Canucks shine in Jupiter: Andersen, Dupuis, Jacob, Marshall, Nolet, Sternberg

By Bob Elliott

Canadian Baseball Network

There were 56 Canadians competing at the 128-team Perfect Game World Wood Bat championships in Jupiter, Fla.

A few caught the eye of evaluators ...

RHP Calum Andersen, Calgary, Alta. Brewers/Langley Blaze Scout (2027) Vauxhall Academy.

Andersen showed advanced present stuff and pitchability in a strong outing. The delivery is athletic and repeatable from a projectable frame, with room remaining for strength gains that should help the fastball play more consistently in the mid-90s and give the breaking balls even sharper bite. Andersen attacks with a live fastball that touched 96 mph a couple times and plays up in the zone, paired with a sharp, horizontal slider at 85 mph that tunnels well and generates swings and misses.. He mixed in a late-breaking 12-6 curve ball at 78 mph that induced weak contact and flashed a change up with good arm-speed deception that mirrored the fastball delivery. The combination of velocity, secondary feel, and sequencing allowed him to control the zone without relying on pure power. Committed to Oklahoma. Struck out eight while allowing two hits and one walk.

_ Scott Rankin, Perfect Game

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Calum Andersen, RHP

BA Star Rating: 3 stars

Commitment: Oklahoma

Andersen blends present stuff with considerable physical projection. The Oklahoma commit stands 6-foot-5, 195 pounds with a long, lean starter’s frame and ample room to add strength. Still just 16 years old and set to be 17 on draft day, Andersen is young for the 2027 class and has already made significant strides over the past year, including a notable velocity jump.

Andersen’s fastball sat 92-94 mph and touched 96 in Jupiter, showing consistent run-and-carry shape that allows it to play effectively throughout the strike zone. The pitch could reach plus quality as he adds velocity. His low-to-mid-80s slider features above-average spin and sweeping horizontal break, maintaining consistent shape throughout his outing and serving as his primary finishing pitch. A high-70s curveball offers more vertical depth and finish, giving him two distinct breaking-ball looks. Andersen also throws a firm, upper-80s changeup with fade, maintaining his arm speed and generating enough movement separation from his fastball to give the pitch a different look.

Andersen has an unconventional setup from the windup, turning his lead foot inward until his toes nearly point toward shortstop before moving into a high leg lift. He works through a short, quick arm action that stays behind his body and delivers from a three-quarters slot. An efficient mover with minimal effort in his operation, Andersen gets down the mound well and stays mostly direct despite a slightly closed-off, crossfire element. He repeats his delivery consistently, and his combination of arm speed, mechanical efficiency and remaining physical projection makes mid-to-upper-90s velocity a reasonable long-term possibility.

Andersen shows encouraging feel for his arsenal, attacking hitters on either side of the plate with all four pitches. He threw multiple right-on-right changeups in Jupiter and landed his slider for strikes against both lefthanded and righthanded hitters. His fastball and slider generated seven whiffs apiece during a five-inning, eight-strikeout outing. He threw nearly 70% of his pitches for strikes, demonstrating solid present control with room to refine his command.

Andersen remains a projection-dependent prospect who must continue adding strength while improving his precision, a process that could challenge his present delivery consistency as he incorporates more power. His pitch mix, athleticism and repeatability provide a promising foundation for a professional starter, though realizing that ceiling will require continued physical maturation and refinement. He has a chance to develop into one of Canada’s top exports in the 2027 draft.

_ Jacob Rudner, Baseball America.

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RHP Caleb Dupuis (2027, Georgetown, Ont.) Canadian Premier, FieldHouse Pirates.

He turned in a dominant start to open up pool play action, tossing four shutout innings with seven punch outs and one base runner allowed. The 6-foot right-hander worked his fastball in all four quadrants of the strike zone, topping it out at 91 mph with heavy arm-side run and sink. He mixed in a tight breaking ball with tilt and late actions to it, successfully mistiming opposing hitters.

_ Anthony Gambardella, Perfect Game.

Jalen Jacob (2027, Maple, Ont.) Canadian Premier, Ontario Blue Jays.

One of the top power hitters in the 2027 class had a multi-hit game today that included his first home run of the tournament. A towering home run down the right field line that easily cleared the fence. One of the most intimidating physical presences while in the box at this tournament. Shows a disciplined approach and has been regularly getting to his power at events this month. Committed to Kansas State.

_ Blaine Peterson, Perfect Game.

Lucien Kovalcik (2028, Burlington, Ont.) Canadian Premier. FieldHouse Pirates.

He was intriguing in his start on the mound. The 6-4, 200-pound righty showed a lot of moxie after striking out three-consecutive batters at one point then hanging a slider to give up a two-run homer, he stayed on the attack and punched out the next hitter to end the threat. Kovalcik is long limbed with a loose delivery, loading the arm quickly before accelerating through a classic 3/4 arm angle. There is life to his fastball that lived in the upper-80s and reached the low-90s often. He is a high-level strike thrower and except for the one mistake, his low-80s slider was all but unhittable. There is still plenty of projection left for Kovalcik’s frame and delivery, so he has the look of a true starter at the nest level. The uncommitted arm did get touched up by soft contact at the end, finishing his outing with 2 2/3 innings, allowing three earned runs, no walks and he punched out five batters all told.

_ Craig Cozart, Perfect Game.

RHP Richard Marshall (2028, Whitby, Ont.) Florida Burn, Vauxhall Academy, Ontario Yankees.

He put together an impressive start striking out six batters in four innings while allowing one hit and a walk. The 6-foot-2 right-hander worked his fastball on the edges of the strike zone, topping it out at 92 mph while sitting comfortably in the 90-91 mph range. He spun a late-breaking curve ball with tight spin to it, inducing multiple swings and misses from opposing hitters.

_ Anthony Gambardella, Perfect Game.

OF William Nolet (2027, Saint-Gilles, Que.). Canadian Premier, ABC.

Reached base in all three plate appearances on Thursday, driving in five runs on an early RBI triple as well as a loud pull-side grand slam. The 6-foot-3 right-handed batter swings one of the more consistent barrels up north with budding power to all parts of the field that is starting to show up more often.

_ Anthony Gambardella, Perfect Game.

LHP Ethan Reason (2027, Stouffville, Ont.) Canadian Premier, Toronto Mets.

Anytime you have a 6-foot-6 southpaw that runs it up to 94 in Jupiter, there will be a large contingent in attendance. Reason lived up to the billing. Executed well throughout 2 no-hit frames. Spins the overhand breaker with some bite at times and is more than capable of missing both sides of the bat. Tons of room to fill and polish on the mound.

_ Troy Sutherland, Perfect Game.

LHP Johann Sternberg (2027, Toronto, Ont.) Canadian Premier, Ontario Blue Jays.

Fantastic work in relief, attacked hitter with 86-89 throughout the look and has excellent feel to spin the overhand breaker for strikes in any count. The arsenal produced more whiffs than expected, and it was obvious that he felt opposing bats were not going to square him up even on the rare occasion that he was behind in the count. Bullish about the projection even with the present sturdiness of the build. Just scratching the surface of his potential, but his acumen on the mound is already well ahead of the game.

_ Troy Sutherland, Perfect Game.