Showing off new arsenal, Gage Ziehl is one call away from majors

Being traded twice in an eight-month span would be tough on anybody. For Gage Ziehl, the timing was all the more difficult. Headed into his second professional season, Ziehl was acquired by the Red Sox in a deal with Chicago on February 1st, a time when most minor leaguers have already reported to training camps around the league. It made for a quite an experience in his welcome to the Boston organization. 

"I have been with three organizations now in just over two years of pro ball," Ziehl said. "It has been tough to pack up your whole life and go find another spot and just have to fit in and keep it moving. The whole trade experience here was a bit crazy. I trained in Florida over the offseason and had already shipped my car to Arizona for White Sox camp. I was about to board my connecting flight to Arizona when I got a call asking if I had already booked a flight out. I had already boarded and on the runway when I got a call from the Assistant General Manager from Chicago saying I had been traded. I couldn’t get off the plane by this point. So, I made my flight and shipped my car to Fort Myers and was there the next day. It has been great here with the Red Sox since I got here. The communication has been great since early on. They have been awesome with collaborating on what I have wanted to get better with. I think it has showed so far this year."

After a crazy start to his spring that involved meeting new teammates, coaches, development staff, and a new place to live, Ziehl was assigned to Double-A Portland. There, he got off to a slow start amid some frigid weather before turning it around once things warmed up.

"The first little bit of the year was a little rough for me," Ziehl said. "I was able to hit a smooth spot and had a couple of good outings in a row. Unfortunately, the game before the All-Star break didn’t go my way, but we moved past that and I am excited for the second half. It was nice to have the break to reset a little. It is important to just have a couple of days where you just don’t do much. It was more of a mental and physical reset that I needed."

Ziehl really showed out in the month of June, when he was named the SoxProspect.com Pitcher of the Month after carrying a 1.66 ERA over 2.2 innings pitched. Over that span, the right-hander struck out 23 batters and only walked 3. He held batters to a .192/.241/.308 line over the month as well.

"Gage has done a really good job learning & adapting in his 2nd season," Portland Assistant Pitching Coach Isaiah Page said. "Although he’s moved around teams early in his career, I think that’s helped him learn what works for him & what doesn’t. But also having an open mind about any suggestions we may have as a coaching staff. He’s also incredibly intelligent & an excellent critical thinker. Throughout the first two months of the season, we were able to present Gage with information & suggestions, and he has made the most of it with them. Whether it be some usage changes we’ve done with his arsenal, some mechanical tweaks, or routines throughout his week leading up to his start. He has done a great job being his own coach in the best way."

The good stretch continued into July and August and it ultimately led Ziehl to getting a promotion to Triple-A Worcester. What happened to click for the Miami product that has him one call away from the big leagues?

"I think my strike throwing ability and the ability to throw my six pitches in the zone is something they really liked," Ziehl said. "My newest pitch is my sinker and that is something that I have really wanted to throw. The Yankees did not want me to throw it last year. My arm slot got too high and it was not easy for me to anyway. A lot of my pitches were just a cutting action for me last year. When I went to the White Sox, they told me that my arm slot was getting a little too high. They helped me lower it and I saw some success with that and carried that into the offseason as one of my goals to make my arm a little lower. It would make my fastball play a little better with some VAA. Last year, we canned my fastball eight games into the season. I brought it back this year and it plays well with my sinker to righties, which is something I struggled with last year. I was getting beaten to death by righties. I was able to own lefties last year with my cutter, but now I am able to throw the sinker and fastball to protect my sweeper."

Photo Credit: Gage Ziehl by Kelly O'Connor

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