if you. The talent ain't there because you're not putting in the work, that's probably a huge part of it. And so that's what made me realize, like, it ain't 90% mental. There's a skill level you have to. Have to get to a certain point. And some of that skill level can be from the cerebral part, like. Like Brandon, like with our middle infielders. I mean, you have to know the game and know different spots and be able to do different things, you know, different arm angles, because arm angles come from being an athlete, but they also come from when to use that arm angle, right? And it's so. It's like, I. I've gotten to hate when people say, oh, it's 90 mental, I'm like, no, it's not like it's. It's a lot percent mental. [00:40:12] Speaker A: But what it is, is it we need more than a hundred percent on the scale because we just can't fit everything. It's like 90 mental, 90 physical, 90 year books. We need a 200, 280 scale to really fit it all in. It's a lot. Like, it is a lot. Admittedly, that's a lot. But. But if. But you want. You want a lot, right? If you want to, you're dreaming big. If you're thinking of playing college baseball, you're thinking of playing baseball beyond college, playing this game as long as you can, you're dreaming big. And if you're gonna dream big, you better be ready for a big plate of responsibilities. It is what it is. You don't have to do it. We tell people all the time, this program in itself may not be for you. It's not for everybody. Neither is college baseball, neither is pro baseball. You don't have to be uncomfortable if you don't want to, but if this is what you want, you better get comfortable being uncomfortable. And, and you can lie to yourself all you want, but it's not hard to sniff out from a coaching standpoint. [00:41:12] Speaker C: Huh? [00:41:15] Speaker A: So that's the truth. [00:41:17] Speaker D: Yeah. [00:41:18] Speaker A: That. That being said, we're going to transition here into our interview for this week's episode. We're talking about Brad Harrison, the west coast supervisor, prep baseball. I think that's going to be a really good interview everyone's going to enjoy. And don't forget to watch the live Stream Q A, 5 o' clock, p. M. Thursday on Facebook, YouTube and Twitter on the top tier Las Vegas channels. Fire away your questions for Brett. Get comfortable with it. See what he can do for you and what price what prep baseball can do for you. All right. I've been hyping up our guest for this evening the entire episode, and he is here now. I'm very happy to present Brett Harrison, the west coast supervisor for prep baseball. If you're in the amateur baseball game in Nevada or in the mountain west region, this is a guy that you need to know he's got his finger on the pulse of everything going on. Brett, excited to have you, man. Thanks for joining us. How are you today? [00:42:08] Speaker C: All good, man. I appreciate you guys allowing me to come on here and, and speak about prep baseball and everything that we have going on and, and stuff that we've done with you. And no, I'm really Just appreciative of the opportunity. [00:42:23] Speaker A: Excellent. Why don't you. Let's start with a little bit of your background. Let's let all the players and parents who maybe aren't as familiar with prep baseball or yourself get to know you a little bit. [00:42:33] Speaker C: Yeah. So born and raised in Las Vegas. Actually went to high school with Nate Urbach and great friends with him. We stayed connected since high school. And born and raised here. Went to Green Valley High School out of high school. I got drafted by the Detroit tigers in the 18th round in 2011, played with them for four years, had an injury, so that kind of was it for the career. I went back to UNLV as a student, got my degree in business management from UNLV and then started working with prep baseball pretty quickly after that and have been doing this since 2019. Started just as the Nevada director and then expanded into Idaho after that, Got going in Hawaii a little bit, open that up and then became the regional supervisor pretty quickly after that. So kind of a quick rise to I guess where, where I'm currently at. But definitely excited about kind of what we've done, what we've been able to accomplish and what we have coming in the future. [00:43:45] Speaker A: Awesome. We were talking a little bit before we started the interview about how we're excited that with holidays coming up, we kind of get a little bit of break from on the field, but not really so much off the field. There's a lot of stuff going on in the background for you guys. All the rankings just dropped and you guys have a ton of content that you need to get out in the coming weeks on risers and you know, getting to, getting everybody familiar with the prospects. So today I want to talk a little bit about the rankings. We'll start with the 2027s and we could start with. Just give me your general thoughts or observations on the 2027 class as a whole. [00:44:22] Speaker C: I mean, it goes without saying that this is an extremely talented class. Just the, the depth that we have, the amount of guys that have made jumps over this last six months or so and even through the high school season, this is a group that's going to have a massive impact this high school year. This upcoming high school season. The class is led by our lone All American, Jake Turner at Centennial High School. Extremely talented, two way capable player. Committed to TCU early on as an 8th grader, believe it or not, was kind of grandfathered into that committing early group. And he's a guy that really hasn't rested on, on anything. He's