Nick Gardewine Stats & Scouting Report

Full name Nick Gardewine
Born 08/15/1993 in Effingham, IL
Profile Ht.: 6'1" / Wt.: 179 / Bats: R / Throws: R
School Kaskaskia CC
Debut 08/22/2017
Drafted in the 7th round (220th overall) by the Texas Rangers in 2013 (signed for $162,300).

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Gardewine threw a seven-inning no-hitter in his third college start in March, and he emerged as the ace and top prospect on a Kaskaskia team that advanced to the Junior College World Series for the first time ever. He's small (6-foot-1, 165 pounds) but has a quick arm and clean delivery that produce quality stuff. Those traits prompt comparisons to Matt Stites, a former juco pitcher at Jefferson (Mo.) is now a reliever in the Padres system. Gardewine may wind up in the bullpen as well because his size leads to durability concerns. He has the pitches and throws enough strikes to have a chance as a starter, however. His best offering is a cutter that can reach 90 mph. He sits at 90-91 mph and peaks at 94 with his fastball, and he mixes in a hard breaking ball and a changeup.

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Gardewine was a starter who helped take his Kaskaskia team to the Junior College World Series in 2013, then signed with the Rangers for $162,300 as a seventh-round pick. Gardweine remained a starter for the Rangers through 2015, then moved to the bullpen the next year. He broke through in 2017 with an excellent season for Double-A Frisco and jumped to the big league bullpen for his major league debut at the end of August. Gardewine has quick arm speed and a plus fastball at 93-96 mph. He's not tall, but he generates downhill plane and also has a high spin rate on his fastball to get swings-and-misses when he rides it up in the zone. His strikeout rate jumped from 28 percent in high Class A in 2016 to 34 percent in Double-A in 2017, and the key was his plus slider. It's a power slider Gardewine usually fires at 88-90 mph, but he can change speeds on that pitch too and often doubles up on it, landing it for a strike or using it as a chase pitch. He has a firm changeup but rarely throws it. Gardewine throws across his body and usually throws strikes, but got into trouble in the big leagues when his fastball control escaped him. Gardewine should open 2018 in the big league bullpen, with the stuff to stick around as a middle reliever.

Gardewine threw a seven-inning no-hitter in his third college start in March, and he emerged as the ace and top prospect on a Kaskaskia team that advanced to the Junior College World Series for the first time ever. He's small (6-foot-1, 165 pounds) but has a quick arm and clean delivery that produce quality stuff. Those traits prompt comparisons to Matt Stites, a former juco pitcher at Jefferson (Mo.) is now a reliever in the Padres system. Gardewine may wind up in the bullpen as well because his size leads to durability concerns. He has the pitches and throws enough strikes to have a chance as a starter, however. His best offering is a cutter that can reach 90 mph. He sits at 90-91 mph and peaks at 94 with his fastball, and he mixes in a hard breaking ball and a changeup.