Spring training: when the sunlight is bright and falls upon certain players more than others. A new pitch, a new swing, or a fresh face can all capture the attention of fans and writers alike eager to emerge from the cold tyranny of a baseball-less winter.<\/p>\n
At Blue Jays spring training in 2022, Yosver Zulueta was that sensation, the buzziest pitching prospect that spring thanks to his big fastball and mysterious origins, having missed the first part of his career with a devastating back-to-back slate of injuries: first, Tommy John and then immediately after that recovery, an ACL tear. But his big fastball captivated crowds, especially on a Blue Jays staff of underwhelming velocity; MLB.com Blue Jays reporter Keegan Matheson described clusters of fellow pitchers gathering to watch his bullpens,<\/a> the deepest sign of respect for a fellow pitcher.<\/p>\n But spring training attention burns hot and fast. Zulueta, having missed such a significant chunk of developmental time, went to the low minors as a 24-year-old. Toronto promoted him aggressively up the minor-league ladder in 2022, jumping him from A ball clear up to Triple-A, but his command just never kept pace. He spent 2023 struck at Triple-A, never getting the call up for a Blue Jays bullpen that was one of the stronger units in baseball. A move to Cincinnati didn\u2019t aid his command woes.<\/p>\n The Mariners will be the next team to try to help Zulueta (zoo-loo-etta) rein in the immense potential in his right arm. For all the talk about his big fastball, it\u2019s the slider that has been more of a whiff-getter in the upper levels. It moves like a curveball, which Zulueta also throws, with some very late glove-side break that\u2019s especially tough on righties.<\/p>\n With lefties, there\u2019s a little bit of risk that slider can get right into the lefty loop zone. That puts a little more pressure on Zulueta\u2019s sinker, which comes in around 96-97 but not always where he wants it to go.<\/p>\n If all this is giving you big time Carlos Vargas flashbacks, you\u2019re not wrong. Vargas, also with primarily a sinker-slider arsenal, was a similarly stuff-y prospect the Mariners picked up in the Eugenio Su\u00e1rez salary dump trade with Arizona, dazzling with high-velocity potential but very little sense of the strike zone. Like Zulueta, Vargas came with an option, and the Mariners banished him to work on his command in Triple-A Tacoma before giving him a longer look this season.<\/p>\n