done, he's, he's improved every year. He's taken his game to the next level and ultimately culminating in him getting an all American game nod which he represented our state to the highest level. After that you got Cash Martin who's a two time future gamer, just committed to Stanford. He's our top pitcher in the class. I mean the fastball is real, the polish in his delivery, everything that he does is done with polish. He understands the feel for his pitches. Fastball I believe this year is going to be up into the mid-90s. The spin on the breaking ball. I know spin wins is a huge kind of buzzy word or phrase that's going on now and, and no one in the state spins it like Cash Martin does. Spun over 3000rpms at our preseason ID last year and can throw it for strikes. As a sophomore he got the nod against a handful of really high level teams and held his own against them. And this year it's just, it's, it's just good to see him solidify that that role is as our top arm even more for a really talented Faith Lutheran group. And then you got Connor Long who was originally a Vegas guy, then went lived in Arizona for a year and now is back in Las Vegas. Goes to Bishop Gorman now probably, I mean arguably one of the best overall pure hitters we have in that class. He was just at our Summerlin Guardian Scout day. It's, it's really easy at our events for guys to get really pull happy, try to just show off a little too much, right? They're, they're doing a little bit too much. They're swinging and missing. They're not really staying within their game. And that's almost the opposite for Connor Long. It seems like he almost slows it down and wants to show off everything. I mean he's got easy power to the big part of the yard and you could just see, I mean the, the size, the strength that he already has. He's a sub 7 runner. Ran a six eight one I believe at the Future Games this last year when he represented Arizona there. So the speed tool is actually there as well. Being at third base he does, it does allow him to add more size and strength to his frame which only is going to amplify each part of his game and I just, I'm excited to see him do his thing back home here in, in Nevada and he's going to be a huge piece for that Gorman group this year who has a really talented 27 class three guys in our top 10 alone. Then you got. After that. Go ahead, go ahead. Sorry. [00:47:58] Speaker A: I think that, that. And we're going to talk more about this a little bit towards the end and later live in the Q A this evening. But I think you said there the separator for him was that he stays within his game. And you see a lot of guys not do that and they're swinging out and they're not in their game. I'm sure that that's one of the biggest questions that families, players, parents have is what are we supposed to do when we go to an event like this where we're not necessarily playing in a game? I mean, obviously some of the events have, you know, game elements to them, but when they're doing the, you know, the combine style evaluations, what are they supposed to be doing? What should the game plan be for them? [00:48:38] Speaker C: Absolutely. So when, when I got started with all this, right, I was new to scouting, new to the player evaluation. I mean, being a baseball guy, you always kind of have a natural idea, okay, this guy can do it, that guy can do it. And what was told to me and what has stuck with me since, since I got started was the guys who make it look the easiest usually have the best idea of what they're doing. And the, A big factor for me as well is I look at guys that how much is this guy going to have to change in his game to have success at the college or the pro level if there is drastic changes that need to be made, if he is swinging so hard, if he is trying to throw the ball so hard, if there's a lot of forced actions in the game. To me, that's, it's almost a little bit unattractive because I'm looking for guys that are going to be able to do this for a 56 plus game college season or 140 or 162 games pro season. And so being able to do or stay within your game for that extended period of time is extremely difficult. So if you're able to hone your game in, stay right in that comfort zone of like, man, I. I know I can still have power with this swing that's maybe a little bit more dialed back. It's not the crazy leg kick, it's not the jumping at the ball to try to hit it 105. It's a game where I'm calm, I'm collected, and I know that I can hit the ball to all fields and really stay and show off my game as a whole. And at our Events, we take note of the guys who are extremely high effort, and that's usually noted in our reports after the event, or a guy that's low effort and has a ton of success, that it's like a Conor Long or a Cash Martin on the mound, where those guys are low effort, it's. It's very calm, it's very cool. It's. It's easy for them, it appears. But you know that the, The. It's like being a duck. Like the feet are churning underneath, things are really rolling in the head. But physically, it's like this guy can do it today, tomorrow, next year, three years from now, five years now, ten years from now. These guys are not going to have to make significant adjustments to their game to have success at the next level. And so that's those two things. The guys who make it look easy and then the guys, how much are they going to have to adjust to have success? What I believe at the next level are two significant factors, I think, in my evaluation process, which is awesome for. [00:51:14] Speaker A: People to hear, because I think, you know, one of the common misconceptions is that these type