After spending the 2020 campaign at the Reds alternate site, Cincinnati sent Nick Lodolo to Double-A Chattanooga to begin the season. The lefty could have hardly envisioned a better start the his first one as he struck out 10 batters and allowed just two hits – both singles – in 5.0 shutout innings without a walk. That gave him 40 strikeouts with a walk to begin his career.
That streak came to an end the next time out as he struggled with control for the first time in his professional career, walking four batters in just 3.1 innings while allowing just one run in 3.1 innings in Montgomery. Lodolo rebounded in a big way the next time out, putting together arguably his best start of his career. In Mississippi he allowed just one hit in 7.1 innings, walked one, and he struck out 11 without giving up a run. That game was followed up by another outstanding performance, a 7-inning, no run, eight strikeout game.
But it was the start on May 30th that began the problems that would plague the lefty the rest of the season. Lodolo was having a solid game against Tennessee, but he had developed a blister and was removed from the game. He would skip his next start and return two weeks later against Pensacola. The left-hander was dominating, having struck out seven batters through 3.1 innings, but the blister became an issue again and he was pulled from the start in the 4th inning. He would miss nearly a month before returning on July 6th against Tennessee, throwing just 2.0 innings as he eased back into things.
His next outing came in the Futures Game where he threw a perfect inning with a strikeout for the National League team. When he returned to Chattanooga his stay wouldn’t be very long. He’s throw 12.0 innings with 22 strikeouts and just three walks over the next three starts before he would be promoted to Triple-A Louisville at the start of August. His first time out saw him struggle against St. Paul, allowed three runs on three hits and two walks in 2.2 innings pitched.
Lodolo came back the next time out and allowed a run on four hits and a walk to go along with five strikeouts in 3.0 innings. His following start was skipped, but he returned on August 22nd against Gwinnett. He threw a perfect 1st inning with three strikeouts, but he didn’t return for the 2nd inning. That would wind up being his final appearance of the year as he was later put on the injured list with what was called shoulder fatigue and he’s miss the final month.
For all 2021 Season Reviews and Scouting Reports – click here (these will come out during the week throughout the offseason).
Nick Lodolo Scouting Report
Position: Left-handed pitcher | B/T: L/L
Height: 6′ 6″ | Weight: 205 lbs | Drafted: 1st Round, 2019
Born: February 5, 1998
Fastball | The pitch works in the 91-94 MPH range and will touch a bit higher at times.
Slider | A plus offering that works against both lefties and righties, it works in the low-to-mid 80’s.
Change Up | A fringe-average offering that works in the mid-to-upper 80’s. It’s a clear third pitch that he doesn’t use nearly as often as his fastball or slider.
There was a lot to like about the 2021 season for Nick Lodolo, but there were some concerns as well. The biggest concern is that he was shut down at the end of the year with shoulder fatigue. It was not considered to be a serious issue, but anytime a pitcher is shut down with anything related to their arm it is something to at least put down on the notepad.
Nick Lodolo pounds the strikezone, but his control is ahead of his command. His low 3/4 arm angle and long limbs make for a different attack angle than many pitchers have and adds a little more deception to his stuff. In particular with his slider, it allows the pitch to really sweep across the zone.
The continued development of his change up will determine just how good he can be. With two above-average or plus offerings with the fastball and slider, an improved and more consistent change up could lead to a starter that’s more than a good middle of the rotation lefty.
Interesting Stat on Nick Lodolo
Left-handed hitters had 64 plate appearances against Nick Lodolo this season. They had just one extra-base hit – a home run in his first Triple-A start off of a 93 MPH fastball.
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