Nick Decker

Organization Prospect Rankings

• 
  Ranked Boston Red Sox #21 prospect in 2020
  TRACK RECORD: After selecting him in the second round in 2018, Decker's initial pro season was cut short after one game with a small fracture in his left wrist. Decker used the time away to understand nuances of the professional game, becoming the talk of the instructional league later that fall. After starting 2019 in extended spring training, Decker was pushed to short-season Lowell. Of the 31 teenagers who had at least 100 plate appearances in the New York-Penn League, Decker ranked second in isolated power (.224) and third in slugging (.471) while posting a .247/328/.471 line.
  
  SCOUTING REPORT: Decker has offset the lack of high school game experience because of the typically colder northeast spring climates by adopting a physically and mentally mature approach. Decker has a compact stroke with strength through the zone that helps him generate hard contact while staying inside the ball. He has the ability to use all fields but also has natural lift in his swing built for power. Decker is solid runner underway though not a basestealer. Decker has played right field since signing and presents a solid defensive profile, including range, reactions and arm strength.
  
  THE FUTURE: Decker showed enough flashes of offensive explosiveness—in tandem with a strong arm and solid defense in right field—to suggest a player with the upside of an everyday contributor. He should be in Greenville to start 2020.
• 
  Ranked Boston Red Sox #16 prospect in 2019
  Track Record: Decker dominated his New Jersey high school peers while also impressing the Red Sox with his makeup­­--an impression formed in no small part by the opportunity for scout Ray Fagnant to coach Decker at East Coast Pro. The Red Sox selected Decker with the 64th overall pick and signed him for $1.25 million to forgo a Maryland commitment. Decker got into just two games in the Rookie-level Gulf Coast League before a non-displaced wrist fracture forced him to miss the rest of the season.
  
  Scouting Report: Decker has the hand strength and bat speed to generate all-fields power. There’s the potential for a fair amount of swing-and-miss in his game, though during instructional league he showed a hit tool that was more advanced than expected. For now, he’ll likely develop in center and right field. While he has the arm for right, it remains to be seen whether he maintains the range to stay out of left.
  
  The Future: As a player who contended with the abbreviated high school schedules of the Northeast, Decker may take some time to develop. There are likely to be periods of struggle in his game, interspersed with some prodigious shows of power that suggest the upside of a power-hitting corner outfielder.

Draft Prospects

• Ranked #110 prospect in 2018 draft
  Decker is a left-left outfielder committed to Maryland with a polished approach at the plate. He's developed a reputation as a talented hitter by repeatedly working quality at-bats throughout the summer and this spring. He has a very disciplined approach and an advanced understanding of the strike zone. This spring, he's loosened up his hands and improved a swing path that was already solid. The team that drafts Decker will be all-in on the bat, as he profiles as a corner outfielder thanks to his average running ability and below-average arm. At 5-foot-11, 205 pounds, Decker is hard to project too much on currently, but his power is likely close to average because of solid bat speed and a feel to backspin the baseball.

• March, 2021 Scouting Report
  TRACK RECORD: The Red Sox were drawn to Decker's bat speed, power potential, athleticism and passion for the game in the 2018 draft. He convinced them to sign him for slightly above slot at $1.25 million in the second round, though a fractured wrist largely kept Decker off the field in 2018.
  
  SCOUTING REPORT: Decker possesses wiry strength and showed the all-fields raw power of an outfield corner at short-season Lowell in 2019, when he posted a .247/.328/.471 line with an impressive .224 isolated slugging percentage. Strikeouts are a concern because he not only chases pitches but also misses some hittable offerings in the strike zone, which is more likely the product of inconsistent timing in the weight transfer in his crouch than hand-eye coordination issues. Decker's balance improved in cage work at instructional league, but those efforts didn't show up in games. His durability is a question.
  
  THE FUTURE: Decker has the power, range and arm to have potential to emerge as an everyday right fielder, though the greater likelihood is that he'll become a more valuable part of an outfield platoon.
• July, 2020 Scouting Report
  TRACK RECORD: After selecting him in the second round in 2018, Decker’s initial pro season was cut short after one game with a small fracture in his left wrist. Decker used the time away to understand nuances of the professional game, becoming the talk of the instructional league later that fall. After starting 2019 in extended spring training, Decker was pushed to short-season Lowell. Of the 31 teenagers who had at least 100 plate appearances in the New York-Penn League, Decker ranked second in isolated power (.224) and third in slugging (.471) while posting a .247/328/.471 line.
  
  SCOUTING REPORT: Decker has offset the lack of high school game experience because of the typically colder northeast spring climates by adopting a physically and mentally mature approach. Decker has a compact stroke with strength through the zone that helps him generate hard contact while staying inside the ball. He has the ability to use all fields but also has natural lift in his swing built for power. Decker is solid runner underway though not a basestealer. Decker has played right field since signing and presents a solid defensive profile, including range, reactions and arm strength.
  
  THE FUTURE: Decker showed enough flashes of offensive explosiveness—in tandem with a strong arm and solid defense in right field—to suggest a player with the upside of an everyday contributor. He should be in Greenville to start 2020.
• February, 2020 Scouting Report
  TRACK RECORD: After selecting him in the second round in 2018, Decker's initial pro season was cut short after one game with a small fracture in his left wrist. Decker used the time away to understand nuances of the professional game, becoming the talk of the instructional league later that fall. After starting 2019 in extended spring training, Decker was pushed to short-season Lowell. Of the 31 teenagers who had at least 100 plate appearances in the New York-Penn League, Decker ranked second in isolated power (.224) and third in slugging (.471) while posting a .247/328/.471 line.
  
  SCOUTING REPORT: Decker has offset the lack of high school game experience because of the typically colder northeast spring climates by adopting a physically and mentally mature approach. Decker has a compact stroke with strength through the zone that helps him generate hard contact while staying inside the ball. He has the ability to use all fields but also has natural lift in his swing built for power. Decker is solid runner underway though not a basestealer. Decker has played right field since signing and presents a solid defensive profile, including range, reactions and arm strength.
  
  THE FUTURE: Decker showed enough flashes of offensive explosiveness—in tandem with a strong arm and solid defense in right field—to suggest a player with the upside of an everyday contributor. He should be in Greenville to start 2020.