of events are designed to get kids to chase numbers. And right there you have it. It's actually the opposite. Less is more. Don't try to chase anything. Be yourself. Stay within your game. If you light up the numbers, great. But it's noted and, you know, taken into consideration in the rankings, the type of effort that you're putting in to do this and, and how translatable it is to the next level and projectable. So important distinction there for people to understand when they're getting involved in this. Speaking of the 2027 class, we have a few players in the 2027 class. I look at this list, and the one thing that sticks out to me from. From my side of the spectrum is just how important it is to get started early. A lot of these guys are late to the game, and they're 27s now, they're juniors. They still have Runway left, and we're still going to be able to do things and get them places. But everybody on this list was ultimately unknown to you a year ago. [00:52:17] Speaker C: Yep. [00:52:18] Speaker A: And there's some good ball players in there. Let's. Let's start with whoever you want on that list. Give me a favorite tool, something you like about them, something they can do to improve moving forward. [00:52:29] Speaker C: Absolutely. So obviously the first one being Tony, number 46, a small school guy. You. You routinely see those kind of guys maybe being at a little bit of a Disadvantage because they are not having as many resources readily available to them as. As maybe a guy in a bigger city. But you see in his game, obviously there's athleticism there. And, and maybe the. The obvious piece you can see just from this video is his size. Right. The size is. Is. Once you get to this junior class and even in that senior class, the physical size of the players is. Is a. Is a separator. Right. It's. It's allowing this guy to endure these longer seasons. You see the guys who add strength and size to their frames, their entire game is amplified off that. Usually they're a little bit faster, the ball's jumping off their bat a little bit more. They got a little more velo across the infield on the mound, the ball is jumping out a little bit more, and that creates that lower effort. The players, instead of a guy who's a little more youthful in his presence and is having to really, almost force the issue, really trying to make that ball jump off of his bat, really taking four or five steps to curl, hop and run it across the infield and throw it and try to get a good velo. That. That's all noted. Right? Right. So these guys who are physically putting in the work to get stronger and allow their game to stay within themselves, but their game is still amplifying because they're physically adding strength. Adding strength is. It's something that really is a separator for this group. And you see right here in our top 10 that I'm looking at on my screen, these guys are physically there. They're not 100 complete, but they're physically farther along than some of these other guys. And for Whitney, the athleticism is there, obviously, the footwork is there. The foot speed can improve, especially if you want to stay up the middle at the next level. He's a 74 runner, but every time he's come out with us, you've seen progression in his game. Whether it is the 60 time, whether it is the velo across the infield, the exit velo, that's all progressing. But for him being a junior now, right, this is a year where a lot of decisions start being made on players. The. The physical size, what he's able to offer on that end is. Is still to come. So for me, I'm a big fan of his, especially being a small school player. I know it's going to take him a little bit more to come along. He's usually a later bloomer, is. Is those types of players, but there's a lot to like about him. And I'm. I'm personally a big fan. I think he. He comes out, he's very respectful, very appreciative of any time he comes out, that comes up, shakes my hand after the event, before the event, and that goes into a little bit more just beyond the type of player, but the type of character he has as well. So I'm a big fan. I think in this class, we just had guys who physically matured and have seen that kind of amplify their game. But for him, that still being the coming, I mean, it just shows how high his ceiling is with the room he has to fill out his frame. [00:55:52] Speaker A: So that's not just eye wash to you. Right? When guys are at your events and they come up to you and they shake your hand and stuff like that, that's actually things that you note and, you know, incorporate into their overall evaluation. [00:56:05] Speaker C: Absolutely. [00:56:05] Speaker A: I mean, you remember it now, months later. [00:56:08] Speaker C: I remember it now. I. I see the guys that say, hey, thank you. And it's not like I'm not basing the rankings off of this, but when a coach calls and asks, hey, what do you got on wit? What do you think of him as a player? Man, I. I really like his game. I think he's got size to come and. And the speed is going to parallel that and all this. And I mean, before and after every event, he makes sure he comes up and shakes my hand. I mean, the, the character issue there, there's none for me. I. I'm a big fan of. Of how he goes about his business and all this. And that is noted when we talk to coaches. It is noted when we post a uncommitted list on social media, kid repost and says, thank you so much or whatever. It's. It's just little bits where it's like, man, these kids are really appreciative of it. And it is something. Like I said, it's not a massive factor in our evaluation process, but it's just something we