As Grant Leader ’19 peers into the eyes of his opponent at bat, he reads what the batter’s next move will be. With concentrated precision he decides the best pitch would be to throw a fastball, but not just any fastball, an 87 mph fastball, the third fastest for the class of 2019 prospects in the nation. He aspires to use his terrific pitching skills to help his freshman team succeed in their upcoming season.

Additionally, Leader is ranked by Prep Baseball Reports as the number one prospect in Illinois for 2019. He has been playing baseball for the past 10 years, and for seven of those years he was a pitcher.

“You see the kids of pro-athletes following in the footsteps of their parents, and this was like me when I was a little kid,” Leader said. “My mom played tennis at the University of Minnesota and she always wanted me to play tennis too, but instead I tried t-ball and I loved it”.

With much of his free time spent throwing a variety of weighted balls to quicken his wrist and strengthen his arm, Leader has taken his game to a whole new level. He said that he plans to be able to throw a 90 mph fastball by his sophomore year.

“In the two and a half years I have known Grant, it has been incredible seeing the amount of effort he puts in,” Freshman Catcher Danny Machaj ’19 said. “He is always in the cages working on everything, from pitching to hitting.”

Leader has many goals that he is aiming for in the future. These include playing for LT’s varsity team, then for The University of Michigan or Vanderbilt University. His biggest goal of all? Making it to the Major Leagues, he said.