Marlins Top Prospect Countdown #48

2003 draftee Scott Nestor has the fastball and demeanor on the mound to make the Marlins organization believe that he can be their closer of the future. Can he end up becomin another success story for the Marlins scouting team? Find out in our latest installment of the Florida Marlins Top 50 Prospect Countdown.

Florida Marlins Prospect Spotlight Countdown #48

RHP Scott Nestor
Vital Stats:
Position: Pitcher
DOB: August 20th, 1984
Height: 6'5 Weight: 220 lbs.
Bats: Right
Throws: Right
Acquired: Drafted in the 14th Round (413th overall) in the 2003 amateur draft out of Chaffey Junior College

Overview: Nestor can end up being another Marlins scouting success story. The Marlins found this tall right-hander pitching for Chaffey Junior College in California's Foothill Conference. This is the same school that produced the late Darryl Kile. During his two years at Chaffey, Nestor helped continue Chaffey's dominance of their conference with his often dominating performances.

Repertoire: Nestor carries a better than average fastball that comes in at 94-96 mph. At this point Nestor has no other pitches that he can rely upon to get hitters out. He has started to work on developing a curveball but that pitch is still quite a ways off from being perfected.

Style: Right now, Nestor can best be described as a pure thrower. His fastball was a dominating pitch on the junior college level and he had very good success with it during his short season stint in the Gulf Coast League. Nestor carries a no-nonsense approach when on the mound as he is not afraid to challenge hitters. He has great confidence and is an imposing presence on the mound with his height and long frame. That long frame helps throw off hitters timing as it makes Nestor's release point seem almost right on top of the hitter.

Projection: In order for Nestor to develop into a serious top prospect he must develop two more reliable pitches. Therefore, he must also become comfortable in not relying purely on his fastball to get hitters out. That approach may work at the junior college and even the rookie league level. But as he progresses through the system that style will not work against better hitters. For as good as his fastball is, even at the rookie league level, he relies on his fastball so much that hitters are able to key in on that one pitch. If he can develop even one other pitch it will help him tremendously in keeping hitters off balance. Nestor's mechanics are solid but he must work to become more fluid in his delivery. Being a hard thrower, he sometimes tends to overthrow. When he does, his mechanics become rushed to the point where they become almost forgotten about, and his control suffers as a result. The positive side is that not too many pitchers are blessed with his kind of fastball. He has the size, frame and fastball to be dominant. Its all a matter of whether he has the aptitude and desire to learn how to become a pitcher rather than just a thrower.

Estimated Time of Arrival: Since Nestor has to work on developing two more pitches he can be comfortable with, he is by no means on a fast track schedule. The organization will work patiently with this potential diamond in the rough in the hopes that he can develop into a major league quality pitcher. Because of his style and approach the Marlins are projecting him as a potential closer candidate. Partly because as a closer he would only have to develop one other reliable pitch. If he develops more than one other pitch he could become a starting role prospect. He will start this season most likely with the Jamestown Jammers of the New York-Penn League. Consider him no closer than 4 years away from being ready. That's not such a bad thing considering he is only 19 years old.

Year	Team	G	GS	IP	W	L	SV	H	BB	SO	ERA
2003	Gulf Coast	12	0	25.1	4	1	0	20	16	27	2.49