Andrew Roberts
Future College: University of Florida
Age: 16
Height: 6’ 1”
Weight: 175
Position: RHP, 3B
Bats: Right
Throws: Right
Pitches:
Fastball: 89 mph, thrown with arm side movement, tails to right-handed batter, graded 75 on the standard 20-80 scale(for their age)
Slurve: 77 mph, with late sharp movement, graded 60
Changeup: 78 mph, circle change which sinks into a right-handed batter, graded 65
Andrew Roberts is one of the premier pitchers in his class, having three solid pitches and elite velocity for his age. He has embarrassed batters at all levels with his high heat and nasty breaking balls. Roberts is a star on Trinity’s varsity baseball team, being one of the best and most dependable pitchers. Roberts has a pro style pitching game, modeling his stance and pitches after the Cy Young winner Zack Greinke. Roberts tries to work on his fastball, and when he is in tough situations on the mound, he tries to settle down and throw strikes. Roberts committed to Florida recently and certainly has a promising future.
Slade Cecconi
Future College: University of Miami
Age: 17
Height: 6’ 4”
Weight: 193
Position: RHP
Bats: Right
Throws: Right
Pitches:
Fastball: 94 mph, thrown with arm side movement, graded 80
Slider: 82 mph, sharp break, graded 70
Changeup: 78 mph, circle change which sinks into a right-handed batter, graded 70
Curveball: 74 mph, sharp downward action, graded 65
Slade Cecconi has been elite in his high school career so far, having been an anchor on our pitching staff, and has participated in the US baseball programs. Cecconi has four nasty pitches, headlined by his fastball which can touch up to 94 mph. According to Perfect Game, Cecconi’s heater is in the top half of one percent of all high-schoolers, based off of velocity. Cecconi’s four pitches can all produce whiffs and leave batters clueless. He has modeled his game after late-great José Fernández. He prides himself upon his command, and in situations with runners on base, he tries to stay cool and keep doing what he does best. Cecconi has a high potential for the future.
On the on-deck circle, the batter waits for his turn to face the pitcher. He practices a couple swings and focuses on his upcoming chance to bat. Normally, the best batters feel comfortable and ready heading into an at bat, confident that they can best the pitcher.
Against sophomore Andrew Roberts and junior Slade Cecconi, however, there is no normal at bat. The hitter walking up to face one of these two is nervous that like his teammate, he will be fooled. The batter is fearful of the top flight velocity shown by the pitchers.
Many times, this is what is in the batter’s head when he faces these elite arms of Trinity Prep. With these pitchers, and a great team around them, the Trinity baseball team seems poised for a big year in the spring.
Roberts and Cecconi both have committed to play ball in college. Many might think that it is a little too early to commit before their junior year (Cecconi committed to Miami as a freshman), but for them it was the right choice. Because baseball programs have a limired amount of scholarships, it is important to commit early when there are scholarships available. However, that is just one piece of the collegiate puzzle.
“I chose Florida for a variety of reasons,” Roberts said. “Florida is close to home, it’s a good school, and a good program.”
Slade has similar reasons for choosing Miami.
“Miami has a great baseball program,” Cecconi said. “Education is extremely important to me, and I believe Miami gives me a great balance of baseball and education. I also have to mention how great the city of Miami really is.”
Roberts and Cecconi have interesting insights on the recruiting process.
“The process is extremely stressful,” Roberts said. “You talk to many coaches, and I visited four schools this year trying to find the right fit. However, it is an amazing and exciting process to be part of and I’m blessed to have coach Berryhill helping me out on every step of the way.”
“I mean the recruiting process was enjoyable, but it was extremely difficult to make a life-changing decision,” Cecconi said.
Coach Berryhill has been a crucial and important figure through the lives and current baseball careers of these young men. Cecconi and Roberts both stated that Berryhill has helped them through baseball and has taught them life lessons. They expect Trinity to have one of the best programs in Central Florida this year. They agree that the facilities and the coaching staff at Trinity are top notch and are helpful to their respective games.
