USA Baseball Releases 2024 NHSI Lineup

The 16-team field has been unveiled for the eleventh edition of the National High School Invitational, one of the most prestigious prep tournaments on the scouting calendar. The tournament, which USA Baseball hosts, will take place at the National Training Complex in Cary, North Carolina from April 10th to April 13th.

The single-elimination style tournament has a rich history of draft talent that has come through the gates since its inception in 2012. The likes of Cody Bellinger, Joey Gallo, Max Fried, and Lucas Giolito have stepped foot in the complex, as well as recent top draft picks in Dylan Lesko, Mikey Romero, Jack Leiter, and Pete Crow-Armstrong. In 2023, the tournament added three more first-rounders to its resume, with Noble Meyer, Adrian Santana, and Ralphy Velasquez putting together excellent outings last April. Velasquez recorded six hits throughout the tournament and took home All-Tournament honors, while Meyer struck out ten in seven stellar innings in a tough-luck loss to Calvary Christian. Santana utilized the event to show off his burgeoning toolset, which culminated in the Rays selecting him at 31st overall. Overall, nine players who participated in the 2023 edition were drafted last July.

This year’s lineup features a stout lineup, including reigning champions Huntington Beach and the return of three-time champions Orange Lutheran. Florida and California have four teams apiece with North Carolina and Arizona being the only other states with multiple participants. This will be the first time in tournament history that two in-state schools appear in Cary, plus the District of Columbia is being represented for the first time. Here is the full lineup of teams:

• Apex Friendship (Apex, NC)

• Bishop Gorman (Las Vegas, NV)

• Casteel (Queen Creek, AZ)

• Chaparral (Scottsdale, AZ)

• Corona (Corona, CA)

• Farragut (Knoxville, TN)

• Hagerty (Oviedo, FL)

• Harvard-Westlake (Studio City, CA)

• Huntington Beach (Huntington Beach, CA)

• Key West (Key West, FL)

• Orange Lutheran (Orange, CA)

• Puyallup (Puyallup, WA)

• St. John’s College (Washington, D.C.)

• St. John’s Country Day (Orange Park, FL)

• Trinity Christian Academy (Jacksonville, FL)

• Wesleyan Christian Academy (High Point, NC)

There’s an impressive lineup of prospects in the 2024 class that’ll take the field in Cary, but there’s also high-end talent in the 2025 and 2026 classes that are worth paying attention to. We’ll tease a few of our new Top 100 rankings in this list (which will come out later this week), but here’s a list of prospects to keep an eye on in all three classes come April 10th:

2024s:

• LHP Ethan Schiefelbein, Corona (#13)

• RHP/SS Bryce Rainer, Harvard-Westlake (#14)

• OF Derek Curiel, Orange Lutheran (#22)

• LHP Mason Russell, Casteel (#50)

• RHP Duncan Marsten, Harvard-Westlake (#73)

• C Burke-Lee Mabeus, Bishop Gorman (#79)

• C Josh Springer, Corona (#82)

• LHP Talan Bell, Hagerty

• UTL Chris Newstrom, Chaparral

• RHP Cade O’Leary, Farragut

• RHP Nathan Aceves, Huntington Beach

• RHP Tommy Bridges, Harvard-Westlake

• SS Gabe Fraser, Orange Lutheran

• OF Kyle Boylston, St. John’s Country Day

• RHP Felix Ong, Key West

• SS Austin Jacobs, Hagerty

• C Kailand Halstead, Puyallup

• OF Brennon Seigler, Farragut

2025s:

• RHP Seth Hernandez, Corona

• SS Brady Ebel, Corona

• RHP/SS Billy Carlson, Corona

• RHP Josh Hammond, Wesleyan Christian Academy

• RHP Sam Cozart, Wesleyan Christian Academy

• OF Josiah Hartshorn, Orange Lutheran

• C Trent Grindlinger, Huntington Beach

• SS Linkin Garcia, Huntington Beach

• OF Domaine Vann, Wesleyan Christian Academy

• SS Mason Pike, Puyallup

2026s:

• OF Brady Harris, Trinity Christian Academy

• RHP Ethan Wheeler, Trinity Christian Academy

• OF Ryan Harwood, Casteel

• C Brady Murrieta, Orange Lutheran

• RHP Brayden Harris, Trinity Christian Academy

Socal Stars No. 5: Boras Classic South-Hitters

*This article was written by Grant Carver and Cameron Emamian

Ralphy Velazquez, C/1B Huntington Beach, 2023

This name should be no surprise to anyone who has followed along with the 2023 MLB draft. Ralphy Velazquez is widely considered the top prep guy in California for the 2023 class, especially in a year where it has been a bit underwhelming for guys with high expectations. He delivered repeatedly during the week, including a light tower shot to right field. He also blasted a double off the wall dead center field in the Championship game against Notre Dame, along with lots of other hits he collected during the week. The power is legit, and it shows in games, especially to center and his pull side but he has the ability to go the other way as well. He knows the strike zone very well and doesn’t try to do more than he knows he can, which makes him very difficult to pitch to. Defensively as a catcher, he has good hands for receiving and a strong and accurate throwing arm, which is what you need to see from a catcher, but the mobility and athletic lateral movements are lacking a bit, as the body is very mature already and it might push him to first base long term. Either way, this is a bat that has teams and scouts dreaming on, and he can anchor an offense, don’t be surprised if he sneaks into the top 25 picks.  

