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Juan Morillo
The Arizona Diamondbacks might have a hidden gem in their bullpen: flamethrowing right-hander Juan Morillo. The 26-year-old rookie found his way into his first career major league contest on Saturday, and shut the door on a D-backs win on Tuesday.
It took a meltdown by relievers Bryce Jarvis and Joe Mantiply, coupled with an injury to A.J. Puk to force Arizona's hand, but Morillo was one of three relievers who got the call on April 19, and he looked ready for the lights in his first taste of MLB.
Morillo's fastball sat in the 98 MPH range, and even reached into triple digits. He relies primarily on that excellent fastball, but also throws a sharply-breaking slider and an occasional changeup. Morillo cited his experience in the winter league as a driving factor to his eventual MLB debut.
"I think I learned [a lot] in winter ball last year. I think it helped me a lot to get in there, to throw the ball over the plate all the time, because that's all we have to do. That's what we practice every day. That's what we do every day. I think now I'm here because I did it. I got a little bit of control on that," Morillo said. But it wasn't just his stuff that put him on Arizona's radar. Morillo said Diamondbacks' backup catcher Jose Herrera was instrumental in getting him in front of the right people. Herrera and Morillo were teammates in the winter league, both playing for Aguilas del Zulia.
"I talk with Jose Herrera a lot, and he talked to me a little bit about the organization, what they're looking for, and that's why I'm here too. ... I was a free agent last year, and then I was talking with my agent, and she told me that the D-backs [had a] number for me, and I took the D-backs," Morillo said. - si.com
One of two debuts I'd missed.
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