note and we like to share with colleges that, man, this kid is. This kid's awesome, you know, and that goes for. For Whitney when he's been to a handful of our events. Now. [00:57:19] Speaker A: There's so many things that amateur baseball players have to deal with now or take account for, I should say, whether it's on the field, in the classroom, in the weight room, their diet, their nutrition, their sleep. Sometimes things get, you know, you have to prioritize to manage your time. Sometimes things get pushed away or maybe fall through the cracks. And a lot of times that's the little things like that that end up slipping through with kids these days. And I try to tell these guys just how important it is to, you know, carry yourself and conduct yourself in a professional manner. The same way that you go about all your training. It matters. It really does matter. Like you said, it might not affect the rankings all that much, but when you, when there's phone calls being made and people are asking for professional opinions and experiences with these players, that stuff shows through a match. I mean, I remember sitting by you last spring at top prospects, and a player had a, had an a B that he didn't necessarily love. I don't think it was that bad of a round, but he didn't love it. And he comes out of the box, taps his bat, you know those, the old bat, smack on the ground and taps it. And you were like, cross him off the list. Like it's. It, it matters. Like you, the way that you carry yourself, good or bad. [00:58:31] Speaker C: People remember me, no doubt. No doubt. And if they're, if they're going to do that at our event, I mean, maybe it was a bad day, maybe they're having a tough time. Whatever it may be, who's to say that's not going to carry on at the next level when, wherever they go, you know, it's, it's your, you're putting on a performance. And, and I do want to get into. When we have our premier events, the Future Games, the super Sophomore games, the West Coast Games, we send out an expectations list for the players. One thing that, that we do hound on these guys is how you present yourself, how you carry yourself. All right, we go clean white pants everywhere. It's, it's your uniform is your, your uniform is your business suit. So if you show up to the field, you got wrinkly pants, dirty pants, you're wearing slides. Whatever it may be, you don't look the part. It's easy for these schools to just be like, ah, I don't know. Yeah, no, you know, it's, it's something. [00:59:35] Speaker A: That, it's something that's so preaching to the choir. [00:59:38] Speaker C: It is something that's so in your control that is an easy way for maybe you to get a check mark on a list rather than, ah, we'll have to wait to see how he performs instead of, Especially at the future game. Just as an example, you're walking into Lake Point right next to all the schools that you're wanting to go to. Your Texas's, your UCLA's, your Tennessee's. Everyone parks in the same parking lot, everyone walks into the same entrance. And so if you're walking in next to the school that you're really wanting to go to and they're excited to come watch you play, and you come in and you don't look the part, it's like, ah, like, what do we got? Because ultimately, those guys are putting their livelihood, their family's livelihood, everything in your hands if they do make you an offer, if they do ask you to come and be at their school. So the stuff that's within our control, how you present yourself, how you carry yourself, that's all handled. And even at the hotel, even on the airport or coming to the airport, all of our players are expected to wear a polo and nice shorts and tennis shoes the entire trip. [01:00:45] Speaker A: Yeah. [01:00:46] Speaker C: So you're presenting yourself at the hotel, on the airplane, because you're going to be flying to this event with the same guys coming from Nevada, coming from unlv, coming from csn. Maybe there's a layover for a group coming through Vegas. You're on the same flight as all these guys that are coming out. They're all going to be at the airport. I mean, you see a million people at the Atlanta airport when we fly in. And how you present yourself, even with that, I mean, it shows that you're there for business. You're not there to just comment, you know, whatever. We're there for business from the time we leave our house, at the time we get back to our house in Nevada. And I just, I think that is such an overlooked part, and it's such an easy part that players can emphasize. And just how they walk up to the field, how they talk to their parents, how they're. How they're going about their business is a bigger deal, I think, than anyone puts into account. And you said at the Games, it's clean white pants, you're coming in full uniform. You're ready to show up and beat someone. It's not, it's not just coming in and, hey, you know, we're. We're hanging out, we're having fun. We're there for work. We're there to make some money. We're there to get an offer. We're there to do whatever we can to put ourselves in the best position following this event. And ultimately, it's on all of these guys, when we go to these national events, to bring back that positive attention to Nevada and to the other states in our region. They are the best of the best that we got and if they don't perform, they don't do what they need to do, they don't present well, then it's ultimately not a great reflection on the rest of our state. And so there is a. There is a pretty significant weight on these guys going to this event. But we make sure each one of these guys know they belong to be there and