The News Herald (Willoughby, OH)
Rocky spring for pitcher McKenzie
Tribe deciding on role for prospect as opener nears
The spring has not been kind to Indians pitcher Triston McKenzie, the slender as a straw righthander who last Aug. 22 struck out 10 Detroit Tigers in six innings in a dazzling Major League debut.
Spring training stats never tell the whole story. But neither can they be totally ignored, especially for a player as young as McKenzie with only a short history to use to predict how he will perform in the regular season.
McKenzie, 23, played in six Cactus League games with four starts since the exhibition season began on Feb. 28. He was 0-2 with a gaudy 6.98 ERA. He gave up seven home runs in 19 1/3 innings, walked 12 and struck out 15 batters.
The strikeouts-to-walks ratio, and seven home runs allowed in fewer than 20 innings, is concerning to Tribe management, if not alarming.
“Obviously, you’d always like to see better results,” Indians president Chris Antonetti said on March 28, about two hours before McKenzie made his final Cactus League start in 2021. “I think spring training is a difficult time to assess players, particularly because we’ve seen with other guys as well, there are things — they have objectives and goals each outing. It may not be just about getting hitters out. They may be working on a particular pitch. They may be working on command with a particular pitch. They may be working on sequencing.
“So I think what we’re hopeful of is today we’ll see Triston take a step forward and just concentrate on competing and trying to get outs.”
McKenzie gave up three runs, all of them earned, over five innings in a 3-3 tie with the Padres. He gave up seven hits, two of them doubles, while striking out three batters and waking two.
The Indians break spring training on March 30. McKenzie will leave Goodyear on the charter flight to Detroit as part of the Indians’ 26-man roster to open the season April 1 against the Tigers, but exactly how he will be used is still being decided.
The Indians won’t need a fifth starter until April 13 because April 2, 6 and 8 are off days. Shane Bieber will start the opener in Detroit followed by Zach Plesac and Aaron Civale. How to approach the home opener April 5 with the Royals is to be determined.
“We know we’re only going to be going with four starters the first time through the rotation,” Antonetti said. “So we could consider using an opener (vs. the Royals) and then have Logan (Allen) come in behind him, or just have Logan start the game.
“Triston’s in the mix — he could be considered to be the opener for that game, or he could pitch out of the bullpen the first couple weeks. We’re still working through exactly how we’ll deploy that group.”
McKenzie is a critical part of the Indians’ plans this season. Allen pitched well in spring training, but he and Cal Quantrill are unproven. McKenzie is not discouraged about his rocky spring, or if he is, he hides it well.
“I’m trying to take away the positives — the good pitches I made, how my delivery felt,” he said on Zoom a few days before his March 28 start. “I felt
my tempo and going after the hitters today was better than previous ones in the spring. For the season, my role (either starter or reliever) doesn’t play a huge part in my mental process. It’s more of can I go out there and win games?”
The Indians won the first three games McKenzie started last season, He made three more starts and the Indians lost all three games. He gave up nine earned runs over 13 1/3 innings. His last two appearances of 2020 were in relief — a total of four innings with no earned run, no walks and six strikeouts.
“Triston’s had a little bit tougher camp,” Manager Terry Francona acknowledged. “Triston has only pitched in, what, the last two and a half years, maybe 40 innings? So there are some things to think about. Ultimately, the No. 1 thing is to win. But we’re trying to also balance workload with certain guys and then competitive advantage is the other one.”
A rotator cuff strain and pectoral injury prevented McKenzie from playing in 2019. He pitched 33 1/3 innings last season.
“I’m trying to take away the positives — the good pitches I made, how my delivery felt.” — Triston McKenzie