Nick Regilio Stats & Scouting Report

IP	37
ERA	5.351
WHIP	1.73
BB/9	5.351
SO/9	6.324

Full name Nicholas D. Regilio
Born 09/04/1978 in Miami, FL
Profile Ht.: 6'2" / Wt.: 205 / Bats: R / Throws: R
School Jacksonville University
Debut 07/09/2004
Drafted in the 2nd round (72nd overall) by the Texas Rangers in 1999 (signed for $510,000).

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Jacksonville, which finished second to Florida Atlantic in the Trans America Athletic Conference, may have the league's two best prospects in RHPs Nick Regilio and Scott Porter. The 6-foot-3, 195-pound Regilio, who missed several weeks this spring to have his tonsils removed, has a loose arm with an easy, three-quarters arm slot and tops out at 93 mph.

Top Rankings

Organization Prospect Rankings

Most pitchers with Regilio's age and medical history don't make prospect lists, but his resilience has impressed the Rangers. They believe his combination of velocity and movement can help their major league staff in 2005. Regilio has overcome injuries each of the last three years and capped his comeback with a brief, unsuccessful big league stint last season. He had biceps tendinitis in 2002 and rotator-cuff surgery in 2003, then had another operation to remove scar tissue that was irritating a nerve in his right shoulder last August. Texas was pleased that he returned and looked strong in the Arizona Fall League. Regilio's top pitch is a sinker that he threw at 88-93 mph in Triple-A and pushed to the mid-90s while working shorter stints in the AFL. There's not a whole lot of finesse to him, as his secondary pitches are both relatively hard: an average slider and a changeup with fade. All of his stuff moves, often too much for him to handle, and he regularly fell behind experienced Triple-A and big league hitters last year. He also has yet to show he has the durability needed from a starter--his career high is 116 innings in a season--particularly in the Texas heat.
The perfect game Regilio threw for in the high Class A Florida State League in 2001 should have been a blessing, but he seemingly has been cursed since. He was bothered in the second half of that season by a ribcage injury and missed time in 2002 with biceps tendinitis. That was a prelude to rotator-cuff surgery last spring, all but wiping out his 2003 season. Regilio rebounded rather quickly from an injury of such magnitude and made good use of his Arizona Fall League assignment last year. He regained his 91-93 mph fastball, touched 94-95 on several occasions in Arizona and didn't sacrifice any of his sinking movement. Regilio's fastball command is average at best right now and is hindered by his tendency to overthrow, which causes him to get offline to the plate. Overall, he has a compact delivery with good arm speed and a clean arm action. Regilio's curveball has hard downward bite, as does his slider, though he needs to do a better job of distinguishing between the two pitches. His changeup is solid-average. He needs more experience in the upper levels, but if he stays healthy he could make a push for the majors by the second half of 2004.
Regilio made steady progress in 2002, interrupted only by biceps tendinitis that required rest in July. It was the second straight year physical concerns had slowed him, as a ribcage injury helped spoil his 2001 season that included a perfect game in the Florida State League. Neither injury required surgery, but Regilio made just two starts for Double-A Tulsa after returning from the tendinitis, neither lasting past the third inning. Up to that point, he had made great advances and earned an emergency June start in Triple-A when Aaron Myette was promoted to Texas. He should return to Triple-A in 2003 based on merit, not need. Regilio first made the move to Double-A in 2001 but struggled. He stopped trying to be a strikeout pitcher in 2002 and had more success in the Texas League, letting his 89-92 mph sinker and slider do the work. He showed improved velocity early in the year, getting up to 93 mph, and has another weapon to work with down in the zone in his splitter. Regilio still needs to command his pitches better, but the Rangers credit him for having the work ethic that helped him improve in the last offseason. They expect more progress in 2003.
Like Justin Duchscerer, Regilio won't knock the bats out of hitter's hands with his average velocity but he understands there's more to pitching than high gun readings. He gets late sink on his 88-91 mph fastball and can throw strikes with his slider. His changeup is an out pitch. He held Florida State League hitters to a .200 average and tossed a perfect game before earning a promotion to Double-A. Lefthanders at that level didn't chase his splitter and teed off on Regilio, hitting .390 against him. Shoulder problems shelved him late last season, and there's some concern within the organization that they could recur. He'll return to the Texas League in 2002 with something to prove.
Some observers believer Regilio's future is as a long reliever, but the Rangers will give him every chance to establish himself as a starter. Regilio has average stuff and never will knock the bat out of a hitter's hands. His best attribute is the late, hard sink on his fastball. He throws strikes, though almost to a fault, as he was hammered at times in 2000. In his first full season last year, Regilio was limited by occasional shoulder soreness. The Rangers don't believe the shoulder will be a long-running problem. He probably could use a return trip to Charlotte to begin 2001.

Minor League Top Prospects

Regilio spent all of 2000 in Charlotte and was hampered by shoulder soreness that limited him to 86 innings. He felt slighted by opening this season back in the league, and he took out his frustration on the FSL. Regilio started the league all-star game for the Western Divison and twirled a perfect game in his final Class A start. He throws three pitches for strikes: a 90-93 mph fastball, slider and change.