SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. -- There were 2,402 pitchers who accrued at least 30 innings this season across the Minor Leagues -- and nobody struck out a higher percentage of hitters than the D-backs' Joe Ariola (45.8%).
The 6-foot-2 southpaw doesn't throw in the triple digits. He doesn’t spin the ball at an astronomically high rate. His extension is solid but not particularly notable. But he's intrinsically focused on winning the battle with two strikes in the count. Once there, he goes for the punchout.
"How fast can I get to two strikes? Because my pitches played best in those counts," Ariola said of his mindset. "I know my two weapons [fastball and curveball] have some swing-and-miss potential. But if you're not in the right counts to get the swing-and-miss, they're not going to happen.
"My whole goal this year was just fill it up, get in the zone as much as possible. Then as I was kind of showing that I was in the zone a lot more, it was like, 'All right, let's start winning in the zone. Let's not have to leave the zone to get your ground balls, get your swing-and-misses. Just keep being aggressive.'"
As the strikeout totals indicate, Ariola enjoyed a dominant all-around year. He posted ...