Dodgers No. 9 Prospect is Big Prize in White Sox Trade

The Chicago White and Los Angeles Dodgers have agreed on a trade that is sending Lance Lynn and Joe Kelly to the National League West in exchange for two pitching prospects and former White Sox draft pick Trayce Thompson.

The deal was confirmed by Bob Nightengale and Ken Rosenthal earlier on Friday. ESPN's Jeff Passan has now reported the return for the White Sox. The Dodger have sent their No. 9 rated prospect according to MLB Pipeline Nick Nastrini, Jordan Leasure and Thompson.

Here's what MLB Pipeline's scouting report on Nastrini, who was a fourth round pick in 2021 out of UCLA.

Nick Nastrini

Nastrini worked with a 92-94 mph fastball in college but has operated at 94-96 and reached 98 with outstanding carry and pitch characteristics as a pro. His mid-80s slider can be unhittable and features high spin rates, as does his 78-82 mph curveball, which also shows flashes of becoming a plus pitch but doesn't land in the zone as consistently. He's showing increased feel for a mid-80s changeup that bottoms out at the plate and utilized it more often in 2022. 

There's no doubt that Nastrini's stuff gives him the upside of a frontline starter, but the question is will he throw enough strikes to reach his ceiling. He does have a repeatable delivery, and some minor adjustments to his tempo and catcher targeting helped him reduce his walk rate from 7.4 per nine innings at UCLA to 4.2 in his first full pro season. He'll be an asset in the rotation if he can develop average control and decent command, and still could be an impact reliever if he doesn't.

Scouting grades: Fastball: 65 | Curveball: 55 | Slider: 60 | Changeup: 55 | Control: 45 | Overall: 50

So far in 2023, the right-handed pitcher has posted a 4.03 ERA in 17 starts, striking out 85 batters in 73.2 innings