they're good enough to participate in this event and have success at this event. So. I know I got off on a little bit of a tangent. No, but for me that is so important. I think it's an extremely important part and not only for these premier events. If you come to our preseason ID or a top prospect game and you look the part that is the first thing we notice about you. And I make an example of it. For every event, I call one kid up that looks the part and tell every kid to show up, hey, we need clean pants. We need to look like this, present ourselves like that. The next day. We probably go from about 60% of the kids look in the part to about 95% of the kids look in the park on day two of these events because they. It's one of the things you don't know until you know. And I think it's. It's something that more players should take advantage of. [01:03:24] Speaker A: 100. Well, I mean this is great because now guys who watch this, they know and maybe hopefully we can get closer to 95 on day one because it is super important. We try to stress that guy, stress that to our guys all the time. And you know, it's tough with kids and the generational. [01:03:38] Speaker C: Absolutely. [01:03:39] Speaker A: But it is really, really important. Can't be underestimated. So I'm glad you, you went into that. Let's talk 2028 a little bit. Give me favorite prospects from the 2028 class overall feelings on it and then we'll get into some of our guys. I'm sure there's going to be some overlap there, but yeah, in this class. [01:03:58] Speaker C: This go around for that 28 class, we had our. We have a new number one Terrell OS. DJ Otis was a massive performer at the GBG Scout Day that we had a few a little over a month ago. The. The offensive tool, it's hard to mistake or hard to miss. He had a huge year freshman year last year for Centennial and I think that role is only going to be more significant this year. Now being a sophomore, being in a little bit more the heart of the order. It's. It's a player that can play either corner position he can catch a little bit physically. He's, he's just there. You can just tell the strength, the size, the work he puts in, everything like that. I mean, it shows in each part of his game. I'm a huge fan. And then right after him, you got Noah Knudsen, a guy that's been on the national scene since he was a lot younger. He's another kid that's 6, 3, 6, 4, still has plenty of room to fill out his frame and is a kid that I'm really excited to see this year. I think last year he was behind Ethan Kloss at shortstop. Ethan now being at LSU kind of opens up that spot for him. And this is his breakout year opportunity, I feel. And I think just the confidence that he gained over the summer and the numbers that he was able to put up are only going to show even better during the high school season. And then honestly, for me, our guy, Ty Kincaid at number 10, he's a transplant, I believe, from Kansas and came in, I had a few conversations with his dad. The dad obviously completely undersold him. It's like, hey, just take a look and let me know what you think. And I mean, it is pretty impressive being 6 3, 6, 4. You see with him, the, the velocity is still to come. He's in the low 80s at our top tier event we had a few weeks ago. But you see just in the delivery how consistent it is, how low effort it is. He's not straining and reaching back for velocity, which ultimately would flatten out his fastball or cause him to, to miss the zone. He lives in the zone. He understands his game, he understands the velocities coming. But the one thing you can't teach his height. And he's got that, he's got the left hand aside, you see how much that ball naturally moves. And he's still extremely youthful in his presence. He's got a baby face. I don't know if he's got any chin hairs yet or what, but it is, it's going to be, it is going to be so much fun to watch him do his thing for the first time in high school this year at Palo Verde. There's just, there's a lot to like. He's got present feel for the change up, which I believe, especially at the younger age, that is a huge separator. That's a huge key to me that this guy has a really good idea of what he's doing is the guys who have feel for that secondary pitch, especially the change up, which is more of a field pitch than a slider or breaking ball that you can really rear back and throw similar to your fastball and just have the action work off of your fastball. But the changeup is something you do have to have feel for. And he already has that. And so for him, it's, it's going to be an exciting year. And just the, the growth that I'm expecting over your guys's winter workout program, everything you guys have going into this spring season, it's, it's going to set him up for a really huge year. [01:07:48] Speaker A: I agree. It's been an exciting winter for Ty in particular. He's. He's had a, he's had a really good winter. And we've got him working with, with David Records and, and Nurbach and, and, and even Gavin Bowen, who's a lefty at UNLV right now, who works with us as a pitching coach. And he's, he's made some strides. I mean, I think the other night he was sitting low 80s in a low intent bullpen. So. Yep, you know, we're excited to see how that pops, you know, this spring out in a game situation at a full intent. [01:08:19] Speaker C: Absolutely. And you can see just in the delivery that we were watching, it's, it is not a ton of lower half even being used yet. So there's just, there's already natural velocity that's in there that maybe hasn't even been tapped yet. It's something that following the event, me and Nate hopped on a call. We're