Daniel Corrigan | May 30th, 2019
Nick Lodolo, LHP TCU
Height: 6’6
Weight: 180 LBS
Bats: Left
Throws: Left
College Stats:
MLB Pipeline Grade:
As we can see from the above stats, Lodolo does not have a pitch that separates from the others. Lodolo has a long, slender frame which helps him put more on his fastball. As we can see, Lodolo is a strikeout pitcher, punching-out 125 batters in 98.0 IP.
Background:
Lodolo was born in La Verne, California on February 5th, 1998 to parents Tom and Dana. As a senior at Damien high school in his hometown of La Verne, he recorded an 8-2 record with a 1.97 ERA. As I mentioned before, Lodolo is a strikeout pitcher. In his senior year of high school, Lodolo struck out 83 batters in only 65 IP. After his senior year of high school, Lodolo was selected by the Pittsburgh Pirates with the 41st overall pick in the 2016 draft. He decided not to sign with the Pirates, and instead play college ball at TCU.
During his time at TCU, Lodolo earned:
· 2018 2nd-team All-Big 12
· 2018 2nd-team Academic All-Big 12
· 2017 Baseball America second-team Freshman All-American
· 2017 Collegiate Baseball Freshman All-American
· 2017 Second-team All-Big 12 Conference
· 2017 Big 12 Academic All-Rookie Team
· 2017 Big 12 All-Freshman team
Strengths:
As I have said earlier, Lodolo is a strikeout pitcher. With a fastball in the mid-90s (96) Lodolo has the power behind his go-to pitch. Coming into TCU, he had some concern about his control but was able to clean it up as he only walked 77 batters in 253.2 IP for his career. Lodolo’s breaking ball has some serious potential if he can clean up the command. Which is a great compliment to his above-average fastball. While he does have some gas behind his fastball, it’s not enough to make your eyes pop. With great movement on his breaking balls, he has the potential to fool a lot of batters.
Weaknesses:
As I said earlier, he is still working on his control. This will be fixed with reps in minor league ball but is a definite red flag. A lot of scouts have concerns if he can be a number one or two in the rotation. If Lodolo had better control of his breaking pitches and showed more improvement year-to-year at TCU, he could’ve been a top-five pick in the draft.
Overview:
I can see Lodolo being a lot like Trevor Bauer. Not with his frame, but with the style of pitching. Bauer has always been a guy with sometimes wild control and great strikeout material. I would like to see Lodolo add more pitches to his arsenal. He will most likely learn more about throwing supplementary pitches as he progresses through the ranks. But for now, he has all the talent to be a number one pick, but still is a work in progress.
Draft Prediction:
Round 1 Pick 13: Minnesota Twins
A lot of people have Lodolo going at seven to the Reds. I think the Reds would be better off going with an RHP. The Twins are set to become the best team in baseball. With a great farm and young team, Lodolo could be a guy who reaches the Twins during the latter-end of their championship window.
Check out our other Draft Previews:
Andrew Vaughn | Will Wilson | Jackson Rutledge | Hunter Bishop | JJ Bleday | Kameron Misner | Logan Davidson| Seth Johnson | Bobby Witt Jr. | Josh Jung|Adley Rutschman |Daniel Espino
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Main Credit Image:
https://gofrogs.com/roster.aspx?rp_id=5173
