Steven Zobac

Organization Prospect Rankings

• 
  Ranked Kansas City Royals #28 prospect in 2024
  BA Grade: 40/High
  
  Track Record: Zobac was initially a two-way player at California who didn’t focus solely on pitching until his third year. His stuff and draft stock both jumped, and the Royals signed the athletic righthander to a $500,000 bonus in the fourth round in 2022. He posted a 3.47 ERA in 90.2 innings across the Royals’ two Class A Affiliates in 2023 despite fading down the stretch with High-A Quad Cities, posting a 6.04 ERA over his last six starts.
  
  Scouting Report: Zobac pairs well above-average athleticism with a very cerebral mental approach to pitching. His four-seam fastball was a valuable pitch in 2023. His heater sits in the mid 90s and can touch 97 mph with excellent life and above-average ride. He complements the fastball with a potentially plus slider in the mid-to-upper 80s. He rounds out his three-pitch mix with a fringe-average changeup in the low 80s in which he still lacks confidence. He has a simple, repeatable delivery and walked just 6.4% of batters in 2023.
  
  The Future: Zobac is newer to pitching than a typical 23-year-old college hurler, so he may not move as quickly as his counterparts and could likely head back to High-A to start the 2024 season.
  
  Scouting Grades Fastball: 55 | Slider: 55 | Changeup: 45 | Control: 50
• 
  Ranked Kansas City Royals #29 prospect in 2023
  BA Grade/Risk: 45/Extreme
  
  Track Record: The Zobac family had their version of double trouble at California the last three years, as Steven pitched for the baseball team while twin sister Casey played on the Golden Bears softball team. After moving between the mound and the outfield for his first two college seasons, Zobac focused strictly on pitching in 2022--that move allowed his stuff to jump up. He saw his first Royals mound action during the fall instructional league.
  
  Scouting Report: Zobac has an exciting arm with a lot of upside, especially now that he's no longer a two-way player and will get more pitching experience. The fastball is a potential plus pitch, sitting 95 mph and touching 97. It doesn't have much side-to-side movement but has solid carry. It's easy velocity as the ball comes out clean without a lot of effort in his high, three-quarter delivery, which he repeats well thanks to his athleticism. His best secondary pitch is an above-average slider, delivered in the mid-80s with bite at the strike zone. His 83-84 mph changeup is still very much a work-in-progress, but he shows some feel for it.
  
  The Future: . He'll start his official Royals career in 2023 with an assignment to one of the Class A teams. There's still plenty of development needed to improve his repertoire, but Zobac is looking like good value for a fourth-round pick.
  
  Scouting Grades Fastball: 55. Slider: 55. Changeup: 40. Control: 50

Draft Prospects

• Ranked #251 prospect in 2022 draft
  School: California Committed/Drafted: Never Drafted
  Age At Draft: 21.8
  The Zobacs are quite the pair at California. Steven is a three-year starter for the Bears’ baseball team and his twin sister Kacey has been a catcher for Cal’s softball team for three years. Steven moved full-time to the mound this year after splitting time between the outfield and pitching in the past. His newfound focus on pitching helped his stuff pick up. He averaged 92-94 mph with his fastball this year and touched 96 after sitting at 90-92 and touching 93 in 2021. Zobac’s plus fastball comes in quite flat, with late hop that hitters struggle to catch up to. He got swings and misses 25% of the time this year. His above-average 82-85 mph slider has power and depth. It can get a little big at times, but he’s shown he can land it for a strike or throw it down and away out of the zone to finish off hitters. Zobac is a competitor on the mound, he’s athletic and his best work as a pitcher is likely ahead of him since he’s just started focusing on it.

• February, 2023 Scouting Report
  BA Grade/Risk: 45/Extreme
  
  Track Record: The Zobac family had their version of double trouble at California the last three years, as Steven pitched for the baseball team while twin sister Casey played on the Golden Bears softball team. After moving between the mound and the outfield for his first two college seasons, Zobac focused strictly on pitching in 2022--that move allowed his stuff to jump up. He saw his first Royals mound action during the fall instructional league.
  
  Scouting Report: Zobac has an exciting arm with a lot of upside, especially now that he's no longer a two-way player and will get more pitching experience. The fastball is a potential plus pitch, sitting 95 mph and touching 97. It doesn't have much side-to-side movement but has solid carry. It's easy velocity as the ball comes out clean without a lot of effort in his high, three-quarter delivery, which he repeats well thanks to his athleticism. His best secondary pitch is an above-average slider, delivered in the mid-80s with bite at the strike zone. His 83-84 mph changeup is still very much a work-in-progress, but he shows some feel for it.
  
  The Future: . He'll start his official Royals career in 2023 with an assignment to one of the Class A teams. There's still plenty of development needed to improve his repertoire, but Zobac is looking like good value for a fourth-round pick.
  
  Scouting Grades Fastball: 55. Slider: 55. Changeup: 40. Control: 50
• December, 2022 Scouting Report
  BA Grade/Risk: 45/Extreme
  
  Track Record: The Zobac family had their version of double trouble at California the last three years, as Steven pitched for the baseball team while twin sister Casey played on the Golden Bears softball team. After moving between the mound and the outfield for his first two college seasons, Zobac focused strictly on pitching in 2022--that move allowed his stuff to jump up. He saw his first Royals mound action during the fall instructional league.
  
  Scouting Report: Zobac has an exciting arm with a lot of upside, especially now that he's no longer a two-way player and will get more pitching experience. The fastball is a potential plus pitch, sitting 95 mph and touching 97. It doesn't have much side-to-side movement but has solid carry. It's easy velocity as the ball comes out clean without a lot of effort in his high, three-quarter delivery, which he repeats well thanks to his athleticism. His best secondary pitch is an above-average slider, delivered in the mid-80s with bite at the strike zone. His 83-84 mph changeup is still very much a work-in-progress, but he shows some feel for it.
  
  The Future: . He'll start his official Royals career in 2023 with an assignment to one of the Class A teams. There's still plenty of development needed to improve his repertoire, but Zobac is looking like good value for a fourth-round pick.
  
  Scouting Grades Fastball: 55. Slider: 55. Changeup: 40. Control: 50