Commit/Drafted: Orioles ’22 (15)
Age At Draft: 22.2
Hicks pitched two years at Crowder (Mo.) JC before heading to South Carolina for the 2022 season, where he threw just seven innings, but was drafted by the Orioles in the 15th round. Instead of signing, Hicks went back to Columbia for his age-22 season and second with the program, and posted a 3.51 ERA over 66.2 innings with a 20.4% strikeout rate and 5.1% walk rate. Listed at 6-foot-2, 190 pounds, Hicks is a sinker/slider righty who attacks with a 90-93 mph fastball that will touch 94. The pitch has around 19 inches of horizontal break and runs in on righthanded hitters from a lower, three-quarter slot. He pairs the pitch with a low-80s slider that has reasonable two-plane break and is his best swing-and-miss offering. Hicks has used a slower curveball in the mid 70s and occasionally flashed a mid-80s changeup that has solid arm-side fade—but he uses the fastball/slider combination nearly 90% of the time.
ncG1vNJzZmivp6x7o63SnpmapJyWuqa%2ByJyYZ5ufonyxuMCynKurX2d9eISXZqGapZWoeqm1wqSqaA%3D%3D