Scouting Report

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Scouting grades: Fastball: 50 | Slider: 50 | Changeup: 45 | Control: 50 | Overall: 40 

Zobac began his college career at California as a two-way player, a corner outfielder who pitched as a reliever in both the shortened 2020 season and the full 2021 campaign. Focusing only on pitching in 2022, Zobac started out as the Bears’ Saturday starter, moved back into a bullpen role and then really helped his Draft profile by finishing the year starting on Fridays with back-to-back shutout starts against New Mexico and Utah (13 IP, 6 H, 3 BB, 23 K), which really gave scouts an idea that his stuff could work in a rotation.

The 6-foot-3 Zobac showed an ability to fill the strike zone with a full repertoire of pitches this season. He leaned heavily on his fastball, throwing the low-90s offering more than two-thirds of the time, topping out at 96 mph. He backed it up with a low-80s slider with decent bite that missed bats more frequently, a pitch he could subtract from to give it more of a curveball feel. He didn't throw it a ton, but he showed feel for a changeup that could get hitters out in front, eliciting weak contact on the ground.

A focus on pitching certainly seemed to help Zobac’s command, as he cut his walk rate considerably this past season. The former outfielder’s athleticism plays on the mound, with a repeatable delivery and the likelihood of solid strike-throwing in the future, giving him the chance to start long-term.

Scouting grades: Fastball: 55 | Slider: 55 | Changeup: 45 | Control: 60 | Overall: 45

An outfielder who pitched sparingly until his junior year at the University of California, Zobac showed enough upside when he focused on pitching his junior season that the Royals took him in the fourth round of the 2022 Draft, signing him to a $500,000 bonus. In his first full season, he dominated Single-A and faded down the stretch at High-A, with a 3.47 ERA across the two levels over 90 2/3 innings. He made 22 appearances (18 starts) and had just a 6.4 percent walk rate.

Zobac sits 93-95 mph with his fastball, but he can flash upper-90s with good carry. He has an above-average slider in the mid-80s that misses bats. His changeup is fringe-average as a work in progress but it has the potential to get lefties out. Zobac has a smooth and repeatable delivery with impeccable command -- he knows exactly where to locate his stuff and usually executes it. As he’s relatively new to pitching, the Royals built Zobac up cautiously through the season, but he still fatigued at the end getting used to a starter’s workload. With the foundation from last year, he should be more accustomed and in line to make more starts from the beginning of the season.

Even as a college pitcher, Zobac might not move as quickly because of his newness to the mound, though it's been impressive to see him reach (and succeed at Double-A in 2024). But he possesses some exciting pitchability, and evaluators see starter upside if he continues to work on his changeup for a third pitch. His fastball-slider combination would fit well in the bullpen.

Scouting grades: Fastball: 50 | Slider: 50 | Changeup: 45 | Control: 60 | Overall: 40

Zobac began his time at California as a two-way player but became a full-time pitcher by his junior year in 2022, alternating between the rotation and bullpen that spring. His season ended on a high with back-to-back shutouts against New Mexico and Utah, and he carried that momentum into the Draft when the Royals selected him in the fourth round and signed him for around slot at $500,000. He posted a 2.09 ERA with 61 strikeouts and only 12 walks in 51 2/3 innings at Single-A Columbia to begin his first full season and was promoted to High-A Quad Cities in mid-July.

The 6-foot-3 right-hander sits around 92-95 mph with his four-seam fastball and always spots it well, something that frustrated Carolina League hitters to no end. He plays off it with a slider around 10 mph slower, and the breaker dips well low and away against righties and backfooted against lefties. He’ll feature a low-80s changeup too, but it isn’t at the same quality of the other two -- a fact backed up by lefties posting an OPS almost 170 points higher than righties against Zobac as of late July.

The former Golden Bear’s best skill will always be his ability to work in the zone. His delivery features simple, repeatable mechanics -- looking almost like Justin Verlander out of the windup -- and that should help pump strikes at every level up the Kansas City chain. Some sharper stuff would certainly strengthen his case as a No. 4/5 starter, and that should be the focus in the coming years.

Awards

MID Pitcher of the Month

Month	Team
06/2024

MID Pitcher of the Week

Week	Team
04/21/2024

CAR Pitcher of the Month

Month	Team
04/2023

Transactions

Team	Date	Transaction
	07/09/2024	RHP Steven Zobac assigned to Northwest Arkansas Naturals from Quad Cities River Bandits.
	03/07/2024	Kansas City Royals Prospects activated RHP Steven Zobac.
	07/18/2023	RHP Steven Zobac assigned to Quad Cities River Bandits from Columbia Fireflies.
	04/03/2023	RHP Steven Zobac assigned to Columbia Fireflies from ACL Royals.
	12/01/2022	RHP Steven Zobac assigned to ACL Royals.
	07/24/2022	Kansas City Royals signed RHP Steven Zobac.
	06/07/2022	College Workout activated RHP Steven Zobac.
	06/07/2022	RHP Steven Zobac assigned to College Workout.
	06/07/2022	College Workout activated RHP Steven Zobac.
	02/09/2022	RHP Steven Zobac and assigned to California Golden Bears.