For all 2016 Prospect Ranking Scouting Reports – click here (these will come out one a day over the offseason).
It would be tough for the season to have gotten out to a better start for Zack Weiss. The Cincinnati Reds sent the right handed reliever to their new Advanced-A affiliate in Daytona. In each of his first five relief appearances he would have multiple strikeouts without allowing a hit in 7.1 innings over that span. In the final three outings of the month of April he’d give up two hits and strike out five batters over 3.1 innings to complete a the month with a 0.00 ERA in 10.2 innings with just two hits allowed, one walk and he would strike out 20 of the 34 batters he would face (59%).
May would pick up right where April left off. In what would be his final appearance for Daytona, Weiss would pick up another pair of strikeouts in a perfect inning of work. He would be promoted to Double-A Pensacola. In his first three outings with the Blue Wahoos things went well, tossing 2.1 shutout innings with a walk and three strikeouts. Over the next eight days the wheels fell off. In four straight games he would allow at least one run, including four in 0.2 innings on the 20th. After getting three days off after that rough patch he closed out the month with two perfect innings over two games against Mississippi on the road. That rough stretch ballooned his ERA to 6.75 on the month over 9.1 innings with three walks and eight strikeouts.
June began with a shutout frame of work on the road against Mobile, but when the Blue Wahoos returned home Weiss would allowed two runs in an inning of work against Jacksonville. He would rebound well, throwing two perfect innings with two strikeouts against the Suns the next time out. The right hander would make five more appearances in the month, allowing just one run as he completed June with a 2.70 ERA in 10.0 innings. He would walk just two batters in the span and strike out 13 of the 38 hitters that he faced.
The first two weeks of July saw Weiss appear in six games. He would only allow two hits, a walk and a run in 6.1 innings over that span with seven strikeouts. In the final two weeks (and a few extra days) he would make seven more appearances for Pensacola, racking up four saves and a win. In 8.2 innings he allowed two runs and struck out 14 batters. July would be a workhorse type of month for the reliever as he pitched 15.0 innings with a 1.80 ERA, four walks and had 21 strikeouts.
For the third straight month, the second appearance of the month would result in an earned run allowed for Weiss. It would be the only earned run he would allow over his final 15 games of the season. In all 15 games he would record at least one strikeout, with nine games featuring multiple strikeouts. In total he would throw 18.2 innings with a 0.48 ERA, allow just eight hits and five walks while striking out 28 of the 66 batters he saw (42%), capping off an incredible season.
Between the two stops, Zack Weiss posted a 1.98 ERA in 63.2 innings pitched to go along with a 0.90 WHIP, just 15 walks and 90 strikeouts. He racked up 30 saves between the two levels, putting up one of the more dominant relief seasons in recent memory.
| ERA | IP | H | HR | BB | K | WHIP |
| 1.98 | 63.2 | 42 | 5 | 15 | 90 | 0.90 |
Scouting Report
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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.
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