Trent Caraway, SS/3B JSerra, 2023

There have, for the most part, been two 2023 guys performing this season, Ralphy, and Caraway. Caraway would be really big for a SS, it seems highly likely he ends up as 3B but he projects solidly as a corner guy. He moves surprisingly well for his frame but it seems likely he’ll add even more weight as he matures which is where the corner position really comes in. I’m not sure too many teams will worry about him as a 3B over SS when he hits the way he does. He has the ability to hammer baseballs but there are still some concerns here. He was exposed a few times to better fastballs for having a longer swing, which can sometimes come from big power bats. There is also a good amount of swing and miss but when he connects, it is hard contact and he has delivered more than almost any other bat so far. 

‘23 SS/3B Trent Caraway (@BeaverBaseball commit) continues to hit in the Boras Classic, this time shooting a base hit to RF pic.twitter.com/WdreCud02A

— Cameron Emamian (@CameronEmamian) April 13, 2023

Casey Borba, 1B/3B Orange Lutheran, 2023

It’s hard not to be intrigued by a guy with the hit tool that Casey Borba has and he displayed that in the game I saw this week where he doubled and went deep for a home run. Borba has a really interesting swing that features a big leg kick and lots of bat movement. Within that swing is impressive bat control, and his approach impressed too. He was recognizing pitches and digging into counts extremely well, which pairs nicely with his ability to get the barrel to the zone and hammer the ball. He played third base in this one and was not tested very much on the dirt, but he is very much a corner profile. That kind of profile can get overlooked at this level for valid reasons, but Borba is very advanced at the plate and the production is hard to deny.

Ben Reiland, OF Orange Lutheran, 2024

The only non-2023 to crack this list and for good reason. Sitting in the middle of a lineup that features Casey Borba and 2024 top talent Derek Curiel, Reiland still finds ways to stick out. While he’s a fairly wiry and undersized frame, he might have one of the better hit tools in the 2024 class. He features great bat control and quick hands that hit hard-line drives all around the diamond. He’s currently a corner outfielder and he doesn’t exactly profile there, he’s played some middle infield as well, where he could make sense as a 2nd baseman but more likely than not he’ll end up on campus in the Fall of 2024 at Oklahoma State, and he’ll be a great watch in his college career. 

Eric Bitonti, SS Aquinas, 2023

Bitonti just stands out of the crowd right away due to his combination of age and size alone. He is a legit 6’5 and is filled out on top of that, and the power was there because of it. In one of his plate appearances, Bitonti crushed a grand slam and showed off his plus raw power. It is hard contact when he connects thanks to his excellent bat speed, the question has been about the bat-to-ball skills. Still, in the game I saw him he was making contact with the ball, and that included the grand slam. In the dirt, Bitonti played a solid shortstop but he is probably a third baseman in the future. His lateral movement was a little slower than the ideal shortstop, which is not surprising given his size, and he did have a couple of mistakes with the leather. However, his hands were sound and his arm strength was impressive, making me believe in his ability to play the hot corner. Bitonti’s combination size, power, and bat speed were on full display during this one and all of those tools make him a real name to watch going forward.

‘23 eligible Eric Bitonti (#52 on @ProspectsLive top 400) with a tank of a grand slam early in this game. Legit combo of size & tools. pic.twitter.com/m0dn6qZuRa

— Grant (@GrantCarver32) April 11, 2023

Grant Gray, OF/SS Norco, 2023

Grant Gray has had a bunch of helium as a potential day one guy in this year's draft recently and it was pretty easy to see why. The tools he had were something scouts dream of. Gray is a plus-plus runner with a bunch of athleticism and is fluid in everything he does. He was moving super well at short and should be able to stay there as he gets more experience. The glove was a little raw and his arm accuracy was a problem, but the ball jumps out of his hand due to the arm strength he has. He has all the tools to be an above-average shortstop in the future. At the plate, the production was not really there in this one. He flashed his speed with an infield single, but that was about it. Still, the bat speed was there and the hit tool should improve with some swing refinements. His approach was average and needs time to improve as well. Gray is an extremely raw player for sure, but he is the type of two-sport athlete with all the tools and time he needs to really put it all together.