Jack Dreyer is Dodgers' Rubik's Cube master, and potential big league option in bullpen
Ever since high school, minor-league Dodgers reliever Jack Dreyer has been able to master the Rubik's cube; getting so good he not only solves them in as little as 20 seconds, but has learned to arrange them on canvasses by the hundreds to create multi-colored murals.
So, when the Dodgers signed Shohei Ohtani to his record-breaking $700 million contract in late 2023, Dreyer decided to commemorate the moment with a unique piece of art, creating a Rubik's Cube portrait of the two-way star that was displayed at the team's Camelback Ranch facility last spring.
'I was like, 'Hey, he's the face of baseball right now,'' Dreyer recalled Wednesday. 'I think it would be kind of cool to have the fans get to see something like that.'
Dreyer is unsure if Ohtani ever saw the piece. And now, he said with a laugh (and hint of sorrow), it no longer exists, having been knocked over and shattered last year.
Will the 26-year-old left-hander build Ohtani a new one?
'I definitely could,' he said, 'if that's something that he would want to see.'
The good news for Dreyer: He wouldn't have to walk far to find Ohtani and ask.
Unlike last year, when the undrafted University of Iowa product started the season as just another talented but raw prospect in the organization, Dreyer is in big-league camp this spring, sitting just 14 stalls away from Ohtani in the Dodgers' spring clubhouse.
Dreyer hasn't discussed his hobby with Ohtani yet, but it has become one of the spring's more light-hearted subplots, with everyone from Tony Gonsolin to Jackson Ferris to Yoshinobu Yamamoto toying around with the cubes Dreyer has brought into the room.
'He carries a Rubik's Cube everywhere he goes,' manager Dave Roberts joked. 'Some guys carry a golf club. He carries a Rubik's Cube.'
According to Roberts, Dreyer (and his Rubik's Cube) almost reached the majors last year, with the Dodgers coming close on several occasions to calling him up for his MLB debut.
'There were a couple times where Jack was going to be the guy,' Roberts said. 'It's a very slow brain, as far as managing situations. A good heartbeat. The fastball really plays. And the slider has really come on.'
Prior to last year, the big leagues were more of a distant dream for Dreyer — whose father, Steve, spent two years pitching for the Texas Rangers in the early '90s.
During his first two minor-league seasons in the Dodgers organization, Dreyer flashed his potential by striking out 92 batters in 66 ⅔ innings between rookie ball and high-A, posting a 2.16 ERA along the way. But he also issued 41 walks, struggling to keep his fastball/slider mix in the zone.
'The Dodgers are super transparent in terms of what they would like to see out of you, and what areas they want you to improve on each offseason,' Dreyer said. 'So I had some really good conversations with the front office and the coaching staff, just saying like, 'Hey, your stuff is good. But if you want to move to the next level, you need to reduce the walks.'
Reduce the walks, Dreyer did.
Entering last season, Dreyer said he focused on making a full 'mentality shift.' His delivery didn't change. He didn't tweak his arsenal. But he did begin throwing 'with conviction on every pitch,' he said, learning to have 'the belief in yourself' to more consistently pound the strike zone and attack opposing hitters.
The results were sterling.
In 46 outings between double-A and triple-A, Dreyer again posted a 2.20 ERA, but this time while issuing just 12 walks on the entire season.
'I didn't make any mechanical changes or anything like that,' he said. 'It was purely just a mentality shift.'
While it didn't yield a big-league call-up, Dreyer's improvements were enough for the Dodgers to put him on the 40-man roster last November to protect him from going into the Rule 5 draft.
Dreyer said he got the news while playing catch at Camelback Ranch, when Dodgers director of player development Matt McGrath came out to the field to inform him of the decision.
'I tried my best to keep it out of my mind,' Dreyer said. 'But it was cool to be able to be here in person and get congratulated by him and some teammates that were here.'
Dreyer has parlayed the opportunity — which also meant a first spring training spent in big-league camp this year — into a strong performance thus far in the Cactus League. In four appearances, he has given up just one run, struck out seven batters and walked only one.
'The biggest thing for me is just to try to be a sponge every day,' Dreyer said. 'Obviously, surrounded by All-Stars and future Hall of Famers, I'm incredibly grateful for the opportunity to learn everything I can and ask questions whenever I can. I'm just learning more about the process and pitch selection and all kinds of things. It's been very useful.'
Dreyer has been giving lessons of his own with the Rubik's Cube, too.
He said Gonsolin already knew how to solve the three-dimensional puzzle, but has sought new methods to complete it more quickly. Roberts noted that Dreyer also outdueled Tommy Edman in a challenge earlier this spring.
Has Roberts taken a shot at making every side the same color?
'No,' the manager laughed. 'Part of my strength is I know my weaknesses … I don't have the bandwidth to approach that yet.'
Given Dreyer's current trajectory, Roberts might get future opportunities. After coming close to the majors last year, the pitcher appears to be near the top of the organization's relief pitching depth chart, primed to reach the majors with his improved command and renewed mental approach.
'The organization has raved about his make-up, his talent, for a while,' Roberts said. 'And now for me to get to know him a little bit more, see him against major league hitters, he's really impressive.'
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