Cubs prospect Alzolay has ace potential

Adbert Alzolay didn't pick up a baseball until he was 6 years old, when his grandfather introduced him to the game. Now 22, the Venezuelan right-hander is someone the Cubs are keeping an eye on.

Ranked No. 3 among Cubs prospects by chicagocubsjerseyshop.us, Alzolay was pitching for the Mesa Chicago Cubs Jerseys Solar Sox in the Arizona Fall League. He went 7-1 with a 2.98 ERA in 15 starts at Class A Myrtle Beach last season and posted a 3.03 ERA in seven starts at Double-A Tennessee.

"If he reaches his potential, he will someday be one of the five [starters], and closer to than five," Cubs president Anthony Rizzo Jerseys of baseball operations Theo Epstein said of Alzolay, describing him as "an interesting high-ceiling starting pitcher."

"He's an exciting, young kid with high character and electric stuff," Epstein said. "He's got a great starter kit and will pitch at the upper levels of the farm system next year."

Alzolay has come a long way. He never considered baseball until his grandfather took him to a diamond. Alzolay played third base and the outfield, but at 13, he told his parents he was going to pitch.

chicagocubsjerseyshop.us's Jim Callis Addison Russell Jerseys discusses Cubs prospect Adbert Alzolay and his potential impact on the team

"I said, 'Dad, I just want to pitch. I like to pitch,'" Alzolay said. "My father said, 'It's up to you. If you want to do it, you should try.'"

Alzolay's approach at that time was to throw as hard as he could, firing fastballs nonstop. Marwin Gonzalez's father, Mario, a scout for the Rays in Venezuela, offered Alzolay some guidance when the pitcher was 16.

"He said, 'I know you have an opportunity to sign as a professional baseball player,'" Alzolay said. "I started to practice every day, building up, building up."

He signed with Leones de Caracas, a Venezuelan Winter League team, which is where the Cubs scouts saw him.

"They called my dad, and said, 'We want to try out your son in five days,'" Alzolay said. "That was real quick. My dad talked to me and said, 'You have a great opportunity.' I was super excited."

Alzolay Javier Baez Jerseys was one of several players at the Cubs' academy in Venezuela, and the right-hander was the first to throw.

"I was super nervous," he said. "I just threw like 12 pitches, and the scout said, 'That's it.' I said, 'Really?' After the tryout, they called my dad and said, 'We need to talk.'"



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