Parker Messick Faces First Bit of Adversity in Guardians Loss

Parker Messick cruised through the first month of the 2026 MLB season. As the rookie pounded the zone, limited runs, and consistency gave his team six innings of quality pitching, he became one of the top pitchers in the Cleveland Guardians’ rotation.

Messick didn’t face much of any tribulation over the last month, and the most pressure that was on him was whether or not he could close out a no-hitter in the ninth inning.

Messick’s first start of the new month did bring with it his first bit of adversity this season, as the starter struggled at times in his start on Sunday afternoon against the Athletics.

The left-hander threw 5.0 innings, gave up six hits, allowed four earned runs, struck out six batters, and issued no walks. All in all, it wasn’t a horrible start for Messick, just not one the guardians have grown accustomed to.

Out of all the innings, it was the fifth that gave Messick the most trouble. He gave up a pair of home runs, and the Athletics had traffic on the bases all inning, skyrocketing his pitch count.

May 3, 2026; West Sacramento, California, USA; Cleveland Guardians pitcher Parker Messick (77) throws to a Cleveland Guardians batter during the first inning at Sutter Health Park. Mandatory Credit: Scott Marshall-Imagn Images

Messick was very reflective after the game about all three of the homers he gave up, and he knows what he must do better to limit them moving forward.

“The first two really weren't that bad of pitches. They got ahead out on a cutter. I'm not going to say it backed up, but it was just top of the zone, kind of a little too much zone for that pitch in that count,” explained Messick after the game.