01/15/2016 - Under Armour All-America Pre-Season Tournament
When we first saw Austin as a high school freshman in 2013 he showed athleticism and a feel to pitch with his fastball that sat in the upper 70s and topped out at 80 mph. The progress since then has been steady and the body and fastball have both developed quite a bit. At this event, Austin was dominant showing a repeatable delivery with a clean, low-effort release. He sat comfortably in the low 90s and topped at 94 with his heavy fastball. He was aggressive - going right after hitters and working ahead in the count. His curve and change are very promising off-speed offerings as well. Austin continues to be more impressive each time we see him and the Samford commit now has the look and stuff of a solid draft come June.
02/08/2015 - College PREP - Mobile, AL
This RHP has a ton of upside with an exciting future ahead of him. His delivery is smooth/fluid/repeatable as he works to stay on top and drive downhill. FB zips by hitters in the low 90's with late run. Breaking ball is 'nasty' with sharp/late break as he has faith to throw it in any count for strikes. He hits his spots and paints the corners. At 3B, Austin puts his athleticism on display moving fluidly right to left around the GB. He funnels to a quick exchange and fires the ball to 1B. Offensively, this righty works back into a loaded position waiting for his pitch. Barrel delivery is quick to and through the zone as he connects and hits line-drives to all parts of the field. Austin has a very bright future ahead of him in college and/or professional baseball.
10/15/2014 - Arizona Junior Fall Classic
Austin continues to show as a RHP/1B but currently projects best on the mound for the next level where he has an upside. Fastball showed a range in the upper 80's and displayed a tremendous breaking ball that will get outs at the next level. Arm action is loose, fluid, and quick working well to the plate. Command / control are tremendous as he attacks hitters, throwing strikes with all his pitches, locating well to both sides of the plate. At 1B, he displays proper footwork around the bag and is a quality receiver as he stretches out well. Hands are soft / sure and he consistently showed the ability to pick balls out of the dirt, saving throws. At the plate, he has improved his hitting abilities, now showing as outstanding tool through a balanced setup with rhythm. Hands are quick, generating plus bat speed through a level swing path. He has a strong body and strength in his swing with baseball jumping off the bat when centered as he works to stay inside the ball, displaying gap to gap power. Power numbers will continue to improve as he learns to use his lower half more efficiently. Mental makeup is a plus as he has a great attitude, is very coachable, and plays the game hard. He projects very well on the mound and will get looks from the top collegiate coaches.
02/09/2014 - College PREP - Mobile, AL
This RHP has a powerful arm that will bring success. FB jumps out of his hand and on hitters, cracking the mitt at 91 mph. He drives his lower 1/2 off of the rubber and works to get on top. Breaking ball has 12/6 shape with sharp/late break. He mixes his pitches well and keeps hitters off balance. In the OF, he takes a quick 1st step and works into position behind the fly-ball. A clean exchange and a cannon for an arm, fires the ball with carry into his target. Offensively, this RHH shows good rhythm and gets back into a loaded position. He connects and squares the ball up, driving it with pop. This RHP will turn some heads over the next couple of years (2016 grad).
01/17/2014 - Under Armour Pre-Season All-America Tournament
Franklin has length to his limbs, a strong lower half, and still more room to fill out at 6-foot-3 and 200 pounds. His fastball was 84-86, and he was able to leverage it to the bottom of the zone at times. His breaking ball also flashed depth, and has swing and miss potential as it develops more power. The change was thrown with very good feel, and had fade action in the mid 70's. He featured good mound presence along with some feel for pitching, giving him a great foundation to build on as he matures physically.
06/21/2013 - USA Baseball 17U Championships
Austin continues to show steady play in the abilities in the OF plus on the mound. He reads balls well off the bat and takes proper first steps in tracking down balls in the OF. For defensive grades to continue to improve, he needs to work on getting behind balls more to play through and increase foot quickness. At the plate, he shows an athletic setup with balance / rhythm. Hands are quick, flashing bat speed through a level swing path. He has strength in his swing with the baseball jumping off the bat when centered. On the mound, fastball shows a range of 76-78 mph. Breaking ball displays 11/5 shape with gradual break and shows potential as being a quality pitch when he stays on top. He maintains arm speed on his changeup, showing a feel for with arm side run. Command / control are a plus as throws strikes with all his pitches and changes speeds well. Stock on the mound will continue to rise as he builds more arm strength through a long toss program. He has a projectable frame and plus makeup as he is very coachable and works hard to be the best player he can be.
02/03/2013 - College PREP - Mobile, AL
Austin is a tall, lanky RHP/OF that will graduate in 2016. Currently, he projects best on the mound for the next level. Delivery is sound / repeatable allowing his arm action to work well to the plate. Arm strength is slightly above average as indicated by his top velocity of 80 mph. Fastball shows a range of 78-80 mph with arm side run. Breaking ball displays 12/6 shape with sharp break and late depth. He maintains arm speed on his changeup, showing a solid feel for with solid arm side run. Off speed pitches show as quality pitches that will get outs at the next level. Command / control are a plus as he throws strikes with all his pitches, changing speeds well. In the OF, he takes proper routes / angles in tracking down balls. For defensive grade to continue to improve, he needs to work on getting behind balls more to play through with momentum to his target. He gets rid of the baseball quickly with accuracy on his throws. At the plate, Franklin shows a balanced approach with rhythm. Hands are quick and work through a level swing path. He shows a feel for the barrel with baseball exploding off his bat when centered, mainly to the pull side. For hitting grades to continue to improve, he needs to work to keep hands inside the ball to utilize all fields and get stride foot down sooner. With 3 years to further develop, Austin has the makings to be a special type player that will catch the eyes of the collegiate coaches as he continues to improve.