From 'fringy' to fabulous, one tool turned Pirates 1st-round pick Nick Gonzales into the NCAA batting champ

Many Pirates fans have become familiar with the story of Pirates first-round draft choice Nick Gonzales.

From underrecruited walk-on at New Mexico State to NCAA batting champ to Cape Cod League MVP to seventh overall pick in the MLB draft in just three years.

But his former coach at New Mexico State, Brian Green, doesn’t want you getting the wrong idea. Gonzales wasn’t exactly Ollie in “Hoosiers” coming off the bench to hit a pair of granny-style free throws to win a big game for Hickory High.

I mean, Gonzales hit .534 his senior year of high school.

Green says the goal was always to get Gonzales a scholarship at NMSU after his first year. Maybe make him a redshirt freshman outfielder. But no one was beating down his door for a full ride elsewhere, and the Aggies’ scholarship windows were tight.

So walk-on was the more practical route to go to buy some time. However, significant talent was always in Gonzales’ 5-foot-10, 170-pound high school frame. Physical maturation (he’s put on 20 pounds) and honing of considerable gifts is what was needed.

“It was there,” Green said of Gonzales’ talent. “He was a ‘fringy’ scholarship player, we thought. It sounds crazy to say that. But I take pride in it because of Nick’s development. At least we were smart enough to want him in our program.”

Green — now the coach at Washington State — says there was always clay to mold for Gonzales. And the one skill that blossomed the most at Las Cruces was his bat speed.

That’s what took Gonzales from ‘fringy’ to fabulous.

“His tools were close. And you can develop tools,” Green said. “I’ve never seen a player’s bat speed turn the way Nick’s did.”

Green said he noticed the improvement late in the fall of Gonzales’ freshman year.

“The next thing you know, his bat speed takes off. His ability to back the ball up. Wait longer. That’s where we really saw him blow up. To where he incorporated his bat speed and his hands, which came out of nowhere.”

Green says Gonzales’ ability to generate a quick swing allows him to wait longer on pitches and make better decisions in the box.

“If the pitch was 95 (miles per hour), that was fine. If it was a real good slider, that was fine. But he could wait so much longer than any other hitter on our team. And when he really learned how to do that, that’s when he blew up.”

By the end of his sophomore year, Gonzales was hitting .432 and winning the NCAA batting crown. That went along with 16 home runs and 80 RBIs.

It’s not just bat speed, though, that attracted the Pirates to Gonzales. He’s renowned for being a good, quick middle infielder. And he’s got a level, disciplined personality.

Green discusses all those traits and more about Gonzales in our Friday podcast.

Listen: Nick Gonzales’ college coach discusses the Pirates’ first-round pick’s development.