Nate Schierholtz Stats & Scouting Report

AB	2090
AVG	.253
OBP	.302
SLG	.405
HR	52

Full name Nathan John Schierholtz
Born 02/15/1984 in Reno, NV
Profile Ht.: 6'2" / Wt.: 215 / Bats: L / Throws: R
School Chabot College
Debut 06/11/2007
Drafted in the 2nd round (63rd overall) by the San Francisco Giants in 2003 (signed for $572,000).

Top Rankings

Organization Prospect Rankings

Schierholtz led Giants minor leaguers with a career-high .333 average, made his major league debut in June and earned another callup in September. He did his best work at Triple-A Fresno in between his two big league stints, hitting .317 with 12 homers in 51 games. He capped his year by batting .348/.363/.596 in the Arizona Fall League. For a player with 30-homer potential, Schierholtz makes excellent contact. His strikeouts have dropped from 132 to 81 to 77 over the past three seasons as he has leveled out his lefthanded swing. He plays a strong right field and has an above-average, accurate arm. He's a good runner for his size if not a pure basestealer. His body is all sculpted muscle. Schierholtz must learn to work counts, improve his on-base percentage and be more aggressive when he gets ahead of pitchers. San Francisco challenged him to swing for the fences and he responded at Fresno, then appeared much more comfortable in September. Schierholtz is the youngest member of the Giants' projected 2008 outfield corps, and aside from $60 million free agent Aaron Rowand, he's also the most talented.
A surprise second-round pick in 2003, Schierholtz looked like he might fall into the trap of becoming a power hitter without a position. But he converted from third base to right field in late 2004 and has worked hard on his defense. He struggled at the plate in Double-A in 2006, and it took a Connecticut-record 25-game hitting streak in August to rescue his season. Schierholtz has a bodybuilder's physique and tremendous power. He was a sight to behold in spring training, when his mammoth shots cleared a 100-foot netting and peppered a neighboring apartment complex. He runs well for his size, looks to take the extra base and always hustles. He has a strong outfield arm. He has a clean lefthanded swing, but there's some length to it and Schierholtz struggles with plate discipline. He cut down on his strikeouts last season, but he still doesn't walk nearly enough. A promotion to the Triple-A Pacific Coast League, which favors hitters, should help Schierholtz' confidence. If he shows more consistency at the plate, he could compete for a big league starting job in 2008.
Since being a surprise second-round pick, Schierholtz has made steady progress while switching from third base to right field. In 2005, his first full season in the outfield, he ranked sixth in the California League in batting and tied for the league lead with 15 outfield assists. Schierholtz has above-average raw power from the left side, and should hit more homers as he learns the strike zone and his own swing. His bat speed allows him to wait on his pitch and use the whole field, and he hit .300 or better in every full month of the 2005 season. He runs well for his size. His hand-eye coordination and bat speed make Schierholtz at times too aggressive at the plate, and his strikeout- walk ratio needs improvement. He has a long swing path, but his bat speed has allowed him to succeed with it at lower levels. He took well to the outfield but needs repetitions to become an average defender. Schierholtz also will be worked at first base in case the Giants' outfield glut forces their hand. He'll get his first trip to Double-A in 2006.
After starring at Chabot Junior College--vice president of player personnel Dick Tidrow's alma mater--Schierholtz won over the Giants with an impressive workout at their ballpark prior to the 2003 draft. Schierholtz was easily the system's top power prospect before Eddy Martinez-Esteve's arrival, and he still rates a slight edge. He has above-average bat speed, thanks to strong hands that produce a balanced, short swing. He drives the ball from pole to pole, and the Giants view his aggressiveness as a positive. He's an average runner. Drafted as a third baseman, Schierholtz had trouble with his footwork on his throws, so San Francisco moved him to the outfield last August. His inexperience showed, but he has enough arm and athletic ability for right field. Offensively, Schierholtz could walk more and has to trust his hands against breaking balls from lefties. The Giants' outfield picture suddenly looks crowded, but Schierholtz' lefthanded power should help him stand out. He'll need to show defensive aptitude to keep moving quickly, and should return to high Class A to start 2005.
Schierholtz grew up in San Francisco's East Bay as a Giants fan. When he wasn't drafted in 2002, he seemed set to attend Utah before a strong summer with an American Legion team in Danville, Calif., convinced him to try the junior college route. The Giants found him at Chabot Junior College, where farm/scouting director Dick Tidrow pitched before signing with the Indians in 1967. While other clubs didn't project Schierholtz as an early pick, he wowed San Francisco officials with a .400-18-60 freshman season, ranking second among California juco players in homers. Schierholtz sealed their decision with a prodigious workout at Pac Bell Park prior to the draft. The Giants also popped him early to sway him from a commitment to Long Beach State. Schierholtz was drafted for his offense and has a quick bat that produces as much raw power as any Giants farmhand. He has shown good plate coverage and the ability to hit breaking balls. However, the speed of the pro game sometimes catches up with Schierholtz in the field, where he's raw. His hands are stiff at third base, and while he has arm strength, he needs polish with his footwork and other nuances of playing the position. One Giants official said Schierholtz reminded him most of former all-star slugger Larry Parrish, who started at third base and eventually moved to right field. Schierholtz will play in low Class A this year.

