Draft Spotlight on Nick Loftin
Nick Loftin is one of many shortstops available in this year’s MLB Draft. A product of W.B. Ray High School in Corpus Christi, Texas, Loftin is currently a junior at Baylor University. Coming in at six feet, once inch tall and 180 pounds, he was a unanimous selection for the 2018 Big-12 All-Freshman Team. In that season, he made 53 starts with 31 at shortstop and 22 in left field.
Looking back on Loftin’s sophomore year last year, the right-handed hitter led the team with 24 multi-hit games. In addition, another notable moment was when the 21-year old prospect threw a scoreless ninth inning last February against Holy Cross University. It was one of two pitching appearances that Loftin made last season.
Strengths
The primary standout point about his game is his natural instincts at the shortstop position. Scouts note that Loftin doesn’t have the flashiest speed of any shortstop or that his speed even makes him stand out. Rather, Loftin is skilled with his ability to make those critical plays when they matter the most and get the ball to where it needs to go. Something that is critical for any shortstop in the game today.
Additionally, scouts point out that Loftin has a tremendous amount of arm strength. With the defensive importance of the shortstop position, that should heavily play into Loftin’s favor moving forward. On the scouting scale, Loftin received a score of 55 for his arm.
Another great component of Loftin’s game is his versatility. As mentioned previously, Loftin isn’t committed solely to the shortstop position. Instead, the shortstop started at five different positions for the U.S. Collegiate National team last summer. During that time, Loftin saw time at second and third base as well as left and right field along with at shortstop.
Finally, Loftin really excels when it comes to making contact with the baseball. After all, last season, Loftin only had 17 strikeouts over 265 plate appearances, 6.4 percent of the time. That alone is impressive as is his .380 on-base percentage over that sample.
Weaknesses
One potential area for Loftin to address moving forward lies in the power department. Of the six different categories on the scouting scale, Loftin received the lowest grade (40) in the power category. While shortstop is not historically a power-hitting position, improving upon his power, would make Loftin a better-all around player.
As previously mentioned, Loftin is also not the most fleet of foot. With the five different teams that he has spent time with dating back to 2018, the shortstop prospect only has 11 stolen bases. If Loftin can work on being more explosive with his agility, that could help him on the bases as well as getting a good jump on the ball in the field.
MLB Comp
If Nick Loftin sticks at shortstop, a comparable current MLB player is Trea Turner of the Washington Nationals, minus the speed. Turner comes in at 6-foot-2-inches, 185 pounds, and can play multiple positions despite primarily playing shortstop.
Aside from the similarities in frame and versatility, Loftin and Turner also have similar eyes at the plate. While Turner strikes out more frequently than Loftin, both draw walks at similar clips. Loftin walked at a 6.8 percent clip throughout his collegiate career, where Turner walks 7.5 percent of the time throughout his MLB career.
It’s still undecided whether or not Loftin will be a primary shortstop or follow the path of a traditional utility player. Regardless, Loftin has a lot to like especially when it comes to arm strength and making contact with the baseball in critical situations. Now, only time will tell what the future looks like for the 21-year old, right-handed hitting prospect.
Main Photo: Embed from Getty Images
