Pirates' Bubba Chandler Making First MLB Start
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PITTSBURGH — Pittsburgh Pirates rookie right-handed pitcher Bubba Chandler has finally gotten his first opportunity to begin an MLB game from the mound.
Pirates manager Don Kelly announced that Chandler will start in the series finale vs. the Milwaukee Brewers at PNC Park on Sept. 7. First pitch is set for 1:35 p.m.
Chandler takes on a fellow rookie in Brewers right-handed starting pitcher Jacob Misiorowski in this matchup, pitting two great pitching talents of the future.
This will mark the fourth appearance for Chandler since he eanred his promotion to the MLB from Triple-A Indianapolis on Aug. 22.
He starred in his MLB debut vs. the Colorado Rockies in the series opener at PNC Park that same day, throwing four scoreless innings in relief for the save in the 9-0 win.
Chandler became the first Pirates pitcher to throw a four-inning save in his debut, the fourth MLB player to do so since save became a statistic in 1969 and the first pitcher ever in MLB history to do so scoreless in his debut.
He then threw four more scoreless innings in relief from the fourth to the seventh inning vs. the St. Louis Cardinals at Busch Stadium on Aug. 27, earning him a win in the eventual 2-1 victory.
Chandler became the first Pirates pitcher to earn a save and a win in their first two outings and was the first MLB pitcher to do so since Mickey Weston did it with the Baltimore Orioles in 1989.
His last outing came in the series opener vs. the Los Angeles Dodgers at PNC Park on Sept. 2, coming on in the third inning.
Chandler allowed his first runs of his MLB career, giving up a two-run home run to Shohei Ohtani and another home run to Andy Pages. He threw 65 pitches in four innings, finishing strongly, as the Pirates would go on and win 9-7.
He started 83 of his 89 appearances in the minors after the Pirates took him with the 72nd overall pick in the third round of the 2021 MLB Draft.
Chandler also started for Indianapolis this season, with a 5-6 record over 24 starts, a 4.05 ERA over 100.0 innings pitched, 121 strikeouts to 53 walks, a .250 opposing batting average and a 1.48 WHIP.
MLB Pipeline rated Chandler as the best pitching prospect in baseball at the time of his promotion and the seventh best overall prospect.
Dominic writes for Pittsburgh Pirates On SI, Pittsburgh Panthers Pn SI and also, Pittsburgh Steelers On SI. A Pittsburgh native, Dominic grew up watching Pittsburgh Sports and wrote for The Pitt News as an undergraduate at the University of Pittsburgh, covering Pitt Athletics. He would write for Pittsburgh Sports Now after college and has years of experience covering sports across Pittsburgh.