Otto Dazzles In MLB Debut; Rangers Fall To Astros, 5-4

Glenn Otto, one of the four players received in the Joey Gallo trade, made a strong Major League debut, mowing down the Houston Astros lineup.

Author:
Chris Halicke
Aug 28, 2021 1:59 AM EDT

ARLINGTON, Texas — On Friday night, Glenn Otto made his Major League debut against the team he grew up cheering for: the Houston Astros.

"He's not [a fan] now, he says," laughed Rangers manager Chris Woodward.

Otto took the ball for the Texas Rangers in his first big league start, and it couldn't have gone much better. The Astros ended up winning the ballgame by a score of 5-4, but Otto shut them down for the first five innings. Otto not only carried a comfort level and confidence of a veteran — showing no signs of a nervous rookie — he only gave up two hits and issued no walks to the potent Astros lineup, while striking out seven batters.

"It felt great," Otto said. "All I can say is praise God for this opportunity; to be able to do it in my home state. It went very well. It's a great start to my big league career."

Otto was grateful for the opportunity to make his big league debut with his parents and wife in the stands. He thanked them for all of their support in his baseball career, and knowing they're there to witness a huge step in his career could have been a distraction.

Instead, Otto was locked in on the mound, and mowed down the Astros lineup. The only thing that could stop him was a limited pitch count (he hasn’t gone over 80 pitches all season).

"It was unbelievable," Woodward said. "I thought [Jake] Latz was good the other day, especially in his first start. But the conviction this kid had on the mound. To go out there with a bunch of people in the stands, obviously he's got a ton of friends and family. But the conviction he had from pitch one, he said that was the most locked in he's ever been.

"Just the execution, man. It was really, really impressive. That team doesn't punch out. That team doesn't strikeout. They're the best in baseball at not striking out, and he got seven strikeouts in five innings against some really good hitters."

Otto mixed all of his pitches well, but primarily relied on a one-two punch of his four-seam fastball and slider. The latter provided eight of the nine whiffs Otto registered on the night.

Prior to this season, Otto had never thrown the slider, but the Yankees had him add it to his repertoire in spring training. Since he was acquired in the trade that sent Joey Gallo to the Bronx, the Rangers have worked with Otto to help differentiate between his slider and curveball.

Whatever they've done since late July has seemed to work. At Triple-A Round Rock, Otto went 2-1 with a 2.70 ERA and 1.00 WHIP with 19 strikeouts and seven walks in 20 innings over four starts. And on Friday night, Otto made some of the Astros hitters look silly, including Carlos Correa and Alex Bregman.

Chris Woodward didn't really want to say it in his press conference, but the Rangers skipper said catcher Jose Trevino said Otto reminded him of Corey Kluber.

"Just his demeanor, the mix of pitches, the way he talks about the game and talks about pitching," Woodward said. "It's obviously a great comp. That guy has won a Cy Young a couple times. But it was just really impressive — the composure, the command, the stuff from the side was exploding out of his hand."

Otto was called up on Friday to help the Rangers as they deal with their COVID-19 outbreak. However, Otto might be sticking in Arlington for the rest of the season. The Rangers wanted to get a look at him in the last month of the season anyway, and the COVID-19 situation expedited the process.

But after the debut he had, the intrigue surrounding Otto drastically went through the roof.

What's Next:
The Rangers (44-84) and Astros (76-52) continue their three-game series on Saturday at Globe Life Field. Kolby Allard (3-10, 4.86 ERA) will take the ball for Texas, facing off with Houston's Framber Valdez (8-4, 2.94 ERA).