texting back and forth. What do you think of this guy? What do we got here? What do you think with Ty? And we're going over some mechanical stuff that, that Nate's been working on him with that I really agree with. And for me it's, it's us being aligned and saying and seeing the same thing and knowing that, all right, this is the area to, for this player to progress, I think is. Is huge because we're able to provide the data, give really object objective information on really everything that we collect. And it's, it's no way to fudge a number, it's no way to manipulate a number, move a number. It's as real as it gets. And so if you're progressing, it's going to show it and if you're plateauing, it's going to show it. If you're digressing, it's. It's going to. Regressing, it's going to show that as well. And so that's. I Think something that for each of these guys, for wit for Ty, it's shown progression in each event with us, which it's, it's commends that for you guys to put in. [01:09:42] Speaker A: I think that's really cool and important to know that like you, your care and your interest in these players goes beyond the events. Like you said, you're texting back and forth with coaches, talking about mechanics, seeing things that you see and we see at the same time and how this guy can get better. It's not about, hey, I'll see you on the 28th of this month, come out here for three hours, do your thing and then I'll, you know, throw something up on social media and I'll talk to you next time. Like you're, you are involved in these guys year round. For people who don't know, the amount of high school games that you attend is wild. It's wild. I don't know where you fit all that in. [01:10:21] Speaker C: It's, it's every day. I mean we go out and we watch a high school game every day. 99% of the time it's, it's me going out and doing it. But really my job is to make sure that I have my finger on the pulse of everything and everyone in the state and going to these high school games. I know a majority of the players I feel like at these games, but there's always the one player here, the one player there that we're able to see at this game that maybe he hasn't been out to event, maybe they just haven't been able to afford whatever, whatever it may be. But that allows us to really get an even better grasp on these games and to promote and highlight the guys and really stay with our boots on the ground mentality where, hey, I have a guy it's throwing today. I really want you to come out, see him. Perfect. We'll be there. Yeah, you know, it is the most fun, I think part of the year for me is going out and watching the high school games because there's ton of pride. Guys are playing for something and you get to see the, the progression guys are making throughout the season. So that is, that's huge. And then ultimately after that, we get to see them at our top prospect games right after the high school season concludes. [01:11:42] Speaker A: Yeah, well, there's some guys that you're going to be seeing play high school games for the first time in their lives this year. You recently released your, your freshman 50, your freshman list to watch a couple weeks ago. The freshman class in general is, is exciting for me because these guys are just starting their high school baseball journey and there's so much talent in there and so many different ways that go. They can go. Give me your favorite takeaways from this freshman class that's going to be starting their high school journey in just a month or two from now. [01:12:14] Speaker C: I mean, it's, it is a group that we were able to run our Rising Stars events this past year and then push that into our Rising Stars games. From there, we selected our Junior Future games and this was by far the most difficult year to select that Junior Future game. Screw the amount of talent we have in that class at each of the different positions. The pitching that's already present just, I mean it is, it is so exciting to see, I mean this next kind of wave of players coming through that's going to only lift up that level of really Nevada baseball to another level, I guess take it to another level where we're still trending as a state. Just even the 1 through 10, I mean you go all the way down. We have our notes on guys that go way further, but I mean we just had a handful of you guys at the top tier day and a few of them came out to the Faith Lutheran Scout day that we just had the other day as well and, and are putting up even better numbers. So like I said, it, it's a testament to the work that you guys are putting in, the workout plans, everything that you're doing to really help these guys take their game to the next level. But my, the one that I really was impressed by each time out was Blake Bedard, big physical player. The bats present. I mean, he got us started off at our Faith Day and it was a loud BP round. You don't usually see a ton of loud BP sessions from, from the guys who are just coming in to that class. And, and he's one of the guys that I, I'm really looking forward to seeing him progress. He's a kid that's already physically further along maybe than, than a few others. But with those guys, you see how much they, they're progressing throughout the high school career. And this, this 29 group, I mean it is going to be an incredible group just to follow. Honestly, that's, it's always exciting every year to get the new crop to come into the high school classes. And I mean this group is no different. There is talent well, well, well beyond that top 10 that we were able to initially announce. And I think we're in really good shape as A state