MESA, Ariz. -- The Oakland Athletics have a smorgasbord of intriguing pitching stories in spring training. While Barry Zito is trying to return from a year’s hiatus at age 36, the boyish-looking Sonny Gray is blossoming into an ace before their very eyes. Jarrod Parker is recovering from his second career Tommy John surgery, and A.J. Griffin is in the process of rehabilitating from his first elbow reconstruction. Both starters could have a huge impact on whether Oakland contends for a playoff spot this season.

But in the early stages of camp, no Oakland pitcher has elicited more chatter than a 29-year-old career minor leaguer with a novel gift.

Pat Venditte, who signed with the New York Yankees as a 20th-round draft pick out of Creighton in 2008, has a 2.46 ERA and 431 strikeouts in 384 2/3 innings over seven minor league seasons. But his new teammates are far more impressed with his ability to pitch with both hands.

“For the first few days, he was the talk of camp,’’ Oakland manager Bob Melvin said. “Guys would stick around and take notice and watch him throw in the pen to see if we’re just talking about a gimmick here or somebody that can really pull it off. They walk away just shaking their heads. It’s tough enough to do it from one side -- especially at this level.’’

Realistically, Venditte is a long shot to crack Oakland’s Opening Day bullpen. But he has designs on becoming the first ambidextrous pitcher in the majors since 1995, when Greg Harris of the Montreal Expos made history against Cincinnati. Harris began and ended an inning by retiring Reggie Sanders and Bret Boone from the right side. Between those two at-bats, Harris walked Hal Morris and induced a groundout from Eddie Taubensee from the left side.

Venditte throws a fastball, slider and changeup from both sides and uses an ambidextrous glove with two thumb holes. As his fellow A's get to know him, it's only natural that they flash back through their professional careers and think of other ambidextrous teammates they've encountered.

Melvin recalls how Ariel Prieto, a former Oakland pitcher and coach, threw batting practice with both hands. When A’s pitcher Scott Kazmir was in Cleveland, teammate Carlos Carrasco threw his fastball in the mid-90s from the right side and reached the mid-80s just goofing around from the left. And reliever Tyler Clippard, who came to Oakland by trade from Washington in January, recalls how former Nationals bullpen-mate Sean Burnett would heave balls back to the infield right-handed during shagging to save his left arm for the games.

“He would always say, ‘After my career is over, I’m gonna throw batting practice to my kid righty, because my left arm is pretty shot,'" Clippard said of Burnett.

Venditte attracted a crowd during his early bullpen sessions and was a magnet for attention during early stretching, when his new teammates pelted him with a series of questions about his novel skill. Among them: Does it take you longer to warm up with one arm than the other? And does one arm get more sore than the other when you throw?

“I felt bad for him,’’ said A’s closer Sean Doolittle. “Guys started jumping in, and it was like 20 questions all through stretch. He was receptive to it. He played along with it pretty well.

“The most impressive thing is, there’s zero hesitation one way or another when he throws. It’s not like he’s figuring things out in his head beforehand. It’s amazing to have both sides of your brain working like that. It’s crazy.’’

When Venditte was looking at potential landing spots as a minor league free agent over the winter, Oakland ranked high on the list because the A’s are a creative, free-thinking organization that might give him a legitimate shot rather than view him as a novelty act. It appears he’s come to the right place.

“Is there a better organization for the guy to be in?’’ Doolittle said. “You get two pitchers in one. For a team that thinks outside the box, that mixes and matches up and down its entire roster and will give an opportunity to anybody if they can produce and help the team, there’s not a better spot for him to be right now. Hopefully he continues to throw well and keeps turning heads.’’