Grayson Rodriguez picks 5 K’s in strong MLB debut, Twitter reacts
Grayson Rodriguez's first Major League outing was a strong one as he picked up five strikeouts.
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[Pic Credit: Press box online]
Getting called up to the Majors is no easy feat. Many top talented players have failed to live up to their potential and have spent the majority of their careers in the minors. Recently the Baltimore Orioles have been calling up a lot of their top prospects.
Catcher Adley Rutschman and third baseman Gunnar Henderson have already joined the team. On Tuesday, their top pitching prospect, Grayson Rodriguez was called up to the majors and started against the Texas Rangers on Wednesday.
Scene setting is an important aspect of any sport. For Rodriguez, it was the perfect set-up as he pitched his first game in the city where he grew up. The Texas native had an impressive start, pitching five full innings. He recorded five strikeouts and gave up two runs in four hits. It was a big moment for his father who was left emotional.
During the game. Grayson’s dad Gilbert was caught on camera in an emotional state as he watched his son. In the bottom half of the third, his father was seen shedding tears after Rodriguez struck out Corey Seager. After the game, the father-son duo was seen embracing backstage after an emotional day for the family.
Despite Rodriguez’s solid pitching efforts, the O’s batting lineup failed to deliver against Texas Rangers. Jacob deGrom had a great day as he allowed just one earned run on two hits. He also struck out 11 Orioles batters in six innings.
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Grayson Rodriguez’s father was emotional after son’s debut
Having to face a veteran like DeGrom in their first major league game would obviously have been nervous. Rodriguez kept his nerve and went toe-to-toe against the two-time Cy Young Award winner. He
had to settle for a no-decision in his first start. After going through 30 pitches to get out of the first inning. Rodriguez would retire 13 of the 15 batters he faced and struck out Corey Seager twice.
“There were lot of nerves that first inning. Really couldn’t feel the baseball. I kind of felt like i was on island but yeah the second inning was pretty normal,” Rodriguez said after the match. The 23-year-old was the 11th overall pick by the Orioles in the 2018 draft.
In his five spring starts, Rodriguez had an ERA of 7.04. He was then optioned to start the season in minor leagues. He allowed 14 runs over 10 2/3 innings in his final three minor league game. Meanwhile, the Orioles have announced that their home opener on Thursday against the New York Yankees has been rescheduled due to the chance of rain.
Currently sitting in third in AL East with a 3-3 record. Having won their first game against the Red Sox, the O’s would lose the next two to lose the series. This was followed by two wins against the Texas Rangers as they took the series 2-1 after their Wednesday loss. A series against the Yankees including a potential double-header on Sunday awaits them.
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