Series Finale Finished Strong As Parker Messick's ROTY Campaign Gains More Traction

When Parker Messick starts a baseball game, the Cleveland Guardians have won 15 games.

And on Sunday, August 30, he dominated the Kansas City Royals to keep his race for the American League Rookie of the Year honor alive.

The 25-year-old native of Plant City, Florida, pitched across six innings. He gave up just five hits, two walks and one earned run, all while striking out five batters along the way. He put the offense in a perfect position to win the outing.

Fortunately, they did just that as the bats exploded for 11 runs, pushing the team to an 11-1 victory at home.

Without Messick's control and ability to cut back on any Royals momentum, Cleveland could have dropped the series finale and been swept. Instead, they will head into a busy homestand with an extra boost of momentum.

And while most of the conversation surrounding the youngster is on his race for the Rookie of the Year award, manager Stephen Vogt shot higher.

"The first couple of innings, they made him work," Vogt said postgame when reflecting on Messick's start. "His command, he didn't have a whole lot. I think that speaks more volumes to Parker Messick on why he needs to be in the Cy Young conversation. I feel like what he has done and what he is doing every time out, giving us a chance to win, he finds ways to go deep into games."

Even when he isn't finding his best stuff early on, Messick's ability to make changes on the fly and fight through adversity is what makes him special.

If he had spiraled after giving up that lone run in the first inning, Cleveland's pitching staff would have been on its heels all day long. Leaving Sunday with a win would have been that much harder.

With 27 starts now under his belt, Messick owns a 2.46 ERA and 1.02 WHIP across 161 innings of work. He has also posted 161 strikeouts, giving him a clean average of nine per nine innings.

Across his last seven starts, with Cleveland in the middle of a tough battle for the top spot in the American League Central, he has been at the top of his game. During that span, he has a 1.87 ERA with a measly 0.92 WHIP. He has also struck out 45 batters and walked just seven.

Whether it's his command on the bump, ability to stay level-headed in the heat of battle or just his remarkable statistics for a rookie, it comes as no surprise that Vogt believes his potential Ace of the future should be in the Cy Young conversation.

To put it simply, Messick has dominated game in and game out.

He trails only Jacob Misiorowski, Chris Sale, Cam Schlittler and Dylan Cease for the best ERA in baseball, while his season WHIP has him ranked seventh. He also has the eighth-most innings pitched.

When comparing him to qualified rookie pitchers, Messick leads the pack.

He has the best ERA with the most starts and innings pitched, all while only being ranked behind Logan Henderson of Milwaukee for the best WHIP.

If Messick's path to becoming a Cy Young winner comes up short, fate should at least lead him to the top of the American League Rookie of the Year race. While there have been countless position players who have stood out, Messick's importance in Cleveland's rotation makes his resume that much more worthy.

Expected to be back on the mound on Saturday, Sept. 5, Messick will have a chance to prove just how good he has been this season against the Detroit Tigers and Kevin McGonigle, who is also fighting to be this year's rookie honored with the highest award.

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