Big-time events need big-time players.
Welcome aboard, C.J. Wall.
One of the top 2027 grad-catchers in the country, the Austrian-born backstop is set to make his signature event debut with the New Balance Baseball Future Stars Series at the Main Event, set for CHS Field and Target Field, respectively the Triple-A and big league homes for the Minnesota Twins, between September 11-13.
It had been some time since we’d seen him — he’d made two prior FSS appearances in 2023 at a Central Florida Regional Combine, and then a TNXL Academy and Canes Scout Day — but he returned with a ton of fanfare at a Georgia Premier Academy Scout Day in May, and then our National Combine this summer in Houston. It was at the latter where he truly cemented his spot in Minnesota with authority; Wall’s scouting reports from the summer earned some numbers rarely seen in our system.
We’re excited to see him again, he’s excited to see us again.
But how did it all start?
Wall would stay up late with his dad in Europe before they moved to the States just before he turned five years old, watching baseball and gaining an appreciation for the game. That turned into starting his playing journey…but was it something he’s essentially always been good at?
“For the most part, yeah,” he said. “I started noticing that I always played on good teams, and then I was 13 or 14, and this is before the rules change, one of my coaches would text me and it would be like, ‘Hey, this is Coach Lafferty from Ole Miss, he’s expecting a call at eight,’ or stuff of that sort, and I realized this was really getting real. It excited me. So I just kept working. I always wanted to get better, I always wanted to prove that I belonged.”
The University of Arkansas agrees. A highly coveted player in the class given his athleticism, skill behind the plate and a well above average bat from the left side, Wall announced his commitment to the Razorbacks early last fall after they showed significant interest. It’s a place that Wall says he can’t wait to get to if he does end up making it to campus — after all, he’s a name to watch for the upcoming 2027 MLB Draft — praising their facilities and the coaching staff he’s been in touch with from the start of his recruitment process until now. It’s not hard to see what they liked. While it’s a strong overall package both on and off the field, it’s the bat that inarguably stood out in Houston at the National Combine, with multiple oppo hits, including a hard double off the wall during our day at the University of Houston.
The development of the hit tool is obvious. Where it all originated from may not be.
“It comes from my dad,” Wall said. “He and I, we watched a lot of baseball, and we would go through (guys like) Bryce Harper or just any left-handed hitter and I’d go hit BP when I was five, six, seven, eight years old and I’d do anything I can and imitate anybody. I’d just tell him, ‘Hey, I’m going to do this’ before this swing and he told me one day, ‘It doesn’t matter what you do, you just have to be able to hit a fastball over the shortstop’s head, and you have to be able to use the other part of the field. I don’t care what you do in the box.’ And I asked him why does that matter, and he said that when everybody gets older, people are going to start throwing breaking balls and start throwing changeups, so if you can use that other half of the field and if you can hit a fastball over there, then you’ll catch something out in front and it’ll start going. I worked on it and worked on it, and then he started pitching to me when I was nine, ten, eleven years old; he’d back the screen up and start throwing live BP, and he’d throw fastballs, breaking balls, changeups, anything he could. I guess that all honed in everything at that age, so I got really lucky with that.”
Approach, pitch recognition, it was all there at an early age. It shows now. With that approach he learned then, he’s able to stay back more, and all the lessons he learned back then are essentially second nature now.
We still needed to see him again, though. Collin Thomas, who will be the captain of his Team Navy squad at the Main Event, was among the players at Georgia Premier Academy he’d known for a while. Thomas — who lauded Wall’s ability in this story, saying “I love his drive. He always wants to win, so I know I’m going to get a really good competitor and a leader. He loves to lead. You don’t have to be a premium position to lead, you can really be any position, but as a catcher I think he takes pride in being behind the plate and really controls the game…he can hit to all parts of the field” — started speaking with Wall about his experiences with the Future Stars Series, as did Gene Reynolds, who oversees GPA. It was time to return.
Wall profiled “as an everyday catcher in the (big leagues) with impact potential” according to our scouts at the Georgia Premier Scout Day in May, and was a no-brainer to invite to the summer after meeting with CEO Jeremy Booth and the staff, with Wall saying the event was even better than he expected. As you can imagine, the left-handed hitting standout is in popular demand on the amateur circuit, and has made appearances essentially everywhere you can think of, including a recent invite to USA Baseball’s 18U Training Camp. Working with Booth, a former pro catcher himself, has helped with his development behind the plate, as has Booth’s trademark direct nature in helping him on his path to the next levels.
“Really, just talking to Jeremy, he did it for a long time at a high level, so being able to talk with him about it and also knowing that he’s just going to tell me the truth,” Wall said. “He’ll tell me, ‘Hey, C.J., you didn’t do this, this or this at well the last inning,’ so him helping with that and being able to talk to him about really anything baseball or being able to go up to the staff and be like, ‘Hey, what do you think about this,’ and being able to learn from those incredible guys.”
His next opportunity to do so comes in several weeks at Target Field, where he’ll be one of the bigger name talents to keep an eye on at our tenth annual Main Event.
“I’m just really excited to see what it’s going to be like,” Wall said. “To play in Minnesota and to be in the stadium, I’ve never been to it or even been around it, so I just can’t wait to see what it brings.”
About New Balance Future Stars Series
New Balance Future Stars Series is a global platform for amateur baseball development and scouting, powered by a commitment to impact, integrity, and player-focused innovation. Its alumni can be found throughout professional baseball, and its events and partnerships have reshaped how talent is identified, nurtured, and celebrated.
Connect with New Balance Future Stars Series by visiting our website, www.futurestarsseries.com, by visiting our YouTube page, and by checking out the social media channels listed below.
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Since 2003, he has six World Series and has worked high-profile events ranging from the MLB All-Star Game to the World Baseball Classic. In addition to his role working for the Future Stars Series that he's held since 2017, Ashmore currently serves as the beat writer of the Double-A New York Yankees affiliate, the Somerset Patriots, as well as national hockey writer and New York Jets game day beat reporter for The Trentonian.
A regular contributor to Baseball America, Ashmore has worked eight Super Bowls, 13 Stanley Cup Finals, the 4 Nations Face-Off, the NBA Playoffs, the NCAA D1 Men's Basketball Tournament, College Football Playoff National Championship Game, Frozen Four, Daytona 500, major UFC events and much more as he approaches 3,300 games covered in his career.
An avid trading card enthusiast and motorsports fan, he lives with his wife, Sarah, their son, future No. 1 overall draft pick in 2042, William, their beloved dog, Bailey, and occasionally well-behaved cat, Smokey.
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