“It’s the Same Baseball”: Michael Arroyo Finds Early Triple-A Success Despite Underlying Questions

TACOMA, Wash. - Beginner’s luck can be a blessing or a curse. Or both: just ask Colt Emerson, whose early apparent MLB breakout had a lot to do with early luck in the Show (and whose process has taken a big dive after that luck ran out). 

It’s not clear how Michael Arroyo - the Mariners’ eighth-ranked prospect according to Baseball America - will be affected by his own good luck over his first week and a half of Triple-A play. But there’s no question that the 21-year-old righty has seen an early comfort boost at his new level as his batted balls keep falling in for hits.

“I think there’s a big difference between Double-A and Triple-A, but it’s the same baseball,” Arroyo said. “There’s a different environment, but it’s the same baseball and it’s the same game.”

Arroyo got the call-up from the Double-A Arkansas Travelers to the Triple-A Tacoma Rainiers alongside fellow 21-year-old Lazaro Montes. Beyond their age, shared level, and status as top batting prospects, there are plenty of differences between these two.

Where Montes is one of the biggest power bats in the minors, Arroyo is a contact-first hitter with a history of good swing decisions. In Double-A this year, Arroyo swung at 79% of pitches in the zone and 29.3% of pitches outside the zone (per TJStats), a difference on par with the most discerning major league batters. During his first nine games in Triple-A, however, he has swung at 78.1% of pitches in the zone and 40% of pitches out of the zone, a much less impressive difference.