2016 began on a good note for Zack Weiss. The Cincinnati Reds invited the right handed pitcher to big league spring training and he made it into two games, throwing 3.0 innings with a walk and two strikeouts. Then he started feeling something in his elbow.
When I talked with him late in spring training things didn’t seem serious and he told me that he was only expecting to miss a few weeks before joining a team in the minor leagues. That didn’t happen. When we spoke again late in April he was still rehabbing, said things were coming along and that he hoped it wouldn’t be much longer.
It never came to be and the top reliever in the Reds system entering the year never threw a pitch in the 2016 season. When speaking to the Reds after the season they were hopeful that he would be healthy and ready to go in spring training, noting that he just never felt right during the season.
It is a lost season for sure, but he never had surgery even if he never was able to “get right”. That’s a small victory of sorts in a season that was full of bad news.
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Zack Weiss Scouting Report
Below is the scouting report from after the 2015 season, when Zack Weiss was completely healthy.
Fastball | The pitch works in the 92-94 MPH range and touches 96 MPH. Not only does it show above-average velocity it’s got sink and armside run as well.
Slider | An above-average offering that works in the mid 80’s. It’s a hardslider that bites downward.
Curveball | The second breaking ball for Weiss is an average offering with two plane breaking action that works in the mid-to-upper 70’s.
Change Up | A fringe-average offering that works in the mid 80’s. He sells it well with his arm action, but it doesn’t have too much movement on it.
Weiss relies more on his fastball and slider combination, but will work in his curveball and change up on certain nights, giving hitters a lot to think about from a reliever. His fastball plays up due to the movement he generates to go along with his velocity. While his lack of plus velocity may suggest he’s more of an 8th inning guy than a closer, he misses a lot of bats and has control that could give him a chance to earn the closer role in the future at the big league level.
There is obviously some risk here given how his 2016 played out on the health front. When healthy, Weiss is polished, near big league ready and shows plenty of stuff. If he’s back to full health in 2017 expect to see him in the big leagues rather quickly.