York’s Nick Clayton commits to play baseball at Clemson

Fans leaning on fences or sitting in bleachers this spring may not be able to pick out York’s Nick Clayton as the “kid committed to Clemson.”

Cougars coach Eddie Tisdale said the sophomore isn’t flashy, doesn’t wear all the cool baseball gear and needs to add 15 to 20 pounds in the next two years. But Clayton, 6-foot-3 and about 160 pounds, looks like a Clemson baseball commitment in other less obvious ways.

“He hasn’t missed a weight-lifting optional or mandatory session in the two years that I’ve had him on the varsity team,” said Tisdale. “He’s always one of the first guys out to the field doing all of his stuff, and one of the last guys to leave.”

Tisdale announced Monday morning that Clayton has committed to play college ball for the Tigers. Clayton may be relatively unknown in this area but he plays his showcase baseball with a team based in North Carolina, and he’s only in 10th grade. He played second base for Tisdale’s varsity team last year, batting over .300 and getting the win with a complete game in his only start on the mound, against Gilbert.

Expect to hear a lot more about Clayton this season, and not just because of his recent news.

Tisdale plans to use him at pitcher much more. The Cougars coach and former Winthrop pitcher said Clayton has a loose arm action and a tight spinning slider, and called him “as well-balanced a pitcher as I’ve ever coached.” Clayton doesn’t lean on just power pitching or off-speed, junky stuff. His ability to keep batters off balance is intriguing to scouts.

“The kid can pitch. He’s probably - definitely - gonna see more innings for us this year,” said Tisdale, correcting himself. “He’s gonna find himself in some big spots for us this year.”

This story was originally published December 19, 2016 at 12:05 PM with the headline "York’s Nick Clayton commits to play baseball at Clemson."