Tim Rogers
There are some prospects that we have written about before much have baseball had heard about them. Remember when we wrote about Ryan Pepiot (here), Darien Nunez (here), and Justin Bruihl (here)? Two of them have now made their MLB debut and the other one is one of the top pitching prospects in baseball. I think we have found another fast-rising prospect who has flown under-the-radar, former collegiate catcher and now a Double-A level prospect, Zack Plunkett. For our full interview please check it out on YouTube. Plunkett tells some great stories.
Path To The Dodgers
Zack Plunkett was born and raised in Texas who was able to be recruited and attend a dream school, Texas Christian University. Throughout his baseball career, all the way through college, Plunkett was a catcher. At TCU he was caught behind a Team USA catcher and eventually transferred to Arkansas. Even at Arkansas, he was stuck behind another Team USA catcher. He was drafted by the Diamondbacks after his Junior year but went back to school. During his senior year, he decided to try and throw a bullpen since he’d always had a strong arm. One thing lead to another and he found himself drafted by the Dodgers as a relief pitcher in 2019.
Dodgers Career
Plunkett found himself playing in the Arizona League with the Dodgers in his first professional season. In 10.2 innings pitched he only gave up 6 hits and struck out 18 batters. Like most minor leaguers, his 2020 season was washed out by COVID-19. In some ways, it worked out for Plunkett as he ended up hurting his elbow and had to have surgery. In 2021 he started at Great Lakes in High-A and was promoted to Tulsa in Double-A.
Pitching Style
Zack Plunkett striking out the last hitter to lock down the save for Great Lakes, the first of his career! pic.twitter.com/wcq0KJcFEk
— Josh Thomas (@jokeylocomotive) July 11, 2021
Plunkett was blessed with a 97 MPH fastball that sits between 94 and 96 MPH. He has developed a slider and a split-finger fastball. It does look like the plan is for him to stay as a reliever. As a relatively new pitcher, Plunkett is making excellent progress as he learns more about how to pitch. For the moment, he is sticking with three pitches but could be open to a fourth like a cutter. In the video on YouTube Plunkett goes into some deep details about his pitching experience.
Final Thoughts
The YouTube video interview allows Zack Plunkett to tell some of his excellent stories on his career path. There are a lot of details in there so please watch it.
You can find Zack on social media on Twitter ( @zack_plunk48 ) and Instagram ( @zack_plunk48 ). We at Dodgers 2080 want to thank Zack Plunkett for his time and for his excellent interview. Let’s hope we can see him at Dodger Stadium making his MLB debut, soon.
