MLB scouts and front office personnel will be flocking to Mt. Lebanon games this spring to lay eyes on David Shields, a fantastic senior pitcher-outfielder who is projected to be an early round pick in July’s draft.
While they’re there, there’s a good chance a new player will jump on their radar, a 6-foot-4, 190-pound freshman who could be in the same shoes as Shields in a few years.
“He hit a home run in front of 50 of them the other day,” Mt. Lebanon coach Patt McCloskey said. “I’m sure that he’s doing his part to get noticed.”
On or off the field, it’s difficult not to notice Graham Keen, who does not look or play like a normal freshman. Keen has made an instant impact as a pitcher and hitter for defending WPIAL Class 6A champion Mt. Lebanon, which once again has one of the top teams in the class. As a hard-throwing right-hander who has hit 92 mph on the radar gun, Keen is one of Mt. Lebanon’s primary starters and leads the Blue Devils in wins with four (he’s 4-0 overall) and strikeouts with 29, and, as the team’s cleanup hitter, has four home runs and 15 RBIs, both team highs.
“It’s very rare at a 6A school that you get a player that’s a major contributor offensively and on the mound,” McCloskey said. “I can name two of them: David Shields, draft pick. Ian Happ, major leaguer. That’s it. I’m not saying [Keen is] going to get to that level, but that’s the type of rare air where we see a ninth grader make a significant impact. Is there room to grow? Absolutely. But he is making a significant impact at both spots. He’s a section starter and he hits in the middle of our order, and that’s very rare.”
Keen entered high school baseball with considerable hype after being ranked by Perfect Game and Prep Baseball Pennsylvania as the No. 1 freshman in the state. Perfect Game also dubbed Keen the No. 1 third baseman in the country and No. 27 player overall.
“It’s such a blessing to be ranked No. 1. And it’s such a high honor,” Keen said. “I feel like it’s a reflection of the work I’ve put in.”
Keen has lived up to the hype, though, and he once again made a sizable impact Monday in Mt. Lebanon’s big 8-6 win against visiting Hempfield that pulled the Blue Devils (11-3, 8-2) into a first-place tie with the Spartans (12-2, 8-2) in Section 2. It was Mt. Lebanon’s fifth win in a row. Keen, the team’s regular Game 1 starter, got the start and ended up lasting only three innings after giving up 3 runs, 3 hits and 5 walks to go along with 4 strikeouts. However, Keen’s first career grand slam — or should it be “Graham slam”? — in the second inning gave Mt. Lebanon a 6-1 lead, and the Blue Devils were able to hang on for the win.
“It felt so good to hit that, especially in a big series like this,” said Keen, who is hitting .297 on the season and is the team’s starting first baseman when he does not pitch.
Keen is the son of two former collegiate track athletes. His dad, David, is originally from Florida and was a distance runner at Florida State. And his mom, Tricia (Snyder) Keen, grew up in Butler and was a sprinter at Duquesne.
At Mt. Lebanon, Keen is a two-sport athlete, but his second sport isn’t basketball or even football. It’s golf. Keen said he had a lot of fun playing on Mt. Lebanon’s junior varsity golf team last fall. He played basketball in middle school, but it’s a sport that he has not played competitively that he’s still holding out hope of possibly playing down the road.
“I’ve always wanted to play football, but my mom’s never let me,” he said. “Hopefully my mom lets me play quarterback, but if she doesn’t, I guess I’ll settle for golf.”
Coincidentally, Shields was a quarterback at Mt. Lebanon before giving up football prior to last season. Shields, a Miami recruit, has gotten off to a slow start this spring as he bounces back from a bout with mononucleosis, but his leadership has shown as he has taken Keen under his wing.
“That’s the one thing that I can’t say enough about our guys is they really pay it forward,” McCloskey said. “The older guys help the younger guys. David had to play as a freshman. The older guys helped him. His brother was a senior leader. It’s a little bit easier when it’s your brother, but he knows how much he got helped as a freshman and he’s certainly helping Graham.”
Ryan powers Indiana
Indiana senior Ben Ryan will play baseball at Division I Quinnipiac, which has a mascot nicknamed “Boomer the Bobcat.” Well, business has been booming this spring for Ryan, who has used the longball to help Indiana to a 7-5 overall record and 5-2 mark in Class 4A Section 4.
Ryan entered Monday’s 2-1 loss to North Catholic (the teams will conclude their two-game series Tuesday) having homered in three consecutive games and in five of his past seven. The homers, which came over the span of 11 days, were hit against Knoch, Kiski Area, Hampton, Peters Township and Bethel Park. Ryan’s five homers this season rank among the state leaders.
The display of power is nothing new for Ryan, a four-year starter who has hit 15 home runs in his career. He hit three as a freshman, four as a sophomore and three as a junior. But Ryan’s offensive talents go beyond home runs. He’s an outstanding hitter overall, as he is batting .469 this season and has a career average of .422. Ryan also has a team-high 18 RBIs this season.
As for the homers in three consecutive games, Ryan was far away from the national record. According to the National Federation of State High School Associations, the record is held by Ethan Bennett of Farragut, Tenn., who homered in 10 consecutive games in 2010.
Eden Christian’s Hull streaking
Speaking of streaks, Eden Christian’s Brady Hull has been on a season-long RBI streak. Hull knocked in four runs in his team’s 15-0 win against Monessen on Monday, giving him at least one RBI in all 13 games this season.
Hull, a sophomore first baseman, has 27 RBIs overall, which puts him among the state leaders. Hull has been especially good bringing runners home recently, having driven in 14 runs in the Warriors’ past five games.
It has been a big season for both Hull and Eden Christian (10-3, 9-0), which sits in first place in Class 1A Section 3. In addition to leading the team in RBIs, Hull leads the Warriors in batting (.537), hits (22), runs (24), doubles (9) and home runs (3). As a freshman, Hull batted .588 and had 23 RBIs.
Brad is a sports writer at the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, but he's currently on strike. Email him at beverett@unionprogress.com.