Rowdy Tellez did not disappoint in his major league pitching debut.
Normally a first baseman or a designated hitter, Tellez took the mound in the ninth inning and fired a scoreless frame on Friday night and helped the Brewers clinch a playoff berth in a 16-1 win over the Marlins at loanDepot Park.
Tellez allowed one hit and even struck out a batter.
Before he got into the game to pitch, Tellez thought he was potentially going to go into the game to replace first baseman Carlos Santana.
But Brewers manager Craig Counsell had other ideas when he approached Tellez in the seventh inning.
“[Counsell] was like, ‘Can you throw strikes?’ And I said, ‘Yes, absolutely,’” Tellez recounted. “I took my sweatshirt off, my arm sleeve off and I ran upstairs. Tried to find every lefty I could in here, found Wade [Miley] and I was like, ‘He doesn’t use this glove,’ ran back down.”
The 28-year-old, who said he hadn’t pitched since his junior year of high school, looked like he still had the stuff on the bump.
After allowing a leadoff single to Bryan De La Cruz, Tellez buckled down when he faced Jesus Sanchez.
After a nine-pitch battle, Tellez got Sanchez to swing and miss at a pitch up and in, clocking in at a whopping 63 mph.
Garrett Hampson flew out to left field for the second out before Tellez induced a lazy pop-up to first base from Nick Fortes to end the game and clinch the playoff spot.
“[I’m] a Cy Young candidate now,” Tellez joked with reporters after the game.
Tellez said one of his teammates joked he would owe them $50 if he walked anyone, so he had extra incentive to throw strikes and get outs.
“I was like, well, ‘Vic [Caratini], sit on the corners, watch Maddux work,” Tellez said.
He did indeed work and now has a 0.00 ERA.
Read more
