[ad_1]
Cleveland Guardians right-hander Triston McKenzie made his season debut on Sunday, throwing a gem in a win against the Minnesota Twins. McKenzie was sidelined for the first two months of the season due to a major muscle strain in his right shoulder.
The 25-year old McKenzie delivered five shutout innings on Sunday, struckout ten batters and held the Twins to one hit and one walk. He threw 52 of his 79 pitches for strikes and generated a game-high 15 swinging strikes. True to form, McKenzie’s heating averaged 92.9 mph, or right in line with the 92.5 mph mark he averaged last season.
McKenzie started 30 times for the Guardians last season, recording a 2.96 ERA (127 ERA+) and a 4.32 strikeout-to-walk ratio over 191 innings pitched. His contributions were worth an estimated 4 wins over replacement, according to Baseball Reference estimates.
The Guardians and Twins went scoreless for the first six innings, meaning McKenzie played no part in the decision. The Guardians eventually scored two runs – both in the seventh inning on extra-base hits by Josh Naylor and Andrés Giménez – securing both a 2–1 win and a split in the four-game set.
The Guardians, who started Sunday with a 26-32 record and a 4 1/2 game deficit in the American League Central, had lost the first two games of the series. In that respect, a split is a positive outcome.
McKenzie’s return was just part of a rotational shakeup for Cleveland. Earlier this week, the Guardians placed Cal Quantrill on the 15-day injury list due to shoulder inflammation. The Guardians also took Aaron Civale off the injured list on Friday and designated Zach Plesac for assignment. (Plesac had been in Triple-A since April.)
[ad_2]
Source link