Baseball prospects show their skills at scout camp

SCHERERVILLE | If Blake Hickman doesn't eventually get offered a contract, he should at least get a few thank-you notes.

The tall and lean Simeon senior baseball star has the frame more suited for a pitcher, or even a front-court basketball player. But catching is Hickman's game, and he does it well, smoothly picking clean short-hops with the flick of his glove, and unleashing his agility to corral wayward fastballs before they could leave their marks on several closely monitoring professional scouts in attendance Jan. 29 at the Northwest Indiana White Sox Academy.

"It's my natural position," said Hickman, who was an all-area player for the Wolverines. "I've been doing it for a while [since 10 years old] and always trying to get better at it.

"But the thing I really want to improve is my hitting."

The pro scout camp was the second one hosted by the academy and organized by Bill Bryk, special assistant to the general manager for the Arizona Diamondbacks. It featured 18 professional scouts and 35 invited players.

Among those who drew a lot of attention from radar gun-toting reps was Andrean junior Zac Ryan from Valparaiso.

"The fastest I've been clocked at was 93 miles per hour," said Ryan, who was a Times All-Area first-teamer as a sophomore after going 8-2 with a 1.87 earned run average while striking out 80 in 60 innings.

"I've may have gotten that fast today," said Ryan, who also hit .400 for the 59ers. "Right now, I'm concentrating on getting more command of my other pitches."

Some of the players present have made recent changes to their games.

"I used to be a third baseman, but then Bill Bryk told me that I had a body of a catcher," said Crown Point junior Bobby Morgan, who does look like a catcher. "I've been working on it, but throwing across the diamond from home plate is different from third base."

Shane Brown, Hickman's teammate at Simeon, decided to become a switch-hitter shortly before enrolling in high school.

"It widens my opportunities," said Brown, who will continue his career at Oakland University. "I'm a little guy, so I need to find ways to get on base."

Among the scouts in attendance was Hobart resident Scott Trcka, who represents the New York Mets.

"There were some guys here who opened my eyes with their bats," Trcka said. "As for the pitchers ... it's a little early to focus on their velocity because that will come later in the year. It's getting their delivery down that's more important right now."

It remains to be seen if any of the participants will make it to "the show." But one person in attendance that day did make it: former White Sox outfielder Mike Huff, who is the Vice President of Sports for the Chicago Bulls/White Sox Academy, which also has facilities in Lisle, Glen Ellyn and La Grange.

"I remember my first day with the Dodgers, coming out to see the Chavez Ravine," said Huff, who played seven seasons in the major leagues after a college career at Northwestern. "We were playing Atlanta and facing Tom Glavine, who went on to win the Cy Young Award [twice]."

Topnotch clientele from the facilities were invited to the camp.

"There was nothing like this (year-round training academies) when I was growing up. There really wasn't much travel ball, either," Huff said. "I was just lucky that my best friend's father was Ron Cline, who was the head coach at New Trier. Early on, he taught me how to swing right, how to throw right ... the right fundamentals.

"That's what we try to teach here."