overall. And it's not just the, the players in Vegas, but the players in Northern Nevada that have shown out with some really impressive tools that are obviously going to be amplified as they physically mature, develop. And it's, it's, it's honestly, like I said, just really exciting for us to be able to cover another outstanding group to come through. [01:15:06] Speaker A: So we got the holidays coming up and then after that we're right into it. 2026 rolls around. We've got the preseason IDs right around the corner. What are the dates in January for the two sessions on the preseason ID this year in Vegas? [01:15:20] Speaker C: Yep. So we got January 21st, Wednesday afternoon event at Centennial High School. We have our following session. The, the next week, January 28th is going to be at Bishop Gorman. Trying to spread out the locations a little bit to give players an opportunity to head over there right after the high school practice. And then our Reno event will be February 8th. For all the players in Reno. These events are kind of multi use events. It's our first look at players after that winter break, see the progress that they have made as well as really our first spot at this is really when we start building our future games roster and our super sophomore games roster and the West Coast Games roster. But for that future games, this is an event that we really use to start building that. It's one of the requirements for us is a player would have to come to an event in order to be eligible for our premier invite only events. This event also provides a way for players to update their information prior to the high school season. So when a school comes out or we post a kid on Twitter, Instagram, wherever the school sees, okay, I like that swing. I like that pitch that that kid just threw. I like that, okay, he's 86, 88 as a sophomore, whatever it may be, they're able to go to his profile and see all of this relevant data that was retrieved just a few weeks ago. Right. The data that's in from 2025, that's from June, from August, whenever it may be, whenever the last event was, it steadily becomes irrelevant because it's just outdated. And people are wanting to see this relevant data. They're wanting to see the most up to date information on players. And that's why these preseason IDs are extremely important, I believe, because it allows players all to see the progress they've made. It allows us to get eyes on them as we start breaking down our rosters and building those rosters. And then it allows the schools to See, okay, this guy's put in the work over the break. Now we get to track him during the high school season, see how he does. And then if they ever need referral, they can always go back to that and see how these guys have progressed. [01:17:52] Speaker A: Nice. With that being said, with the preseason IDs coming up and eventually in the spring, rising stars and top prospects and all the events you're using not only to update the guy stats, but also begin building out rosters for the select, you know, premier invitation only events. Give us some general do's and don'ts or best practices for players attending events maybe for their first time or, you know, still inexperienced, still not feeling all that comfortable with it. [01:18:19] Speaker C: Yep. So, I mean, we kind of hit on it earlier. The, the easiest thing you could do, the, the lowest effort thing you can do is how you present yourself when you arrive at an event. We're going to see how you walk in, we're going to see. I usually have someone at the, the check in station or I'm running the check in station that is like, okay, which guys were kind of kind to you. Like it's, it starts there. But for the players who are first timers, who are nervous about coming out, unsure about coming out, please ask questions when you come to the event. Okay, we're there to support you, we're there to help you any way we can. Our goal is to make sure you have the best experience possible at each of these events. And that goes along with kind of our pre event speech where boys, if we're taking ground balls in the infield and we mess up one, the transfer is not clean, whatever we want, our staff probably going to yell at you to do it again and get a better rep before you can even ask for another one. Because our goal is always to make sure you're able to show your absolute best. And if it takes 2, 3 reps to do it, if same thing when you're in your BP session, if it takes you two, three swings to really get settled into that round, we're going to go ahead and probably add two or three to the end of your round to make sure that you have the absolute best round and show your absolute best. If a guy really struggles throughout the round, usually we'll have him step out, we'll have another guy go, let him collect himself, step back in and then try to roll from there. But when you're coming out to our events, it's not just ripping through guys get you out of there. It's as personal of an event as possible. We're cheering these guys on. Our whole staff wants you to do well. And like I said, if it takes another rep, if you want to do something again. Hey, can I run that 60 again? Absolutely you can. We want to make sure that you guys have the. It's a low pressure event. Usually we got some music going, so the vibes are there, your buddies are out there. Everyone's kind of there for the same goal and that's to get an updated kind of group of metrics that we can positively promote the players that attend the event. [01:20:36] Speaker A: I will, I will save questions for later during the actual Q A when, when parents can ask their own questions. But