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#5: Nick Loftin, UTIL
Age: 23
B/T: R/R
Ht/Wt: 6′ 1″ 180′
Rule 5 Eligible: 2023
Acquired: 2020 MLB Draft, Round 1
2021 Stats (A+): .289/.373/.463/.837, 10 HR, 37 XBH, 11 SB, 10.2% BB%, 14.6% K%, 130 wRC+
Here’s a bit of where Nick Loftin ranked in certain categories among all High-A hitters age 22 and younger last summer:
– SwStr%: 1st
– LD%: 16th
– 2B: 14th
– BA: 6th
– OBP: 5th
– OPS: 9th
– wRC+: 5th
– K%: 3rd
– BB/K: 4th
– wOBA: 6th
All of this after the dude started his professional career going 9-47 (.191) through the first couple of weeks of the season after missing most of 2020 during the shutdown. From May 23rd through the end of the season, Loftin hit .304 with a 140 wRC+ and was legitimately one of the better players in all of Minor League Baseball. He runs the bases well, steals his fair share of bags, plays phenomenal defense at several different positions, refuses to strike out, walks his fair share, hits a bunch of doubles, and is just an all-around solid player that every system needs.
During the 2020 draft cycle Loftin drew a bunch of comps to Whit Merrifield for his offensive profile and defensive versatility. At the time, I wasn’t entirely sure how much I liked the comps because I think Whit and Loftin do different things well, but I’m on board with the comp now in terms of overall value. Both guys profile similarly on offense. They’ll both hit a ton of doubles, double digit home runs, and for a high average. The biggest difference between the two in my opinion is that Loftin has a much higher potential to draw some walks and probably (definitely) won’t ever lead the league in stolen bases. Defensively, I actually think Loftin is capable of handling SS, 2B, and 3B in the big leagues, where Whit is more limited to 2B and the corner outfield spots. So, again, I may have gotten a little too caught up in the specifics during the draft process, but I don’t hate the comp anymore as it relates to overall prospect value.
Speaking of overall prospect value, there aren’t a ton of prospects in MiLB with a safer floor than Loftin. Alex Verdugo hit just 13 HR, had a 107 wRC+, and rated pretty bad defensively last year in the big leagues and was still worth 2.0 fWAR. If Loftin proves to have value as a swiss army knife on defense and can just hit .280 with a respectable BB/K, he’ll easily be a productive every day big leaguer. I’m not suggesting that he will make any All-Star Games, but I think the chances that he’s a valuable piece on a playoff team are really, really good. There’s nothing the kid is really bad at which is half the battle to becoming a big leaguer in the first place. I know Loftin doesn’t have the same kind of upside as a guy like Alec Marsh or even Erick Pena, but the high floor will keep him locked into our top 5 Royals prospects for the foreseeable future. Loftin figures to start the season with AA Northwest Arkansas, and while I’m not certain there will be a place for him in the big leagues in 2022, I wouldn’t be shocked at all to see him really early on in 2023.
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