01/14/2022 - 2022 Baseball Factory Rookie Pre-Season All-America Tournament
Declan is a 2025 catcher out of Frisco, TX who continues to show improvements in his baseball abilities and did so at the Preseason All American Rookie event. Behind the plate, feet are active as he gains ground and works through a clean/transfer exchange as he gets rid of the baseball quickly. Pop times have improved as he threw his lowest pop time to date at 2.22. Hands are firm as he lets the ball travel and tracks well, sticking in the zone. He utilizes his body through the blocking process but needs to work to get body down sooner. At the plate, he shows a crouched setup. Hands are quick and work through an aggressive swing path. He makes consistent contact through a line drive approach with power showing best to the pull side. Power will increase as he utilizes his lower half more efficiently.
07/22/2021 - Baseball Factory National World Series at Pirate City - Session 2 (MS)
Declan is a 2025 C/2B prospect who worked on his skills during the National World Series at Pirate City. Behind the dish, shows ability to center the baseball and consistently receive baseball. Tries to work thumb under baseball. Throws from a high 3/4 arm slot with an arm velocity of 71mph and a best pop time of 2.51 seconds. A right-handed hitter, starts with an athletic and even stance. Good hip rotation, with a small/simple hand load, and has a fast bat through the hitting zone. Sprayed balls to all fields with a bat exit velocity up to 77mph during BP. Had a single up the middle in live game action. With continued growth and development, we foresee him having a bright future on the baseball diamond.
Academic All-American Tournament (MS)
Declan continued to show improvements in his baseball abilities at the Academic All-American tournament. He did show on the mound for the first time. Foot speed has improved as he ran his best 60 time to date. Behind the plate he shows a squared setup and tracks the ball well with a soft glove. He utilizes his body well through the blocking process, centering balls well out front. Pop times showed in the 2.55 range. At the plate, he shows a squared setup. Hands are quick and work through a level swing path. He stays inside the ball, utilizing all fields through a line drive approach. On the mound, fastball showed a range of 65-67 mph. Breaking ball displays 11/5 shape with gradual break. Declan has a bright future ahead of himself and we look forward to seeing what it holds.
01/08/2021 - 2021 Baseball Factory Pre-Season Prospects Tournament (MS)
Declan continues to show as a prospect with improvements in his baseball abilities. At the plate, hitting/power potential have improved through a squared setup. Hands are quick and work through an aggressive approach. He stays inside the ball, utilizing all fields through a line drive approach. Behind the plate he shows a squared setup and tracks the ball well with a soft glove. He utilizes his body well through the blocking process, centering balls well out front. Pop times showed in the 2.79 range with accuracy/carry on his throws. Declan is a talented 2025 prospect with a bright future ahead of himself.
12/27/2020 - Baseball Factory East Coast Winter Classic
Declan continues to show improvements in his baseball abilities and has a promising future on the diamond. He is a leader behind the dish and will take command in games. Defensively, he shows a squared setup and tracks the ball well into a soft mitt. He utilizes his body well through the blocking process, centering balls well out front. Pop times have improved as he threw his lowest time to date at 2.47. Times will continue to drop as he builds more arm strength through a long toss program and works to get rid of the ball quicker. Mental makeup is a plus as he is very coachable and has great knowledge of the game. At the plate, hitting/power potential has improved through an athletic setup. He has fluid rhythm while getting good hand separation. Hands are quick and work through a level swing path. He stays inside the ball, utilizing all fields with gap-to-gap pop. With 4 1/2 years to further develop, Declan has a high ceiling with time and room to progress his game.
11/20/2020 - Texas Regional Offensive Skills and Pitching/Catching Combined Weekend
Declan is a C prospect who worked hard on his skills during the Texas Regional Skills weekend. Behind the plate, Declan presents a good target to the pitcher and receives with a quiet glove. He gains ground well on his throws, keeping them accurate to the 2B bag. He tucks his chin when blocking and keeps dirt balls in front of him. Making a cleaner exchange can help Declan throw out more baserunners. At the plate, this RHH sets up in a tall stance and takes a controlled stride. He is fluid to load and works to barrel up the baseball, driving the ball from gap to gap. Declan can produce more pop off the barrel by engaging his lower half more. Overall, Declan is a solid prospect who has the time and potential to further build upon his skills on the field.
10/11/2020 - All-In Membership - Frisco (DFW), TX
Declan is a young (2025 grad) R/R, 2-way player as a C/2B. Behind the dish, he sits in well with athletic/quiet actions and presents a low target. He tracks pitches into a soft mitt and sticks them well. He works hard laterally to body up pitches in the dirt, working to center them off of his chest. Transfer is clean as he works in-line toward 2B on his throws - pop times at 2.64. Times will continue to drop as he quickens his exchange and gains more arm strength (long toss). At 2B, he comes to get the GB and hustles into a square fielding position. He gathers well and makes accurate DP feeds and throws to 1B. Continuing to develop his footwork & agility will help to increase lateral range in the INF. With the bat, this righty shows an athletic stance with centered balance. He lets the ball travel into the hitting zone, squares the ball up and looks to drive the middle of the field. More hand separation on his load along with more lower 1/2 drive will help to increase pop off of the barrel. Despain has a solid all-around skill-set with still a ton of time to progress and physically mature (get stronger).