I have one for you, one final one, because this is one that's asked to me all the time on my end of the spectrum is what age should I care about this or what age should my player first dip their toes into this? And if my players in seventh or eighth grade, why does this matter? [01:21:02] Speaker C: Absolutely. So our youngest events that we do are for that seventh and eighth grade age range. Those events, it's called our Rising Star series, where that event is free. It is, there's options where you can add to pay and if you want more and more from the event. But this event, it's run at a slower pace. We walk to every position on the field, we start at home plate, we talk about what we're looking for from our hitting group, what you should want to do as a hitter. At this event, we go to the catcher position. Catchers, this is what we're looking for. Infielder, same thing. Outfielder, same thing. And then we finish at the 60 yard dash. Breakdown the mechanics, what all we're trying to collect and how to get the most out of your 60 yard dash. It's more of a. It's an informative event. It's a slower paced event. We're really there to try to teach the players on all that we're trying to track and really what we're looking for and how we're evaluating. And so at this event, it also gives you a great baseline for where you're at. Okay. Because now in your player profile we have a tiered option or when you subscribe to the website, you have a tiered element where you can see, okay, this is where I stack up in my state against the players in my state. This is by class, this is where the stack up by class and this is where they stack up nationally. So you can see the areas maybe I'm excelling and then areas I need to improve in. And that's a big part of all of our stuff, is the objective information we collect. It's not hand time 60s, it's not pocket radar, exit velocities. It's, it is trackman. It's the highest level of, of tech you can have in the baseball world. And we, we have that. And that's what we're using to evaluate your prayer, your players. Because when your UCLAs, your Tennessee's, your Texas, all these dream schools are evaluating you. This is, this speaks the same language they use to evaluate their own players with trackman, with Vault, with Blast. All this information is collected by us, digested and put on each player's profile. And so now you're able to see areas you can improve in, areas you need to improve in if you want to be among the top performers in your class. [01:23:24] Speaker A: 100%. That's, that's awesome stuff. I mean, I think that even that description of the, the Rising stars and for seventh graders, the entry level kind of answers the question for a lot of guys who start a little bit later, they go into events nervous, not really sure what to expect. Hey, you come here in seventh grade, you can participate for free. You can deny, you know, a crash course, a walkthrough with us on what we're going to be doing today and moving forward. So kind of eliminate some of those questions. So I think that's the best answer to why does this matter now? It's going to prepare you for when it does matter. [01:24:03] Speaker C: Absolutely. It's, it's a super low pressure. Usually we have teams sign up as groups for that event. So you're there with all your buddies, you're going through the same workout. And like I said, the goal is to make it so every player has a positive experience at the event. If they need an extra few swings, if they need an extra ground ball, if they want to throw another pitch again during their bullpen, to make sure they show off their breast, their best breaking ball. We're going to make sure that they're able to do that. And I want that to kind of set the precedent for every event they come to with us in the future is we're there for the players. We're not there to just Marquez checked in, get you through the system, get you out. It's as personable as an event as it gets. All of our people are there to make sure you guys have the best experience possible. And it starts with these rising stars events, which I believe we're going to have1 March 28th. That's going to be announced here pretty soon when everything gets buttoned up. [01:25:05] Speaker A: But breaking news right here. [01:25:07] Speaker C: Yeah, that's. That's the goal for. For that event to get going, and that's going to be our first step to selecting players for our Rising Stars games in May and then ultimately to represent Nevada at the Junior Future Games after that. [01:25:22] Speaker A: Awesome, man. Brett, I appreciate your time and I appreciate everything you do for all the youth baseball players in the Vegas Valley, in Nevada and in the entire, you know, surrounding region. So thank you for coming on today, everybody. You can follow Brett Harrison on X at B, underscore Harrison pbr. Make sure you're following Prep Baseball Nevada. I believe it's at Prep Baseball NV on all of the platforms. Correct. [01:25:45] Speaker C: Okay. [01:25:45] Speaker A: Make sure you guys are following along. Get registered for your preseason IDs, go out there, be seen, meet Bren the crew. They're the best there is. So thanks for everything, Brad. And that's a wrap for this entire episode. Appreciate you guys watching episode one of Outside the Box. Be sure to tune in tonight on Facebook, YouTube and X for the live Q A with Brett Harrison, where you, the parent or the player will get the opportunity to fire away questions and have them answered by Brett himself. [01:26:11] Speaker C: Awesome, man. Thank you for the opportunity to come on here and chat with you. [01:26:16] Speaker A: Yeah, anytime.