Freudis Nova

Organization Prospect Rankings

• 
  Ranked Houston Astros #19 prospect in 2021
  TRACK RECORD: Nova was one of the top players in the 2016 international class and signed with the Astros for $1.2 million. He reached low Class A Quad Cities in 2019, where his athleticism and raw tools stood out more than his performance. At instructional league in 2020, Nova left scouts disappointed between his declining athleticism and performance, but the Astros still added him to their 40-man roster after the season.
  
  SCOUTING REPORT: Nova didn't show the same quick-twitch to his actions that he had shown in the past, a concern for a player whose value has been tied more to his tools than his pure hitting ability. Nova does have solid-average raw power to pull a fastball over the fence when a pitcher makes a mistake, but he struggles with pitch recognition and his free-swinging approach gets him in trouble. Nova has a strong arm for the left side of the diamond, but he has slowed down as he's filled out, leading to more concerns that he's a third baseman rather than a shortstop, with hands that need improvement to stick in the dirt.
  
  THE FUTURE: Youth is still on Nova's side to rebound as he enters his age-20 season and returns to the structure of a normal year. The 2021 season will be critical for his prospect status.
• 
  Ranked Houston Astros #4 prospect in 2020
  TRACK RECORD: Nova was supposed to be the key player in the Marlins 2016 international class, but a positive drug test meant he instead signed with the Astros for $1.2 million, less than half of what he was supposed to receive. After a strong 2018, Nova had a more modest season in 2019, as he showed flashes of his talent but struggled with consistency.
  
  SCOUTING REPORT: Nova has a projectable body with a plus-plus arm that plays well at any infield spot. He looked truly lost at third base in 2019 and didn't turn double plays well at second, but there are scouts who see his upright style of play defensively and project he will eventually fit best at third. At the plate, Nova has above-average bat speed and above-average power potential, but his aggressiveness gets him into big trouble. In 2019, his success depended on whether he got ahead of behind in the count. If he fell behind, pitchers knew he'd chase out of the strike zone and was an easy strikeout.
  
  THE FUTURE: Of all Astros' minor league position players, Nova is the one with the biggest chance of being a star. Figuring out how to lay off pitches well off the plate will determine if he reaches his lofty ceiling.
• 
  Ranked Houston Astros #8 prospect in 2019
  Track Record: Nova was supposed to be the Marlins' big splash on the international market in 2016, but a positive test for a performance-enhancing drug quashed that deal and led to the Astros signing him for less than half of Miami's offer. Nova made his U.S. debut in 2018 as one of the more productive hitters in the Rookie-level Gulf Coast league.
  
  Scouting Report: Nova showed bat speed, above-average bat-to-ball skills and above-average raw power in the GCL, but he needs plenty of refinement. Right now he has just enough power to get himself into poor habits, and he spent too many at-bats looking for a pitch he could yank down the line, rarely working advantageous counts. He had as many home runs (six) as walks (six). Nova's hand-eye coordination made it work, but he's going to have to improve his selectivity and patience. Defensively, Nova has all the tools to be an above-average shortstop. He's athletic with soft hands and an improved first step, though he's working on his reliability. His plus arm helps him make plays to his back hand, the play that many shortstops struggle to make.
  
