Rank History
| Year | Team | Position | Team Rank | OFP |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | SD | RHP | 24 | 40 |
Grades Update: Mar 2021
| OFP | Role | FB | CB | SL | CH | Cnt/Cmd |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 40 | 40 | 45 | 45 | 40 | 50 | 55/45 |
Mar 2021 Report
Evaluator: Trevor Hooth
Age: 25 yr
Height: 6-4
Weight: 220 lbs
Hits/Throws: R/R
Acquired: 2015 Round 3
RuleV: Eligible
Physical Description: High waisted. Long limbs all around. He's at physical maturity with his frame.
Delivery & Mechanics: Mechanics are very low effort. High 3/4 delivery. Windup starts with Nix facing third base, hands belt high. Hands raise up to chest in sync with his leg as he reaches the balance point. Back leg has a slight bend as he extends out, shoulders off kilter with the glove shoulder higher than the throwing shoulder during this process. Stays tall through delivery and follow through.
Fastball: 91-93. T95. Slight armside run. Pitch creates plenty of grounders no matter where it is in the zone. Can have trouble spotting it down, though it plays well enough up in the zone where that doesn't hurt him. If it missed more bats, it could jump as high as a full grade, but as is it is a fringe average offering. Grade: 45
Curveball: 76-77. Tight 12-6 break. The break looked much tighter than what he showed during his MLB debut in 2018. It became an offering he felt comfortable going to in two strike situations. It still doesn't create many whiffs because he likes to work up with all his pitches. However, low in the zone it's a weapon. Grade: 45
Slider: 82-83. When thrown well there's more gyro than sweep. Either way, it's not a pitch that gets used often. More of a change of pace offering. It's not an offering that fools many hitters, but he also struggles to throw it for a strike. Grade: 40
Changeup: 80-81. Lots of armside fade. This was his out pitch in the majors for a good reason. Between the movement and this deception, this has been the best weapon Nix has. He locates this the best of his pitches, but even misses can generate whiffs or weak ground ball contact. Grade: 50
Control and Command: Nix doesn't walk many batters and all four of his pitches are generally around the zone. His control is above average. While the walk numbers are low, the command is not as you'd expect. He has trouble getting his pitches to the lower half of the zone. Because of that his arsenal can miss right over the middle more often than he'd like and he becomes hittable. Even though he works up, which itself is not a bad thing, he still is able to create plenty of groundballs. Control: 55 | Command: 45
Overall: Nix has seen the majors, but has also seen his share of injury concerns. Since being drafted in 2015 he's only eclipsed the 100 inning mark once, when he threw 105 innings in 2016. He controls his 4-pitch arsenal well, and has seen improvements to it since his time in the majors in 2018. He works up in the zone with all of his pitches, and it works for him to create a lot of grounders. He does have a tendency to miss in locations that can hurt him. He's got the repertoire and build to be in the rotation, but a stacked Padres rotation and farm means he might need to move to the bullpen.
OFP: 40
Role: 40 - Spot Starter or Long Reliever
Risk: High
