Notes of spring: Smith and Nix ready to rebound
By joshjacksonmilb
By Josh Jackson / MiLB.com
Austin Smith and Jacob Nix were the Padres’ first and second picks respectively in last year’s Draft and the young right-handers both enter their first full season ranked among San Diego’s top 10 prospects.
Neither of them, however, had the kind of pro debut they’d had in mind.
Smith, selected 51st overall out of a Georgia high school and now the Padres’ №8 prospect, came with a fastball that can reach 96, which is complemented by a 55-grade curveball and a 50-grade changeup. Still, he went 0–3 with a 7.94 ERA over nine starts amounting to just 17 innings in the Rookie-level Arizona League.
“Learning the process on becoming an individual pitcher by yourself was a big change for me, but I learned how to mature from that,” Smith said.
Plucked out of Florida’s IMG Academy 86th overall and pitching with the same Rookie squad as Smith, Nix went 0–2 with a 5.49 ERA over seven games — including three starts. He struck out 19 over 19 2/3 innings, but surrendered 23 hits over that span.
“Last year, I kind of struggled a bit in the beginning,” said Nix, who’s №10 in the Padres system and works with a fastball in the low 90s, a 55-grade curve and a 45-grade changeup. “I didn’t even get off the mound until halfway through the season just because I was working through some stuff.
“Once I got into my groove, my last couple starts were good, but I was out of the bullpen at first, which was different for me. I’ve done it couple times in the past, but doing that in pro ball for the first time and everything , I had a lot of nerves and stuff I was working through. But I finished strong, and in instructs, I threw well.”
Smith, 19, also felt happier with the way he pitched in instructs, saying that through the AZL he gained a better understanding of “the situation that’s going on on the field, so this year’s going to be a good year.”
Situations at Spring Training, though, are not always easy to get a handle on.
“It’s crazy,” Nix said. “There’s a ton of moving parts to our days, with conditioning and stuff at 6 a.m. and then we go and throw, and have more conditioning, just getting in shape for season. As long as you’re out where you need to be, everything runs smoothly. [But] figuring out where you need to be sometimes is tough.”
Smith agreed, noting he hadn’t been through any camp like it before.
“It’s definitely a change for me, but I’m getting used to it and it’s becoming easy now,” he said. “You’ve just got to make sure you’re paying attention to what’s going on, and other than that, it’s fine. …. Just getting up early in the morning, getting after it, really working hard, with early conditioning, core work. Seeing all the guys come in these last few days is a nice awakening, to see our competition, and just going out there and competing is awesome. I’m getting prepared for a great season.”
That’s what all the early morning conditioning is for, after all, and both Smith and Nix are trying to land themselves on a full-season roster out of the shoot.
“Hopefully,” Smith said. “We’ll see what happens.”
“That’s the goal, but that’s not really our decision,” Nix added. “We’re just going where we’re told.”