  The Future: Nova has the tools to be a shortstop who can hit enough to be an everyday regular, but he has years of work ahead of him to put it all together. A jump to low Class A Quad Cities would be a big step up in competition level, and it's more likely that Nova will spend one more year in short-season ball.
• 
  Ranked Houston Astros #5 prospect in 2018
  Nova was expected to be the centerpiece of the Marlins' 2016 international signing class. A positive steroid test pushed the Marlins away. The Astros then signed him for $1.5 million. His bonus was then reduced further to $1.2 million after the medical report showed an issue with his elbow. That's a lot of dings before Nova ever got into a game professionally, but Nova has not had any other positive tests since, has stayed healthy so far and has shown the same athleticism and twitchiness he showed as an amateur. Nova's earliest Houston ETA is sometime in the 2020s, but there are few prospects with more potential. He has a chance to be an impact bat who can stick at a middle-infield position. He's athletic with above-average bat speed, plus speed and a plus arm. Nova shows surprising power for a speedy teenager. Like your normal 17-year-old, he has to make strides in pitch recognition, but with his bat speed and bat-to-ball skills he has a chance to be an above-average hitter with average power. Defensively, everything is there for Nova to be a shortstop. His hands work well, he has the twitchiness for a quick first step and the arm to make plays in the hole. But he has to learn to slow the game down--he posted sub-.900 fielding percentages at both shortstop and third base in his pro debut and had one game where he made a trio of throwing errors. Right now he can get too quick and try to do too much, but his defensive issues are ones that usually go away with repetition. Nova is ready to head to the States. As a teenager there's plenty of work ahead, but he has a chance to be an impact everyday shortstop.
• 
  Ranked Houston Astros #26 prospect in 2017
  Nova was expected to land one of the top bonuses in the 2016 international signing class, but his rumored $2.6 million deal to the Marlins fell apart after he tested positive in February for a performance-enhancing substance. He passed multiple drug tests since then and landed on his feet when the Astros swept in to sign him for $1.2 million in July 2016. Arguably the best athlete available in his signing class, Nova is a twitchy, rangy athlete with fast hands, plenty of bat speed, a plus arm and plus speed. He has even flashed above-average raw power in workouts. With a long and lean frame, Nova isn't much of a risk to thicken and outgrow shortstop. He can play a little too fast defensively at times, rushing throws and struggling with accuracy when he doesn't set his feet, but his defensive issues are ones that usually are rectified by repetition. Nova is a long way from Houston, but his raw tools stand above the other talented shortstops in the system.

Minor League Top Prospects

• 
  Ranked Florida Complex League #9 prospect in 2018
  Nova was one of the top international prospects in the 2016 class and showed why as a tooled-up shortstop with bouncy, quick-burst athleticism, plus speed and a plus arm. With his first-step quickness and agility, Nova makes the rangy, flashy play in the field, although he’s still learning to play more under control. With plus bat speed and a compact swing, Nova makes contact at a high clip and regularly drives the ball with impact, with potential plus power in the future. Nova does have an aggressive hitting mentality that borders on free-swinging at times, along with a pull-heavy approach.

• July, 2021 Scouting Report
  TRACK RECORD: Nova was one of the top players in the 2016 international class and signed with the Astros for $1.2 million. He reached low Class A Quad Cities in 2019, where his athleticism and raw tools stood out more than his performance. At instructional league in 2020, Nova left scouts disappointed between his declining athleticism and performance, but the Astros still added him to their 40-man roster after the season.
  
  SCOUTING REPORT: Nova didn't show the same quick-twitch to his actions that he had shown in the past, a concern for a player whose value has been tied more to his tools than his pure hitting ability. Nova does have solid-average raw power to pull a fastball over the fence when a pitcher makes a mistake, but he struggles with pitch recognition and his free-swinging approach gets him in trouble. Nova has a strong arm for the left side of the diamond, but he has slowed down as he's filled out, leading to more concerns that he's a third baseman rather than a shortstop, with hands that need improvement to stick in the dirt.
  
  THE FUTURE: Youth is still on Nova's side to rebound as he enters his age-20 season and returns to the structure of a normal year. The 2021 season will be critical for his prospect status.
• March, 2021 Scouting Report
  TRACK RECORD: Nova was one of the top players in the 2016 international class and signed with the Astros for $1.2 million. He reached low Class A Quad Cities in 2019, where his athleticism and raw tools stood out more than his performance. At instructional league in 2020, Nova left scouts disappointed between his declining athleticism and performance, but the Astros still added him to their 40-man roster after the season.
  
  SCOUTING REPORT: Nova didn't show the same quick-twitch to his actions that he had shown in the past, a concern for a player whose value has been tied more to his tools than his pure hitting ability. Nova does have solid-average raw power to pull a fastball over the fence when a pitcher makes a mistake, but he struggles with pitch recognition and his free-swinging approach gets him in trouble. Nova has a strong arm for the left side of the diamond, but he has slowed down as he's filled out, leading to more concerns that he's a third baseman rather than a shortstop, with hands that need improvement to stick in the dirt.
  
  THE FUTURE: Youth is still on Nova's side to rebound as he enters his age-20 season and returns to the structure of a normal year. The 2021 season will be critical for his prospect status.
• December, 2020 Scouting Report
  TRACK RECORD: Nova was one of the top players in the 2016 international class and signed with the Astros for $1.2 million. He reached low Class A Quad Cities in 2019, where his athleticism and raw tools stood out more than his performance. At instructional league in 2020, Nova left scouts disappointed between his declining athleticism and performance, but the Astros still added him to their 40-man roster after the season.
  
