Athleticism Helps Royals’ Steven Zobac Shine In Pro Ball
The Royals knew that California righthander Steven Zobac was not as advanced as other Division I pitchers when they drafted him in the fourth round in 2022.
This was true mostly because he was a two-way player in his first two Pacific-12 Conference seasons.
Zobac’s development plan in pro ball more closely resembled the slow build-up of a high school pitcher.
Part of the change in Zobac’s mindset in becoming a full-time pitcher was his knowledge of just how difficult it is to hit. He started thinking less as a hitter and more as a pitcher.
“I’ve gotten to the point where I don’t have to think that much on the mound,” Zobac said. “I just need to repeat the same movement on the same pitch in order to get the outcome I’m wanting . . .
“I’ve gone from a more hitting-dominant perspective to a pitching-dominant perspective.”
Using his effective three-pitch mix—fastball, slider and changeup—the 23-year-old Zobac reached Double-A Northwest Arkansas in mid July this year.
His results have been outstanding, most notably his command. He walks very few batters, which manifested in 58 strikeouts and 15 walks in 70.2 innings for High-A Quad Cities this season. Just five High-A starters had a lower walk rate.
Through 105 innings this year, he had a 3.43 ERA and 1.05 WHIP. His 20 K-BB% was among the best in the minor leagues.
Royals director of pitching performance Paul Gibson credits Zobac’s athleticism.
“Without that athleticism, the growth rate would be much slower,” Gibson said.
Gibson also attributes Zobac’s rapid advancement to his cerebral approach, citing his aptitude and ability to game-plan using details he keeps in a notebook.
“He fields his position and holds runners,” Gibson said. “There’s a lot of really good things that come out of the athleticism and his intelligence.”
Zobac also learned valuable lessons from his twin sister Kasey, who was a softball player at Cal.
“She’s very level-headed,” Zobac said. “She’s got more of my mom in her . . . she helped me with the mental game.”
Now he’s just hoping that Kasey, a catcher during her years at Cal, will finally agree to catch his workouts in the offseason.
ROYALTIES
— With the Rookie-level complex leagues ending their seasons in late July, the so-called bridge league or continuation camp—or sometimes instructional league, for old time’s sake—has seen each of the 15 organizations based in Arizona playing informal games three to four times a week at their complexes.
The Royals’ bridge roster initially consisted of 52 names, mostly players from the Arizona Complex League team, 2024 draft picks and undrafted free agent signees.
— First-rounder Jac Caglianone played his first two games in a Royals uniform in a pair of bridge league games in early August before reporting to High-A Quad Cities. The Florida slugger hit an impressive double to the right-field fence at the White Sox’s complex in his first at-bat in a Royals uniform. He followed that with a single and pop-up to right field.
