Detroit Tigers pitcher Matt Manning, who was the No. 9 overall pick in the 2016 draft, made his MLB debut last night against the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, allowing just two runs in five innings of work, walking two and striking out three. He also retired 10 of his final 12 batters (77 total pitches).
“Definitely fun,” Manning said Thursday. “A lot of emotions. It was just good enough to where I feel good about it, but there are some things I need to clean up for the next one, and I’m going to go to work in the next couple of days and get it right.”
Along with Tarik Skubal and Casey Mize, Manning is part of the young core of the team that fans are hoping will eventually get them back to the glory days that they enjoyed for roughly a decade.
“It was an emotional night for him and probably the most stressful pitches he’s ever thrown in his life,” Tigers manager AJ Hinch said postgame. “He held it together pretty well. I didn’t know how he was going to feel, how much he was going to command his stuff. As the night went along, he got more comfortable and showed us a lot of things that we like and why we like him moving forward.”
“It’s a nice nucleus of starting pitchers that we’re starting to develop,” Hinch continued. “This is a kickstart to Manning’s career. We’ve already seen growth out of Mize and Skubal, and it’s very easy to dream on what could be a very interesting trio moving forward.”
It certainly was a night that Manning will always remember, as will the 70 family members and friends that he had in the stands at Angel Stadium to watch his debut.
“It’s very special,” Manning said. “I had a lot of people here, and I’m so happy that I was able to debut in my home state. All the people that came and supported me, I’m very appreciative.”
– – Quotes via Detroit Free Press Link – –