  SCOUTING REPORT: Nova didn't show the same quick-twitch to his actions that he had shown in the past, a concern for a player whose value has been tied more to his tools than his pure hitting ability. Nova does have solid-average raw power to pull a fastball over the fence when a pitcher makes a mistake, but he struggles with pitch recognition and his free-swinging approach gets him in trouble. Nova has a strong arm for the left side of the diamond, but he has slowed down as he's filled out, leading to more concerns that he's a third baseman rather than a shortstop, with hands that need improvement to stick in the dirt.
  
  THE FUTURE: Youth is still on Nova's side to rebound as he enters his age-20 season and returns to the structure of a normal year. The 2021 season will be critical for his prospect status.
• July, 2020 Scouting Report
  TRACK RECORD: Nova was supposed to be the key player in the Marlins 2016 international class, but a positive drug test meant he instead signed with the Astros for $1.2 million, less than half of what he was supposed to receive. After a strong 2018, Nova had a more modest season in 2019, as he showed flashes of his talent but struggled with consistency.
  
  SCOUTING REPORT: Nova has a projectable body with a plus-plus arm that plays well at any infield spot. He looked truly lost at third base in 2019 and didn’t turn double plays well at second, but there are scouts who see his upright style of play defensively and project he will eventually fit best at third. At the plate, Nova has above-average bat speed and above-average power potential, but his aggressiveness gets him into big trouble. In 2019, his success depended on whether he got ahead of behind in the count. If he fell behind, pitchers knew he’d chase out of the strike zone and was an easy strikeout.
  
  THE FUTURE: Of all Astros’ minor league position players, Nova is the one with the biggest chance of being a star. Figuring out how to lay off pitches well off the plate will determine if he reaches his lofty ceiling.
• February, 2020 Scouting Report
  TRACK RECORD: Nova was supposed to be the key player in the Marlins 2016 international class, but a positive drug test meant he instead signed with the Astros for $1.2 million, less than half of what he was supposed to receive. After a strong 2018, Nova had a more modest season in 2019, as he showed flashes of his talent but struggled with consistency.
  
  SCOUTING REPORT: Nova has a projectable body with a plus-plus arm that plays well at any infield spot. He looked truly lost at third base in 2019 and didn't turn double plays well at second, but there are scouts who see his upright style of play defensively and project he will eventually fit best at third. At the plate, Nova has above-average bat speed and above-average power potential, but his aggressiveness gets him into big trouble. In 2019, his success depended on whether he got ahead of behind in the count. If he fell behind, pitchers knew he'd chase out of the strike zone and was an easy strikeout.
  
  THE FUTURE: Of all Astros' minor league position players, Nova is the one with the biggest chance of being a star. Figuring out how to lay off pitches well off the plate will determine if he reaches his lofty ceiling.
• July, 2018 Scouting Report
  Nova has made it to the States this year as he continues to show the hands, bat speed and potential power to be an above-average offensive contributor at an up-the-middle position. His ETA is likely not until after Carlos Correa is eligible for free agency in 2022, but Nova has more than handled his own in the Gulf Coast League so far and he continues to improve defensively. His hands and athleticism give him a solid shot of sticking at the position.
• December, 2017 Scouting Report
  Track Record: Nova was expected to be the centerpiece of the Marlins' 2016 international signing class before a positive steroid test pushed Miami away. The Astros then signed him for $1.5 million. His bonus was then reduced further to $1.2 million after an issue with his elbow. Nova has passed every drug test since then, while staying healthy and showing unchanged athleticism and twitchiness. Scouting Report: Nova's earliest big league ETA is some time in the 2020s, but there are few Astros prospects with more potential. He has a chance to be an impact bat who can stick at a middle-infield position. He's athletic with above-average bat speed, plus speed and a plus arm. Nova shows surprising power for a speedy teenager. Like a typical 17-year-old, he has to make strides in pitch recognition, but with his bat speed and bat-to-ball skills, he has a chance to be an above-average hitter with average power. Defensively, Nova's hands work well, he has the twitchiness for a quick first step and the arm to make plays in the hole. The Future: Nova is ready to head to play for a U.S. affiliate. The teenager faces plenty of work ahead, but he has a chance to be an impact everyday shortstop.