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MLB Network are having an MLB Stars Debut Day today, showcasing the first games played by names who would go on to become famous. Two of the contests being showed involve the Arizona Diamondbacks - though you’d be forgiven for probably wanting to forget one of them!
If you’re curious, you can turn in right now and see the debut of Fernando Tatis Jr. Would it be churlish to question whether he counts as a star yet? Admittedly, he was just a couple of months out of his teens at the time, when he started the season which would end with him coming third in the Rookie of the Year voting. And he did hit .317 with 22 home-runs, before he was old enough to drink.
This is followed at 2 pm by the Diamondbacks’ Opening Day game from 2016, though I’d not blame you if you shipped that one as well, even though it was Zack Greinke’s debut in Sedona Red. For it... didn’t go too well, shall we say. Zack lasted only four innings, and was battered for nine hits and seven earned runs, as Colorado pounded Arizona 10-5. This one is being shown because it was the debut of Diamondbacks killer Trevor Story. He has hit .321 over 64 games with 18 home-runs against us. That started on his debut where he homered off Greinke in both his second and third major-league at-bats. Over his first four games - three against the D-backs - he had six home-runs. Yeah, I’ll be reading a book or something.
Much more pleasant memories can be found at 7 pm, when we get the debut of Max Scherzer. That came on April 29, 2008, and much like another future Diamondbacks ace (and one who, unlike Scherzer, reached his potential with the team), Brandon Webb, it came in relief. Quick: can you remember who was the Arizona starter that game? The answer was Edgar Gonzalez, who had a forgettable outing, not getting out of the third inning, and allowing six runs on eight hits and two walks. Then entered Scherzer, striking out Jack Cassel as the first batter the future Cy Young winner faced. But let’s just review his performance on the night, shall we?
- Jack Cassel - Strikeout Swinging
- Kazuo Matsui - Foul Popfly: C (Behind Home)
- Michael Bourn - Strikeout Looking
- Miguel Tejada - Strikeout Swinging
- Lance Berkman - Strikeout Swinging
- Carlos Lee - Popfly: 2B (Short CF)
- Geoff Blum - Groundout: 2B-1B
- Jose Cruz - Strikeout Swinging
- J.R. Towles - Strikeout Swinging
- Tim Byrdak - Lineout: LF (LF-CF)
- Kazuo Matsui - Bunt Groundout: P-1B
- Michael Bourn - Strikeout Looking
- Miguel Tejada - Groundout: 1B unassisted (2B-1B)
That’s 13 up, thirteen down, with seven strikeouts and just one batter getting the ball out of the infield. As I said, somewhat presciently, in our recap: “Tonight may be one of those games we look back on in twenty years and say, ‘Yes, I remember seeing Scherzer make his major-league debut.’” It’s just a shame that his three Cy Youngs (so far) would all come to Max well after he was traded from the Diamondbacks in December 2009. But we’ll always have this game, I guess...