Caglianone swaps jerseys with old friend at Spring Breakout

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. -- When Royals top prospect and MLB¡¯s No. 22 prospect Jac Caglianone stepped to the plate in the seventh inning Friday night, he saw the D-backs' outfielders take a step back. Well, maybe a few steps back.

Arizona pitcher Philip Abner, watching from the dugout, thought that was probably smart.

"Everything he hits,¡± Abner said, ¡°is hard.¡±

Abner, Caglianone's former teammate and roommate at the University of Florida, knows this all too well. Sure enough, Caglianone did indeed hit the snot out of a fastball from D-backs prospect Daniel Eagen, a 109.6 mph rocket that headed straight for the glove of left fielder Anderdson Rojas.

Another hard-hit out on an unusually chilly night in Scottsdale, one of several for the Royals¡¯ prospects in their 5-2 loss to the D-backs' prospects in their Spring Breakout game.

"When I hit it and didn¡¯t see the left fielder move, that¡¯s such a bad feeling,¡± Caglianone said, laughing. ¡°But I was just trying to not do too much. Took that first hack on a curveball, then just had to reset. Hit that ball really hard. Just right where they were standing."

Caglianone went 1-for-4 and played all eight innings the Royals were in the field at first base.

After the game, Caglianone and Abner, who didn¡¯t pitch Friday, swapped jerseys behind home plate. They were set on making it happen after finding out the D-backs would host the Royals in the second year of Spring Breakout.

Caglianone was hoping to face Abner, whom the D-backs selected in the sixth round of the 2023 Draft out of Florida, a year before Caglianone went to the Royals with the No. 6 overall pick.

"This is an important game, especially against the Royals with Jac, and it¡¯s just fun to be a part of it even if we didn¡¯t get to face each other,¡± Abner said.

"You couldn¡¯t have drawn it up any better,¡± Caglianone added. ¡°Especially with the jersey swap. It¡¯s always nice to see Phil. We had two years together at Florida and they were super fun and memorable. It¡¯s cool to see him again and do this."

Caglianone did record a knock off Abner in the Arizona Fall League last year, so he still holds bragging rights over his fellow Gator.

"Good extension, good curveball,¡± Caglianone said of Abner. ¡°He¡¯s got like a cut-ride heater, so it kind of plays games with your mind when you see it come in because it looks like it¡¯ll break, but it won¡¯t.¡±

But Abner knows what he wants to do when he is able to face Caglianone again.

"In the Fall League, I blew him up with a fastball, and then he smacked another fastball,¡± Abner said. ¡°Definitely next time I've got to get some breaking balls away, try to get some swing-and-miss. You can only throw Jac so many fastballs before he smacks one.¡±

Mozzicato¡¯s velocity
Frank Mozzicato had to wait his turn to pitch on Friday, but it was worth the wait. The Royals¡¯ No. 12 prospect struck out two in the final two innings, and what stood out almost as much as the two zeros he threw on the board was the velocity that was flashing up there.

Mozzicato topped out at 93.7 mph and averaged 92.4 mph. At High-A Quad Cities last year, Mozzicato was throwing 88-89 mph with his fastball, leading to some concerning underlying metrics despite the 3.45 ERA he posted over 22 starts. His strikeout rate dipped to 21.3%, while his walk rate remained high at 14.5%.

A focus this offseason on his mindset on the mound and mentality off it has Mozzicato pitching ¡°freer¡± this spring, he said. And the Royals have zeroed in on Mozzicato¡¯s delivery, trying to shorten his arm action, to lead to better command.

Time will tell if all the work Mozzicato has done in the offseason and so far this spring will pay off for the left-hander, the Royals¡¯ first-round pick in 2021. He¡¯ll likely be heading to Double-A to begin the season, where better hitters will challenge him. But he certainly looked the part Friday night, mowing down three batters in the seventh inning and working around a walk and a single in the eighth.

"Last year, I learned a lot about myself and really honed in on my mechanics and how I¡¯m feeling,¡± Mozzicato said. ¡°So I definitely think it¡¯s in me. But what¡¯s most important is getting outs at the end of the day. That¡¯s what they pay you for."

Vazquez is ¡®fast¡¯
Daniel Vazquez, the Royals¡¯ No. 27 prospect, was 2-for-4 with a walk and a run scored and tried to get things going for the Kansas City offense when he tripled in the sixth inning. He was ready for a 2-0 fastball and got one in the zone, smoking it the opposite way into the right-field corner.

The Royals¡¯ second baseman was thinking double out of the box, but hit the gas when he saw the ball go down the line.

"And I am fast,¡± Vazquez said. ¡°This game was pretty fun. I had a good time with my team and facing [the D-backs], who have good players. Everyone on the field was good. The competition was really good.¡±

The Royals were aggressive when they sent Vazquez to Single-A Columbia as an 18-year-old. Three seasons later, he looks to finally be ready for the next level. Now 21, Vazquez is bigger, stronger and faster and seems to have made improvements with his swing to be ready for High-A this year.

While Vazquez is by no means a finished product and still needs to see improvement for him to reach his ceiling, he¡¯s hitting more line drives now, can work a walk like he did in the ninth inning Friday and create some chaos on the bases when needed.