In 18 seasons of coaching baseball at Coon Rapids, Jerry Coe never has released a freshman into the wilds of varsity competition.

Until now.

Logan Shore, 15, boasts uncommon credentials for his age. He is a righthanded pitcher who measures 6-1, 180 pounds and throws fastballs consistently clocked in excess of 80 miles per hour. A handful of Division I college programs and the Chicago White Sox already have been in touch.

Expectations are high for Shore, a player with "good projectability," according to associate Chicago White Sox scout Adam Barta. The key to Shore's success? He remains keenly self-aware of what really matters. He's widely considered a good player and a better person. As a pitcher, he values control over velocity. And while many people tell Shore he is good, he believes he can work to get better.

"He's a 15-year-old kid with a 22-year-old's learning ability," said Barta, who also trains Shore and other players at Minnesota Baseball Academy.

In Shore's pitching debut last Friday, he helped the Cardinals to a 6-5 victory in eight innings against Champlin Park. He worked five innings, allowed four runs (two earned) and posted one walk and one strikeout. Throwing mostly fastballs, Shore said 69 percent of his 81 pitches were strikes. He re-entered the game in the bottom of the eighth inning, drew a walk and later scored the game-winning run.

"I was a little nervous coming in but I felt good," Shore said.

It was a moment Shore worked toward for much of his life. His father, Lance, often came home from work to find young Logan waiting on him to play catch. A few years ago, Lance built a batting cage next to the house; Shore takes cuts almost daily.

Years of work put Shore ahead of the curve. He plays summer ball with the Minnesota Blizzard regional select team. Barta said Shore held his own pitching in games last summer against seniors bound for Division I programs.