By MIKE COURSON
Great Bend Post
One goal of The Best in the U.S. Showcase is to put America's best young baseball players in front of recruiters. Great Bend High School sophomore JJ Grove was one of 120 of those young players to show off their stuff Oct. 14-15 at LoanDepot Park, home of the Miami Marlins. Grove earned his way to Florida through competitions closer to home.
"There was a state showcase at K-State," he said. "The best players move on from there, then there was a regional showcase in Missouri. The top eight from that showcase go to nationals."
Players are graded on things like sprint times and throwing and hitting velocities. They also play a full game so their talents can be observed in a game setting. Grove peaked by hitting a baseball 87 miles an hour, and his 60-yard dash in Florida, clocked at 6.82 seconds, was among the 10 fastest among the players. Grove was thrilled by his first chance to play in a Major League stadium.
"We got to play a whole game," he said. "There was Home Run Derby, and I was part of the Fastest Man Competition."
The national showcase featured players from coast to coast, as well as players from Canada and Puerto Rico. Grove was one of just 10 sophomores invited with all the other players being upper-classmen. The players competed in front of college and professional scouts.
Grove played mostly shortstop and left field in Florida, with a little bit of right field thrown in. As a freshman for Great Bend last year, Grove played in all 23 games to help the team qualify for state. CLICK HERE to view Grove's profile.