First Impressions From Parker Messick's Guardians, MLB Debut

Parker Messick can finally say that he’s a big-league pitcher! The 24-year-old made his Cleveland Guardians and MLB debut on Wednesday afternoon against the Arizona Diamondbacks.

Not every pitcher and player finds success in their first MLB outing, but the same can’t be said for Messick, who looked calm, cool, and collected on the mound from his very first pitch, which he logged for a strike.

Messick ended up pitching 6.2 innings, giving up seven hits, allowing one earned run, issuing one walk, and striking out six batters; not bad for your first start.

Here are some immediate impressions following the left-hander's awaited first big-league start.

Aug 20, 2025; Phoenix, Arizona, USA; Cleveland Guardians pitcher Parker Messick (77) reacts against the Arizona Diamondbacks in the first inning at Chase Field. Mandatory Credit: Rick Scuteri-Imagn Images | Rick Scuteri-Imagn Images

Messick’s Changeup Was As Advertised

Messick has always been known for his nasty changeup, which is the pitch he found the most success with during his collegiate career and throughout the minor leagues.

The left-hander threw his changeup 19 times, and it generated four swing-and-misses. The pitch had an average velocity of 84.8 mph, but its real strength is the spin rate, which had an average RPM of 1907.

Messick proved in his debut that his success on the mound is going to be dependent on the changeup, and in his debut, it was working well for him.

Messick’s Command Leads To A Long Outing

Sometimes, pitchers can struggle throwing strikes in their debut with the nerves so high, but not for Messick. Another strength of his through the minors was his command, and that was also apparent in his first big-league start.

Messick through 67 percent of his pitches for strikes.

Aug 20, 2025; Phoenix, Arizona, USA; Cleveland Guardians pitcher Parker Messick (77) and catcher Bo Naylor (23) walk to the dugout before a game against the Arizona Diamondbacks at Chase Field. Mandatory Credit: Rick Scuteri-Imagn Images | Rick Scuteri-Imagn Images

Because the left-hander was filling up the zone, he was able to keep his pitch count down. When Messick left with two outs left in the seventh inning, he had only thrown 83 pitches.

Stephen Vogt, understandably, didn’t want to leave him out there too long, but if this were later in Messick’s career, he certainly would have had an opportunity to finish the seventh inning, and possibly pitch into the eighth.

Looking Forward For Messick

The Guardians and Vogt couldn’t have asked for a better outing from Messick. That said, there are some areas from this outing that the left-hander can improve upon.

Messick did give up five hard-hit balls in his outing, just about one per inning. That’s not too bad, but limiting this hard contact is something he should look to limit as he gets more comfortable on a big league mound.

Other than that, this was an overwhelmingly successful outing for Messick.

Messick’s Changeup Was As Advertised

Messick’s Command Leads To A Long Outing

Looking Forward For Messick

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