Three things we learned about Dillon Peters after his debut

Miami Marlins prospect Dillon Peters made his debut on Friday against the Phillies. Here’s what we learned.

After weeks of clamoring for Dillon Peters to be called up to the Miami Marlins, it finally happened on Friday night. The stout left-hander made his debut in front of a mostly empty Marlins Park, but that didn’t appear to phase him in the least.

His night began going in the wrong direction after issuing a walk to his first batter. But he settled in after that. Peters finished the evening going seven shutout innings and striking out eight batters. He walked three and tossed a total of 94-pitches.

He undoubtedly earned another start for the Marlins.

Perhaps the most notable tidbit of information coming out of his debut was a record he matched. Jose Fernandez fanned eight batters in his Major League debut, a Marlins club record. Peters matched on that Friday, something that wasn’t lost on him speaking with the media after the game.

Peters family was in the stands to watch him on his first start. At various points, Fox Sports field reporter Craig Minervini spoke with his father, mother, and sister about Peters finally making it all the way to the big leagues.

He handled his post-game comments like a pro, too. After a ninth inning collapse that led to a Marlins loss, Peters didn’t seem phased by not getting the win. “That’s baseball”, he said cooly.

Now that we’ve seen him first-hand, here are three things that we learned about Dillon Peters:

Dillon Peters has a breaking ball unlike anyone else on the staff.

The southpaw pitched fearlessly in his debut. He managed to keep hitters off balance by using his breaking ball regardless of what the count was. On several occasions he broke one into the zone to get ahead at the start of an at bat.

It was most devastating when he buried it for a strikeout.

Most of his strikeouts came thanks to effective use of the breaking ball. Expect opponents to make an adjustment moving forward, but Peters’ other pitches set up the bender well. He was able to run a fastball up into the mid-90’s at several points during the game.

His breaking ball was so effective, he rarely needed to go beyond a two-pitch mix. He possesses a plus changeup which he threw a few times as well. He might have to work that pitch in more during his next start.

Peters appeared every bit of a Major League Baseball pitcher in his debut. Perhaps most encouraging was that it appeared to have more bite as the game progressed. Peters still has a lot of room for growth, but he displayed top-of-the-rotation stuff in a major way in his debut.

Just as impressive as his breaking ball was Peters’ ability to field his position.

There was a point in the game where Dillon Peters had a hand in four consecutive put-outs. He came off the mound well, and fired the ball to first base with speed and accuracy. Too often you see pitchers struggle to make a good throw to first base.

The fact that he had so many opportunities is worth noting as well. Peters was inducing bad contact from the Phillies bats all game. Even when Philadelphia was putting the bat on the ball, it wasn’t being hit well.

Peters broke his hand on a comebacker that caused him to miss a significant portion of the 2017 season. He appears intent on making sure that never happens again. He fielded several dribblers that were just beyond the reach of the catcher; plays that usually bleed into “no-mans land”.

Not with Peters on the mound.

His reaction time was impressive on hard hit balls as well, snaring several line-drives. If he wasn’t inducing a swing and a miss, chances are he was making a strong, accurate throw to first base.

If his debut is any indication, Peters is easily the best at fielding his position on the Marlins staff.

The Miami Marlins have to be thrilled with what they saw in Dillon Peters last night.

With all the hype that led up to his start, Peters certainly didn’t disappoint. He was sharp from beginning to finish. Keeping the ball low in the zone, the infielders got a lot of work fielding softly hit ground balls. It’s easy to understand why he’s only surrendered one home run this season.

Peters will be making another start for the Miami Marlins this season. Given that they had Vance Worley and Odrisamer Despaigne making regular starts guarantees it. Expect Peters to replace Despaigne in the rotation.

For all the talk of how weak the Miami Marlins minor league system was, it appears to have yielded a pitcher with an incredibly high ceiling. Peters certainly didn’t look like a 10th round selection in his debut.

Next: Peters promotion and reasonable expectations

It’s far too early to start making judgements about his future with the team. Suffice it to say he will be a part of their 2018 plans, though. He’s only made one start, it’s best not to draw conclusions from seven innings of work.

Miami Marlins fans have every reason to be excited about his next start though.