Nick
Ernst

8/3/14
The 6-3, 190 pound athletic right hander was really impressive with his ability to throw three pitches for strikes.  His fastball from a high ¾ slot sat 87-88 with good downhill plane, while he would drop a 73-75 mph curveball with a 11/5 break for a strike.  Nick would also use his 80-81 mph change up effectively with good arm speed. He really pounded the zone striking out six without walking a batter.  

6/2/14
6-foot-3, 195-pound prospect. Throws through high 3/4 arm slot with quick arm speed. Strong mound presence. Regular effort to his delivery. Fastball sat 83-86 mph with late ASR. Also mixed in a 70-72 mph breaking ball with 11/5 sharp action. Changeup sits 76-77 mph near fastball arm speed with straight action. Overall smooth rhythm with good direction.

7/29/13
6-foot-1, 190-pound prospect with solid frame. Throws with short arm action through ¾ arm slot in the infield. Reached top velocity of 75 mph. Threw well from all angles. Behind the plate, he uses similar arm action. Top velocity of 73 mph from the crouch. Needs to continue to improve mechanics to assist with accuracy. Pop times between 2.11 to 2.19. At the plate, he starts from an open stance. Tends to bar in his load. Short stride. Created solid contact. Registered top exit velocity of 80 mph off the tee. Ran a 4.51 out of the box. On the mound, he sat 79-82 mph. Throws with average arm speed through high ¾ arm slot. Regular effort to his delivery. Relies on a 69-71 mph changeup thrown near fastball arm speed. Good fade down in the zone.

2/10/13
6-foot, 175-pound prospect. Uses short arm action through high ¾ slot. Transfer has some length to it due to windup. Will improve with improvement in his footwork. Reached top velocity of 76 mph. Behin the plate, he shows a quick transfer and short arm action. Reached a top velocity of 71 mph from the crouch and a top pop time of 2.07. At the plate, he starts from a slightly open stance. Takes a medium size stride. Shows good bat control and solid, line drive production.

2/22/18 -Shut down a PAC-12 lineup for six strong innings, pounding the zone with 91-93 mph fastballs that showed some riding life, generating swings and misses, especially when up in the zone. The arm action was clean and relatively short, getting on top of the baseball quickly on the back side and did a good job repeating his delivery. Threw lots of strikes, but showed more control than command, challenging hitters with hard stuff. Showed two different breaking balls. Early in the game threw a couple 82-85 mph sliders with big break out of the zone which he quickly shelved in favor of a rolling 76-78 mph curveball that was more of a get me over pitch. Competed hard and was very under control on the mound, never really getting in trouble to the tune of 6 IP, 4 H, 1 ER, 0 BB, 6 K. The below average secondary stuff and the lack of ability to sink his fastball likely makes him a reliever at the next level, but he definitely established himself as one to watch throughout the spring.