Minor League Top Prospects

Schierholtz has done nothing but hit at every level. He repeated Triple-A and produced stellar numbers for the second straight year, helping earn him a spot on the U.S. Olympic team. He also has hit well in short stints in the majors the last two seasons. Schierholtz did a nice job of tailoring his approach this year, not trying to yank as many balls as he did in the lower minors and using the whole field more. Most of his power comes against righthanders, though he did hit .344 against lefties in Triple-A. He's more athletic than most 6-foot-2, 215-pounders, runs well enough to play center field in a pinch and can steal some bases. "He's going to play good defense and throw the ball well and be a decent hitter, with a chance to be a good hitter," a scout with an American League team said. "I think there will be enough power there to go with everything else. I just like him. I think he can get better. He's a good competitor. He's a solid everyday right fielder, no more, no less."
Schierholtz returned to the Cal League after spending the second half of 2004 with San Jose. He showed minor improvements in most aspects of his game, hitting at least .300 in every month while showing more power and better defense in right field. He has good bat speed and power to all fields, though he'll need to become a more patient hitter to maintain his high batting average as he advances. His swing mechanics are highly awkward, as he begins with the barrel of the bat pointing straight out at the mound, creating a long bat wrap with a small hitch. Drafted as a third baseman, he has plenty of arm for his new position and the athleticism to stay there, but he needs to work on jumps and taking better routes. Few players elicited more mixed reviews than Schierholtz. Some saw him as the best player on a very good San Jose team. Others viewed him as an all-or-nothing hitter who will be exposed at higher levels.
Schierholtz' days as a third baseman may be numbered. He moved to the outfield late in the season after a promotion to high Class A, and SAL managers were unimpressed with his tools and work at the hot corner, though none of them entirely wrote him off there. If Schierholtz gets to the majors, it will be because of his bat. He has good bat speed, extension in his swing and excellent raw power. Another scout with an AL club projects him to hit 30-plus homers in the big leagues. His raw power will translate more to games as he learns the strike zone and gains more experience against quality pitching. "He didn't have a quick first step and his range was below average, but his arm was accurate and he had pretty good instincts over there," Joyce said. "He had serious lefthanded power though. He had a really nice swing and wasn't afraid to go the other way. He was more gap-to-gap now, but his power will get better."
The Giants surprised many observers when they selected Schierholtz in the second round of the 2003 draft, but it looked like a prudent choice after he hit .298-15-54 in 59 South Atlantic League games this year. While he failed to reproduce those power numbers with San Jose, he still projects as a middle-of-the-order run producer. Schierholtz has a quick bat that generates big-time power. Like many young players, he needs to work on being more selective and identifying pitches he can turn on. A minor league batboy as a youngster, he's a baseball rat with excellent makeup and a continuous desire to improve. At third base, Schierholtz is both stiff and mechanical. Moved to right field for the final three weeks he showed surprising instincts and his arm, his only plus defensive tool, played well. Sakata attributed Schierholtz' offensive rise--he hit .324 following the switch--to him no longer taking his defensive problems to the plate.
Schierholtz emerged as one of the 2003 draft's surprise choices, a second-rounder who was on few teams' boards. One manager called Schierholtz the draft's best sleeper, and his .306 average would have ranked third in the league had he qualified. He debuted in the Rookie-level Arizona League, hitting .400 in 11 games, and then missed a handful of games at the end of the year after a pitch hit him in the hand, causing a bone bruise. "If I sit back and look at the whole league in a few years, he might top it out," Gideon said. "He hits lefthanders well, goes to all fields, has some power and moves well for a big kid. Everything the kid did was solid." Schierholtz has good gap power now, as well as the ability to hit all types of pitches because of his bat speed. He should continue to fill out as he matures, realizing his plus power potential. A good athlete, Schierholtz is reliable with the glove but has trouble getting to grounders to his left. His arm plays average at third.