The MLB All-Star game is almost upon us!
With the event quickly approaching, the MLB announced roster for the MLB All-Stars Futures Game, which includes Blue Jays pitchers.
Ready to Represent ⭐️
Robberse and Zulueta are going to the @MLB All-Star Futures Game! pic.twitter.com/Psmdwn1Y4V
— Toronto Blue Jays (@BlueJays) June 26, 2023
Let’s take a look at Sem Robberse and Yosver Zulueta’s season so far.
The Pitching Dutchman Sem Robberse is a 21-year-old righty pitching with the Double-A New Hampshire Fisher Cats. in 67.1 innings pitched, he has a 4.54 ERA and a 4.95 FIP. Moreover his 23.2 K% is up from 18.3% in Double-A last season, while his BB% is down from 9.6% to 9.2% this season.
Here’s Sem Robberse (@SemRobberse)’s strikeout thread from this evening.
I believe this was the changeup.#BlueJays #NextLevel pic.twitter.com/BOMwgrfWrH
— Brennan Delaney (@Brennan_L_D) June 13, 2023
While the ERA doesn’t sparkle by any means, Robberse is -3.5 years younger than the average pitcher in Double-A, and doesn’t look out of place.
He has a five pitch mix, a two-seam and a four-seam fastball, a slider, a curveball, and a changeup. He throws all pitches for strikes, and generates a decent amount of swing and miss. Robberse is a guy who has a high floor. Like Buck Martinez said, Robberse is just a pitcher.
HAHA WE GOT A “Sem Robberse is a pitcher”!!
Told you.#BlueJayspic.twitter.com/TBN3PobvRu pic.twitter.com/waMZBZsd5s
— Brennan Delaney (@Brennan_L_D) March 3, 2023
The 25-year-old flame-throwing righty was highly touted coming into the 2023 season, but has lost a bit of his luster as the season has worn on.
The Cuban has a 4.34 ERA and a 4.70 FIP in 37.1 innings pitched this season. While his 23.9 K% is solid, albeit much lower than 2022’s K%, his walk rate has remained an issue, as he has a 17.6 BB%.
Here’s Yosver Zulueta (@YosverZulueta1)’s strikeout (thread) from this evening.
86.4 mph slider for the swing and miss#BlueJays #NextLevel pic.twitter.com/qyBhZQpKBX
— Brennan Delaney (@Brennan_L_D) June 15, 2023
In fact, Zulueta started the season in the rotation, but has been moved to the bullpen to pitch in a bulk role.
Furthermore, Zulueta attended last season’s Futures Game and picked up the win. He only threw one pitch that generated the inning-ending out, so this may be an attempt to make up for what happened last season.
Although results haven’t exactly gone the way for either pitcher, both of them are intriguing prospects. Zulueta sits in the high-90s and has touched 100 mph, with a nasty slider and curveball and a good changeup.
Robberse’s numbers aren’t great on paper, but he’s holding his own in a league where he is significantly younger than the average pitcher. Furthermore, his stuff is good, and he has a real shot at filling the back-end of the rotation in a couple of seasons, and maybe even more!
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