Blade
Tidwell

2022 MLB Draft: Standing 6-foot-4, 210-pounds, Tidwell is an athletic bodied right-hander with wide shoulders and a workhorse frame. His fastball tops out in the upper-90s with a lot of shoulder effort in his delivery. He attacks the strike zone from a high three-quarter release point, showing more control than command for the most part. There isn't much life on his heater and he will need to rely on refined command to miss barrels with his No. 1. At his best Tidwell has thrown a plus hard curveball in the low-80s, finishing with late action and quick depth at the plate. He's also shown the ability to manipulate the breaker into a more slider-shaped chase pitch of the same velocity, as well as changing the shape vs left or right-handed hitters. Tidwell will also flash a mid-80s changeup. It's always been his third pitch and continues to be a work in progress. Regardless of his missed time earlier in the season due to a preseason shoulder injury, the sophomore who is draft-eligible by age, will still be considered in the first half of Day One this July. The team that selects Tidwell in this area will fully believe he's a starter at the ML level, while other teams may see his future in the backend of an arm barn.

Standing 6-foot-4, 210-pounds, Tidwell is an athletic bodied right-hander with wide shoulders and a workhorse frame. His fastball topped out at 97.5 mph in his 30-pitch relief appearance. He attacked the strike zone from a high three-quarter release point, owning the glove side corner with plus command. All three of his punchouts were thrown to this location with two looking and one swinging. However, there wasn't much life on his heater (-15.8 Vertical Break, 7.6 Horizontal Break, -4.9 Vertical Attack Angle) during this look, or any of my previous looks. He will need to rely on this type of command to miss barrels with his No. 1. At his best Tidwell has thrown a plus hard curveball in the low-80s, finishing with late action and quick depth at the plate. He's also shown the ability to manipulate the breaker into a more slider-shaped chase pitch of the same velocity, as well as changing the shape vs left or right-handed hitters. But, he did not do that on this latest look. His breaking ball spun tight (max 2772 rpm), but was rusty with the command of it. Of the seven he threw, just two were strikes. Tidwell also flashed one 84 mph changeup that missed down in the zone. It’s always been his third pitch and continues to be a work in progress. In the past he’s thrown one at 82-83 mph with spin rates in the 1100-1200 rpm range due to big hands and a wide grip, but the single changeup he threw on this look spun in the 1700s. Regardless of his missed time earlier in the season due to a preseason shoulder injury, the sophomore who is draft-eligible by age, will still be considered for Day One of the 2022 draft. The team that selects Tidwell in this area will fully believe he’s a starter at the ML level, while other teams may see his future in the backend of an arm barn.

The 6-foot-4, 200-pound right hander looked tired and was knocked around a bit during his one inning, 35-pitch appearance in Bluefield, W.V. Able to land just his fastball for strikes, he allowed two runs on two hits and two walks. His 93-96 mph heater lacked command and his usually reliable low-80s slider spun tight, but missed the zone frequently. He also tried to work in a low-80s changeup with spin rates in the 1800s.

Standing 6-foot-3, 195-pounds, Tidwell is an athletic bodied right-hander with wide shoulders and a potential workhorse type of power arm. His fastball topped at 95 mph on this look, but there is much more in the tank. He has a short stride, upright delivery and uses his lower half very little. He attacked the strike zone with good down plane from a high three-quarter release point and flashed a plus, hard curveball at 80-82 mph with 11/5 rotation, finishing with late action and quick depth at the plate. Tidwell also showed the ability to manipulate the breaker into a more slider-shaped chase pitch at the same velocity, as well as changing the shape vs left or right-handed hitters. As a third pitch, he mixed in a very low-spin changeup at 82-83 mph with spin rates in the 1100-1200 rpm range due to big hands and a wide grip. Potential 1st round prospect for the 2023 draft.