Mason Hickman

Draft Prospects

• Ranked #161 prospect in 2020 draft
  It’s possible that Hickman isn’t even the second-most famous pitcher on Vanderbilt’s 2020 staff, with underclassmen righthanders Kumar Rocker and Jack Leiter drawing so much attention. But while he’s not as flashy as his 2021 counterparts, Hickman is one of the most reliable starters in the nation and Vanderbilt's Friday arm in 2020. His reliability goes back to his days as a high school pitcher. Hickman was a consistent performer on the summer showcase circuit back in 2017—when he punched out players like Mark Vientos and Drew Waters at Area Code Games—where he showed extremely advanced command despite middling pure stuff. That’s largely the pitcher Hickman is today. A 6-foot-6, 230-pound righthander, Hickman only touches 91 mph, and he more typically sits in the 88-90 mph range, but his ‘heater’ is an invisiball that frequently stymies hitters. Hickman also throws both a curveball and a slider and has shown the makings of a changeup as well, but all of his secondaries are fringey at best, to go along with well below-average fastball velocity. Despite his stuff, Hickman has a career 3.13 ERA at Vanderbilt over 29 starts and 189.2 innings, with 221 strikeouts (10.5 per nine) to 61 walks (2.9 per nine). Scouts say Hickman could have 60-grade command, which is extremely rare to put on amateur pitchers, but helps explain how he’s had the success he’s had in the SEC. A fun player to watch who grows on you the more you see him carve up lineups, scouts praise Hickman’s competitive nature and demeanor on the mound and believe his advanced feel for pitching will allow him to make the most out of his admittedly limited toolset.
• Ranked #437 prospect in 2017 draft
  On the amateur scouting circuit, Hickman was among the best performers in the nation. Between the East Coast Pro Showcase and the Area Code Games, Hickman struck out 13 of the 21 batters he faced--he even punched out potential day one draft picks Mark Vientos and Drew Waters. Hickman is a physical specimen at 6-foot-5 with broad shoulders and durable look to build. He shows excellent present fastball command and athleticism, getting down the mound well and generating excellent extension towards the plate. His fastball worked at 88-91 mph in the summer, but was more in the upper 80s this spring. He shows a sharp 11-to-5 breaking ball that he manipulates well. His lack of overwhelming velocity on the radar gun and the stabbing motion of his arm action give scouts pause, but Hickman's deception and outstanding command should allow him to be an immediate contributor in college. He's committed to Vanderbilt.