| Player: TJ Nichols |
| School: Arizona Position(s): RHP |
| Height: 6’5″ Weight: 190 lbs. Bats: Right Throws: Right |
| Pitches: Fastball: 95-97, Has some run and a rising look. Plus pitch upside but trouble with command has it play more average. Slider: 85-87, Very inconsistent shape. Has some offerings with decent two-plane break but not big. Late sharpness makes it effective when on. Hangs too often. Change: mid-80s, At best has real sink and fade, inconsistent |
Delivery/Mechanics: Decent leg drive, lower 3/4 slot. Some short arm back but plenty of extension in delivery. Can rush delivery and landing foot gets out of sync with arm. Real command concerns. Overthrows too often and has some late effort. https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js |
| Other: ERA has increased each season, but walk rate has decreased. Control over command as catches too much of the plate too often. |
| Summary: Nichols opened the season by out-dueling Chase Dollander, but has struggled since, now sitting with a 7.13 ERA and just 4 earned runs shy of his freshman season, and in 25 fewer innings. Fastball is his best pitch and can be a true plus offering at times, but it catches far too much of the plate and gets very hittable at times. Slider has been his best swing and miss offering but there is a ton of inconsistency in the shape and needs a lot of work before it can even be called an average offering. The change is my favorite of his secondary but it is also far too inconsistent. With the arm action, late effort, and command questions, Nichols is probably best suited in a bullpen long term, but there is still number four starter upside. |
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