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MLBFeature
Guardians' Parker Messick joins Paul Skenes as 2nd player with this impressive MLB history
TL;DR
Parker Messick of the Guardians has joined Paul Skenes as the second MLB player to allow 19 or fewer runs in their first 13 games while striking out at least 76 batters. His performance has been dominant despite limited run support.
Key points
- Parker Messick plays for the Cleveland Guardians
- Messick has allowed 19 or fewer runs in his first 13 games
- He has struck out at least 76 batters
- Only Paul Skenes shares this MLB achievement
- Messick's performance has been dominant
Cleveland Guardians
Guardians' Parker Messick joins Paul Skenes as 2nd player with this impressive MLB history originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
Parker Messick hasn't exactly gotten a lot of run support in the early stages of his MLB career with the Cleveland Guardians.
But in spite of that, the Guardians have had a chance to win basically every time the young left-hander takes the mound, because he's been pretty darn dominant.
Messick has been so good that he's joined a level of impressiveness only previously reached by Paul Skenes.
The stat: Pitchers who have allowed 19 or fewer runs in their first 13 games while striking out at least 76 guys.
The list is Messick and Skenes:
This season specifically, Messick has a 1.73 ERA through six starts with 38 strikeouts in 36.1 innings pitched.
He went 5.2 innings on Monday against the Tampa Bay Rays, allowing one run and striking out nine. He left with a lead, but the Guardians' bullpen couldn't keep it.
Messick doesn't throw with the same velocity as Skenes, but the southpaw has a lot of pitches that move in a lot of different ways.
His down-darting changeup might be his nastiest pitch, but his cutter and his breaking ball work well off of his well-commanded heater, too.
Nothing about this seems to be a fluke. Messick's stuff is legitimately good, and his stats are proving it.
Maybe he won't always be quite as good as Skenes, but it'd be hard to draw up a better start to his career than this.
MORE:Travis Bazzana is already unlike anyone else in Cleveland baseball history
Q&A
What impressive MLB record did Parker Messick achieve?
Parker Messick achieved the record of allowing 19 or fewer runs in his first 13 games while striking out at least 76 batters.
Who is the only other player to share this MLB record with Messick?
Paul Skenes is the only other player to share this impressive MLB record with Parker Messick.
How has Parker Messick performed despite run support issues?
Despite limited run support, Parker Messick has been dominant, giving the Guardians a chance to win in nearly every game he pitches.
