Mazur hopes deep repertoire sets him apart at Marlins camp

JUPITER, Fla. ¨C Need a pitch? Call Marlins prospect Adam Mazur. At this point, he practically knows them all.

Mazur decided to showcase his latest offering ¨C the sweeper ¨C a handful of times in Thursday afternoon¡¯s 8-4 Grapefruit League loss to the Cardinals at Roger Dean Chevrolet Stadium.

¡°For me, it's just trying to get better,¡± Mazur said. ¡°I want to do whatever I can to get guys out, because at the end of the day, as a pitcher, that's all that matters is how many outs I can get each and every time I go out there.¡±

Mazur was efficient on Thursday, throwing 27 pitches (19 strikes) over two innings. In his second spring outing, he was able to utilize nearly his entire arsenal: the four-seamer, curveball, changeup, slider and sweeper. Statcast didn¡¯t register a two-seamer.

After a perfect fourth that featured two strikeouts ¨C one via the curve and another via the slider ¨C Mazur permitted a leadoff single in the fifth to Willson Contreras on a two-strike sweeper. Following a forceout (curve) and a strikeout (changeup), Pedro Pag¨¦s doubled (four-seam) on a ball that center fielder Andrew Pintar couldn¡¯t catch. Mazur then induced an inning-ending lineout (curve) to escape further damage.

¡°I think he changed speeds well, used the fastball appropriately,¡± manager Clayton McCullough said. ¡°He was striking with his breaking ball. Very efficient couple of innings, so quality stuff from Maze today.¡±

The 23-year-old Mazur, who spent the offseason refining his curveball and changeup, began working on his latest breaking pitch during a bullpen session last week. Using a standard sweeper grip, Mazur hopes to see more horizontal movement and slower velocity compared to his traditional slider. The release is a little higher than usual, so it creates more depth.

Learning on the fly is nothing new for the quick study Mazur.

Last Spring Training, Mazur introduced a curveball that he wound up using during the season. After his start against the Nationals on June 25, the Padres¡¯ pitching coaches worked on a sinker during catch play. Toward the back half of the season, Mazur focused on that offering.

The more comfortable Mazur can get with a pitch, the more likely he can turn to it in a game. That will keep hitters ¨C both lefty and righty ¨C guessing with a balanced mix.

¡°[It shows he has a] feel for pitching, and the openness,¡± McCullough said. ¡°Good for him. We've encouraged him and others [that if] you are experimenting with some pitches or different grips, this is the time to go out there and do it. So today was great. He was able to land it for strikes and get some below. So it's a good step.¡±

It¡¯s a good look for Mazur, who is in his first big league camp with the Marlins.

A year ago, Mazur went from dominating at the Double-A level (1.95 ERA) to reaching the Majors with the Padres. He started eight times over the summer (7.49 ERA) for San Diego before Miami acquired him in the Tanner Scott/Bryan Hoeing trade ahead of the Deadline. The Marlins sent Mazur to Triple-A Jacksonville, where he posted a 5.21 ERA and a 1.29 WHIP in eight starts.

¡°He has a lot of weapons,¡± president of baseball operations Peter Bendix said. ¡°Throws 95 [mph], four-pitch mix, throws them all for strikes, doesn't walk anybody, strikes out a lot of hitters and has kind of done that through his entire career, except for a very short stint in his big league debut. I think that he's got a lot of potential to both take his current arsenal and get hitters out, as well as make improvements beyond that.¡±

Miami¡¯s rotation projects as ace Sandy Alcantara, followed by Ryan Weathers, Edward Cabrera and Cal Quantrill in a yet-to-be-announced order. The fifth spot is up for grabs, with Mazur competing alongside Max Meyer and Valente Bellozo.

Mazur isn¡¯t thinking too much about it. His goal is to be consistent and stack good days. Even if he doesn¡¯t make the Opening Day roster, the Marlins are going to need more than five starting pitchers over the course of a 162-game season.

¡°I'm kind of just approaching every day as a new opportunity to come out and show why I belong with the Marlins,¡± Mazur said. ¡°It's an exciting time, exciting opportunity, and I'm looking forward to continuing on this spring.¡±