Yogi Berra once said that baseball is 90% mental, and the other half is physical, and while the math in that quote doesn’t exactly add up, the message certainly does. 

Baseball players have to be tough, both mentally and physically, many times more than they have to be talented, because the mental challenges of the game can’t be mastered.

For the Dodgers, conquering the challenges of the game starts with culture and creating an environment that is comfortable, but, at the same time, ultra-competitive. The exact environment that Nick Nastrini, one of the most talented pitchers in the Dodgers organization, has come to flourish in and, as a result, has become stronger than ever.

Before the Dodgers

Nastrini grew up in San Diego and was a standout on the diamond at Cathedral Catholic High School, the same High School that produced Austin Barnes, and had the great fortune of playing for the legendary Gary Remiker. Remiker has coached a Cy Young winner, a #1 pick, and a #2 pick, so getting to play for a coach at that level, that has that kind of track record was a great experience for the young Southern California native.

It was really nice playing for Coach Remiker with him having coached all those legitimate guys that had such a great track record in baseball, so I knew I was in good hands there. Our pitching coach was great there too and they just overall have a great group of guys, so it was really nice to be around such high-level baseball players at such a young age.

During his Senior year at Cathedral, Nastrini went 8-2 as a Don and, after winning several of the most prestigious post-season awards, became recognized as one of the top prospects in California.

He had several options following his standout prep career, and eventually chose UCLA for a couple of very simple reasons, he wanted to win, and he wanted to stay close to home. UCLA, a school just a short drive north of San Diego, checked every box, especially considering that they had recently won a National title in 2013.

I mean, getting recruited by Coach Savage so early in the process was very exciting for me and my family. I pretty much chose to go there because I wanted to win and felt like Coach Savage and UCLA gave me the best chance to do that. We didn’t get to the College World Series but we had a pretty good team my Freshman year in 2019, and a pretty solid team in 2020 before Covid shut everything down, then in 2021 we just couldn’t close it out, but I really enjoyed my time there, and I learned a lot, and I have nothing to say but great things about Coach Savage and the program.

Getting Drafted

The Dodgers have the best developmental system in the world and one of the reasons is that, while they have detailed plans for each player in the organization, at the same time, each player is given the freedom to be themselves.

And that type of environment has been hugely beneficial for Nastrini.

As he continues to rise from one level to the next, the SoCal native is rewarding the Dodgers for acting upon their vision and drafting him in the 4th Round of the 2021 Draft.

Here’s what he had to say about being a Southern California boy and getting drafted by the Dodgers.

Yeah, it’s definitely a dream come true being able to stay in Southern California and staying close to my family. I could go home on off days when I was at UCLA to see my family and that was a huge blessing. I know I’m in Oklahoma right now, but getting to do that at the professional level and hopefully ending up in Los Angeles will end up being very fun for my family.

Time to Work

Another aspect of the Dodger’s developmental system that makes it elite is the coordination of the coaches between levels. Durin O’Linger at Rancho, Dave Anderson at Great Lakes, and Brian Dennick at Tulsa have all coached together on the same teams, and communicate on a very regular basis about the pitchers in the system. So, the handoff from one level to the next when guys get moved up is seamless, which is huge because it allows prospects like Nastrini to keep their momentum that earned them a promotion in the first place.

Here’s what Nastrini had to say about continuing to move up through the system:

I mean, it’s just been about a lot of work with Dave Anderson, the pitching coach at Great Lakes and our pitching development staff. As a whole, in the Minor Leagues, we have a staff that communicates very well, and our Minor League Pitching Coordinator, Rob Hill, was in constant communication with our pitching coach in Great Lakes and he is a pitching guru. He’s gonna be in baseball for quite a long time, and I have nothing to say but great things about Rob and how he helped my transition into pro ball. It’s been incredible how much he’s helped, so I thank him a bunch for that. 

Nastrini went on to talk about the environment the Dodgers create from day to day:

The Dodgers give you so much freedom to be you, and It’s a very productive feeling because you go into the day and you’re able to do exactly what you know you need to do to get better. The org. is in communication with you too in terms of how you want to go about your day or week in between starts and they communicate that very well, so I have nothing but great things to say about the organization helping me grow as a baseball player.

Feature Cut

Nastrini features a 4-pitch mix with a 4-seam fastball that sits around 95, a change-up that is 10 miles an hour off of that at 85, a slider that is 86-87, and a curveball that is 78-80. Here is a look at his fastball and the ride he gets at the top of the zone.

Secondaries

Here’s a good look at Nastrini’s secondary pitches which are his slider at 86-87, his change up at 85-87, and his curveball which is 78-80.

Big Goals

Nastrini couldn’t be happier in the Dodgers system and has set the bar very high as to his future expectations. When asked what his goals are he simply said,

My goal is to make it to the Big Leagues as soon as I can. I still have a lot of work to do, but the goal is definitely to get to the Big Leagues as fast as I can.

Nastrini has already made the jump to AA and had success, so he is inching closer and closer to his goal of making the MLB. The organization has a plan in place that is being executed every day, and everyone, both Nastrini and the Dodgers, are 100% on the same page, so his ascent should continue to accelerate.

All the pieces are in place for Nastrini to, one day, in the very near future, be back home in Southern California with his family where he can go home again on off days, but this time as a Major Leaguer.

I would like to say thank you very much to Nick for granting this interview and for this feature to be written to tell at least a part of his story. The interview was done after his start on August 30th around 10:15 at night so it was very kind of him to stick around and talk. It was a pleasure getting to speak with this young man and I am so excited to watch his ascent to reaching his goals in the next year or two and pitch for the Dodgers, which, as a SoCal boy, as he said, would be a dream come true.

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