‘Electric’ Mark Appel of Grizzlies to make Fresno debut Sunday

Fans should be in for an electric Sunday when the Fresno Grizzlies close out their homestand against El Paso, according to Grizzlies pitching coach Ace Adams.

That’s when right-hander Mark Appel (1-1, 5.87 ERA), the No. 1 overall pick in the 2013 draft by the parent Houston Astros, will make his home debut at Triple-A Fresno.

“He’s got electric stuff,” Adams boasted of the former Stanford ace who as a Cardinal junior won the 2012 National Pitcher of the Year award by the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association

“He’s got a four-seamer that rides up, a two-seamer that sinks late and an unhittable slider when he’s on — I mean it breaks late into the zone,” Adams added.

In his 40-plus years of coaching baseball, Adams said the 6-foot-5, 220-pound pitcher is one of the best he’s ever seen.

“My eyes were popping out of my head with the stuff he has,” Adams said of Appel’s bullpen session Friday afternoon.

When Appel is on, he can dominate a game. Adams predicted Appel can strike out as many as 15 batters in a game.

It hasn’t always been pretty for Appel, who turned 24 Wednesday and spent it celebrating with family in his hometown of Houston.

In just three starts in Triple-A this season, Appel was roughed in his debut when he surrendered seven runs in three innings at Reno.

He then earned a no-decision in his second start at El Paso (he gave up nine hits for three earned runs on July 2) before picking up his first win with 6 2/3 shutout innings at Sacramento on July 8.

Appel played in the Arizona Fall League last year, going 1-0 with a 2.61 ERA in 31 innings for Salt River and earning a spot on the All-Prospect Team. This year, he started 13 games for Double-A Corpus Christi, going 5-1 with a 4.26 ERA and 49 strikeouts in 63 1/3 innings, before getting the call to Fresno.

And just this week, Appel was in Cincinnati for the MLB Futures Game (before the season, Appel was ranked No. 30 among prospects by MLB.com), where he pitched a scoreless fifth and gave up one hit.

Given his recent trend, it could be only a matter of time before Appel moves on to the next level.

“He’s got big-league stuff, without a doubt,” Adams said. “Every start he’s gotten better; he’s learned how to pitch a little better. So, yeah, he’s a big-leaguer waiting to happen. It’s just a matter of when he gets his feet on the ground (in Fresno), pitches a little more and gets a little more savvy.”

For Appel, he’s just eager to finally perform in front of the Fresno faithful.

“We’ve got a passionate fan base and being able to start in front of these fans is something I’m looking forward to and more importantly, giving our team a chance to win.”

This story was originally published July 17, 2015 at 8:55 PM with the headline "‘Electric’ Mark Appel of Grizzlies to make Fresno debut Sunday."