Three Takeaways From Triston McKenzie's Season Debut
Finally!
After waiting over two months, Triston McKenzie was finally able to make his season debut on Sunday afternoon as the Cleveland Guardians took on the Minnesota Twins.
Dr. Sticks has already missed a chunk of the season, but he clearly wants to make up for that lost time. His season debut couldn't have gone any better and Cleveland fans are now getting a taste of what their starting rotation could look like when fully healthy.
These are some of the biggest takeaways from McKenzie's season debut:
Velocity Up
The fastball has always been one of McKenzie's best pitches he has and combining it with his curveball makes for a tough pitch mix for hitters. However, the heater has always been pretty average in terms of velocity.
An eye-popping stat from McKenzie's season debut was his fastball velocity. At the beginning of his start, the fastball topped out at 95.1 mph which could be huge if it stays consistent.
Last season, Sticks' four-seamer had an average velo of 92.5 mph. This extra little bit of heat McKenzie showed could make his offspeed pitches even more effective.
McKenzie's Most Effective Pitch
McKenzie threw three different pitches in his debut: a four-seam fastball, curveball, and slider. Ironically, one of his most effective pitches of the day was one that he threw the least amount of times.
Sticks threw his slider 14 times against Twins hitters. Batters swung at the pitch a total of seven times and on six occasions it ended in a whiff.
Punch-Out Pitch Was There
The one stat that really pops out when looking at McKenzie's final line was the number of strikeouts he finished with.
Sticks punched out 10 batters in his season debut and it only took him five innings to do so. He didn't even allow a hit until the fourth inning.
This is now McKenzie's even career double-digit strikeout game.
----
Read More:
Two Unlikely Home Runs Lift Guardians Over Twins
Guardians Designate Zach Plesac For Assignment
Cleveland Makes Multiple Roster Moves
Aaron Civale's Tremendous Outing In First Start Back From Injury
Andres Gimenez Finding Swing As Guardians' Bats Heat Up
Be sure to stay locked into Cleveland Baseball Insider all the time:
SUBSCRIBE to the CBI YouTube channel
Follow Cleveland Baseball Insider on Twitter: @CBI_FanNation
Photo Credit © Bruce Kluckhohn-USA TODAY Sports
