Like virtually every pitcher they've acquired, they seem to have told him not to fear the flyball (or maybe Zunino just likes the high strikes), Mike Leake, over the course of his career, threw about 16% of his pitches in the top third of the zone or above. Since joining the Mariners that percentage has leapt 10 points, with what seems to be a particular focus on Cutters up and away to left handed batters to supplement a generally elevated fastball. The result has been pretty impressive so far; for the season before joining the Mariners, Mike Leake was a punching bag vs. LHB.
| Season | Team | IP | TBF | ERA | H | 2B | 3B | R | ER | HR | BB | IBB | HBP | SO | AVG | OBP | SLG | wOBA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2017 | STL | 74.2 | 326 | 5.67 | 87 | 16 | 1 | 51 | 47 | 9 | 22 | 3 | 5 | 32 | .291 | .354 | .451 | .343 |
That's a 3.9 K/9 Rate, but since joining the Mariners...
| Season | Team | IP | TBF | ERA | H | 2B | 3B | R | ER | HR | BB | IBB | HBP | SO | AVG | OBP | SLG | wOBA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2017 | SEA | 8.2 | 35 | 2.08 | 7 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 10 | .212 | .257 | .333 | .255 |
His strike outs are suddenly at a very healthy rate of 10.4 per 9, and he is yet to yield a home run. It's still early, and maybe it's just taking advantage of hitters that haven't seen him, but that's an impressive adjustment even for 3 games.