Zachery Michael Pop (born September 20, 1996) is a Canadian

professional baseball Professional baseball is organized baseball in which players are selected for their talents and are paid to play for a specific team or club system. It is played in leagues and associated farm teams throughout the world. Modern professional ...

pitcher In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throws ("pitches") the baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of retiring a batter, who attempts to either make contact with the pitched ball or draw ...

for the

Toronto Blue Jays The Toronto Blue Jays are a Canadian professional baseball team based in Toronto. The Blue Jays compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. Since 1989, the team has played its home games ...

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...

(MLB). He made his MLB debut in 2021 with the Miami Marlins.

Career

Amateur

Pop attended Notre Dame Catholic Secondary School in

Brampton, Ontario Brampton ( or ) is a city in the Canadian province of Ontario. Brampton is a city in the Greater Toronto Area (GTA) and is a lower-tier municipality within Peel Region. The city has a population of 656,480 as of the 2021 Census, making it th ...

. He was drafted by the

in the 23rd round of the

2014 Major League Baseball Draft The 2014 Major League Baseball (MLB) First-Year Player Draft was held from June 5 through June 7, 2014, to assign amateur baseball players to MLB teams. The first two rounds were conducted on June 5, followed by rounds three through ten on June ...

, but did not sign and played

college baseball College baseball is baseball that is played on the intercollegiate level at institutions of higher education. In comparison to football and basketball, college competition in the United States plays a smaller role in developing professional p ...

at the

University of Kentucky The University of Kentucky (UK, UKY, or U of K) is a public land-grant research university in Lexington, Kentucky. Founded in 1865 by John Bryan Bowman as the Agricultural and Mechanical College of Kentucky, the university is one of the state ...

. In 2016, he played collegiate summer baseball for the

Wareham Gatemen The Wareham Gatemen are a collegiate summer baseball team based in Wareham, Massachusetts. The team is a member of the Cape Cod Baseball League (CCBL) and plays in the league's West Division. The Gatemen play their home games at Clem Spillane Fie ...

of the Cape Cod Baseball League.

Los Angeles Dodgers

Pop was drafted by the

Los Angeles Dodgers The Los Angeles Dodgers are an American professional baseball team based in Los Angeles. The Dodgers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Established in 1883 in the city of Brooklyn ...

in the seventh round of the

2017 MLB Draft The 2017 Major League Baseball (MLB) First-Year Player Draft began on June 12, 2017. The draft assigned amateur baseball players to MLB teams. The first 36 picks, including the first round and compensatory picks, were broadcast on MLB Network on J ...

. He signed and made his professional debut with the

AZL Dodgers The Arizona Complex League Dodgers are a Rookie-level affiliate of the Los Angeles Dodgers, competing in the Arizona Complex League of Minor League Baseball. The team plays its home games at Camelback Ranch in Phoenix, Arizona. The team is compos ...

, pitching five scoreless innings. In 2018, he began the year with the

Great Lakes Loons The Great Lakes Loons are a Minor League Baseball team of the Midwest League and the High-A affiliate of the Los Angeles Dodgers. They are located in Midland, Michigan, and play their home games at Dow Diamond, which opened in April 2007. Histor ...

before being promoted to the Rancho Cucamonga Quakes.

Baltimore Orioles

On July 18, 2018, Pop was traded to the

Baltimore Orioles The Baltimore Orioles are an American professional baseball team based in Baltimore. The Orioles compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. As one of the American League's eight charter ...

along with Breyvic Valera, Dean Kremer, Yusniel Diaz, and Rylan Bannon in exchange for Manny Machado. He was assigned to the Bowie Baysox and finished the season there. In 44 relief appearances between Great Lakes, Rancho Cucamonga, and Bowie, he compiled a 2–3 record with a 1.53 ERA. He returned to Bowie to begin 2019, and went 1–0 with a 0.84 ERA in 10.2 innings. On May 14, he underwent Tommy John surgery, and missed the rest of the 2019 season. Pop did not play in a game in 2020 due to the cancellation of the minor league season because of the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identi ...

Miami Marlins

Pop was selected by the

Arizona Diamondbacks The Arizona Diamondbacks (colloquially known as the D-backs) are an American professional baseball team based in Phoenix. The Diamondbacks compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. The ...

in the

2020 2020 was heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to global social and economic disruption, mass cancellations and postponements of events, worldwide lockdowns and the largest economic recession since the Great Depression in t ...

Rule 5 Draft. Shortly after, Pop was traded to the Miami Marlins in exchange for Tyler Jones. Pop made the Marlins' Opening Day roster. On April 3, 2021, Pop made his MLB debut, pitching a scoreless inning of relief against the

Tampa Bay Rays The Tampa Bay Rays are an American professional baseball team based in St. Petersburg, Florida. The Rays compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. Since its inception, the team's home v ...

Toronto Blue Jays

The Marlins traded Pop,

Anthony Bass Anthony Edward Bass (born November 1, 1987) is an American professional baseball pitcher for the Toronto Blue Jays of Major League Baseball (MLB). He has previously played in MLB for the San Diego Padres, Houston Astros, Texas Rangers, Chica ...

, and a

player to be named later In Major League Baseball, a player to be named later (PTBNL) is an unnamed player involved in exchange or "trade" of players between teams. The terms of a trade are not finalized until a later date, most often following the conclusion of the seaso ...

to the

for prospect Jordan Groshans on August 2, 2022. Pop made the Blue Jays Opening Day roster in 2023.https://www.tsn.ca/mlb/nathan-lukes-zach-pop-make-blue-jays-opening-day-roster-1.1937524

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Pop, Zach Living people 1996 births Sportspeople from Brampton Major League Baseball players from Canada Major League Baseball pitchers Miami Marlins players Toronto Blue Jays players Kentucky Wildcats baseball players St. Cloud Rox players Wareham Gatemen players Arizona League Dodgers players Great Lakes Loons players Rancho Cucamonga Quakes players Bowie Baysox players Buffalo Bisons (minor league) players