PORT CHARLOTTE, Fla. -- Chaz Roe has become known for his frisbee-like slider, but there was one slider that stood out more than the rest.

In an Aug. 19 game against the Red Sox, Roe got Boston infielder Eduardo Nunez to strike out swinging on an 80 mph slider. For a second, it looked like just another strikeout for Roe with the wipeout pitch, but then former Rays catcher Jesus Sucre began to pick diamonds off the dirt around home plate.

Nunez was so early on the pitch that the force of his swing caused his diamond necklace to spill all over the field.

“I didn’t know what was going on,” Roe said with a smile. “I looked back and I saw Sucre picking up the diamonds for him. That was pretty cool.”

Roe has had a circuitous career, having been a part of 10 organizations over his 14 years as a professional, but he established himself as a key member of the Rays' bullpen by posting a 3.58 ERA in 50 1/3 innings last season.

A big reason for Roe’s success has been the increased frequency with which he's thrown his slider. When Roe was drafted by the Rockies in 2005, the pitch was actually a curveball; it didn’t evolve into a slider until Roe switched over to a relief role in 2013 in the D-backs' organization.

From 2013-15, Roe threw his slider just 37.3 percent of time. Since then, he has thrown it 54 percent of time.

“I’ve been tinkering with it every year, trying out different grips and finding what felt comfortable,” Roe said. “It has felt really good the last couple of years.”

In order to make his slider even more effective, Roe has been working on his sinker this offseason. He threw the sinker 37.8 percent of the time last season, the highest since 2015, when he was a member of the Orioles. Having command of the sinker will help Roe command the entire zone. He’ll have the east-to-west action with the slider, paired with the north-south motion of the sinker.

“That’s going to be a huge pitch for me,” Roe said of the sinker. “I’ve just been trying to get more consistent with some down action.”

New Rays catcher Mike Zunino is happy that he’s in the same clubhouse as Roe. Zunino is 0-for-2 against Roe with one walk and a strikeout.

“It’s just so unorthodox,” Zunino said. “Usually you have an idea of how the ball moves, but it seems like he can almost move it completely east and west at times. It’s truly amazing.”

It took some time for Roe to realize just how special his slider was. But once he started seeing the reaction from hitters to the pitch, he realized that he had a valuable weapon at his disposal. Aside from breaking Nunez’s chain last season, Roe has displayed some nasty sliders in the past. The slider he threw to Philadelphia’s Andrew Knapp last spring ranks up as one of Roe’s best pitches.

“You can look for slider and you still can’t really hit it,” Zunino said. “You also still have to respect his fastball. He might not throw his fastball a ton, but in the back of your mind, you start thinking that you don’t want him to sneak a heater by you.

“It’s one of those things where he’s in your head before you even face him.”

Roe is scheduled to throw a live batting practice session Friday, and the current plan is for him to make his first Grapefruit League appearance March 5 against either the Twins or the University of South Florida.

Zunino won’t have to step into the box against Roe anymore, but he has a new challenge now.

“I wouldn’t be surprised if he fools me while I’m catching -- and I know what’s coming,” Zunino laughed. “That thing breaks so much. I wouldn’t be surprised one bit.”