October 3, 2023
Left-handed pitcher Adam Macko completed his first season in the Toronto Blue Jays’ organization in 2023.
Pitching exclusively for High-A Vancouver this season – Macko pitched a career high 86 innings racking up 106 K’s.
He faced a little adversity early on in the season but finished strong for the C’s.
“My biggest takeaway from the 2023 season was to not put too much of an emphasis or dwell on performances,” said Macko. “Whether it goes good or bad for me on the bump, if I focus on the right things, and stay on track with my goals, the performances will follow.”
Macko made some adjustments throughout the season.
One major adjustment was using his fastball more.
After beginning his pro career with the Seattle Mariners – an organization that focuses heavily on off-speed pitch usage.
“The Blue Jays’ staff has allowed me to be myself and keep certain aspects I enjoyed from the Mariners way and I also incorporated certain things from their strategy and scheduling to really allow me to be the best version of myself,” explained Macko. “In terms of pitch usage they told me I can rely on my fastball a little more than I have in the past and there’s definitely benefits I saw from that like my walk rate has improved and I was able to be more efficient getting guys out quicker.”
Another change to Macko’s game is using the curveball more and adding a cutter to his pitch mix, “I attribute my late season success to throwing my curveball more than my sweeper,” Macko added. “I feel it worked better with the rest of my repertoire than the slider. I also added a cutter/hard slider which I began working on last year in the AFL.”
Keep it up, Adam Macko!