From the moment he got drafted to the moment he officially earned his first big-league victory, this was not how Pittsburgh Pirates pitcher Jameson Taillon imagined it would all happen. That doesn’t mean it wasn’t worth the wait, though.
Expectations were high within seconds of him learning he was taken with the second overall pick in the 2010 MLB draft — right after Bryce Harper and right before Manny Machado. Those expectations continued growing after just 23 career minor league starts when analysts began mentioning him as one of baseball’s top 20 prospects. He continued proving those analysts right as he rose all the way up to Triple-A as a 21-year-old in 2013.
And then suddenly, everything had to be put on hold.
The elbow pain every pitcher dreads hit Taillon during Spring Training in 2014, forcing him to undergo Tommy John surgery. He entered camp with hopes of landing in the big leagues before that next winter, and now his season was over before it even started. His 2015 campaign would be delayed, too, but at least he’d get back on the mound.
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At least that’s what everyone thought, until an inguinal hernia led to him also missing 2015. In the blink of an eye, Taillon went from being a stud top prospect on the verge of his big-league debut to being sidelined with injuries for two full seasons.
But when it was time to get back on the mound in Triple-A this year, it was like he never left. In fact, he was mowing down opposing International League hitters in a way he hadn’t done yet during his minor league career (4-2 record, 2.04 ERA, 0.81 WHIP, 10.17 K/BB ratio in 61.2 innings pitched).
Then, it happened – the call Taillon was anticipating on getting sometime during 2014 finally came on June 8 in front of the home crowd at PNC Park against the New York Mets. It wasn’t a Stephen Strasburg-like debut, but it wasn’t too shabby. The right-hander delivered a quality start by allowing three runs on six hits, two walks and three strikeouts in six innings of work.
It was short-lived, though — this was just a spot start because the Pirates needed an extra pitcher due to a rainout. And just as we expected, Taillon was back down in Triple-A right after that appearance, but undoubtedly flying high off finally reaching his goal.
Little did he know how soon and how important his second MLB start would be.
Baseball has a habit of being harsh at times, and this past week was a tough one for the Pirates. Since Taillon’s long-awaited debut, Pittsburgh had lost five games in a row (which included getting swept by the St. Louis Cardinals) and lost catcher Francisco Cervelli to a broken hamate bone, along with young ace Gerrit Cole to a triceps strain.
Despite having a day off to lick their wounds on Monday, the Pirates limped into their Tuesday night matchup against Jacob deGrom and the Mets at Citi Field. The rotation was already struggling with Francisco Liriano, Jon Niese, Jeff Locke and Juan Nicasio all sporting ERAs north of 4.60. Cole was the most consistent bright spot, and now he’s gone for who knows how long.
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Pittsburgh entered this tilt against New York just one game over .500 and staring at an 11.5-game deficit in the NL Central thanks to the Chicago Cubs. They’re very much in the Wild Card race, but it didn’t feel like it. They needed some kind of jolt to remind them this tough luck wasn’t permanent, because although every ballplayer knows slumps come and go, they still feel awful and never-ending in the midst of them.
That’s where Taillon came in and delivered an absolute gem. He took a no-hitter into the seventh inning before Curtis Granderson spoiled it with a single, but that didn’t spoil his focus. He needed just 91 pitches to get through eight shutout innings, allowing two hits, one walk and five strikeouts along the way. The use of his curveball kept hitters off balance all night and he never threw more than 15 pitches in an inning.
This was big. For Taillon, it was a moment six years in the making (nearly to the day), but it was a performance Pittsburgh desperately needed. Not just to stop the bleeding of a five-game losing streak, but also to snap them out of a funk that included a bunch of bad news on multiple fronts.
This is not an organization that makes huge midseason splashes to fuel a playoff push – they must do it themselves. Cervelli will be sidelined for a significant amount of time, which will hurt because he’s a huge part of this team and this pitching staff, but they must fight through it. General manager Neal Huntington isn’t about to go out and make a play for Jonathan Lucroy – the Pirates will have to make it work.
If Cole misses more than his next two starts, they’re not going to go out and make a big trade like the Chicago White Sox did for James Shields. Instead, these trying times will force Pittsburgh to look within itself even more for answers. On Tuesday night, Taillon’s name was called to help them find one.
Will his dominant performance help snap the Pirates out of their funk? Is Taillon the answer to this season’s rotation woes? Maybe, maybe not. But for one night, the answers to these questions were a resounding yes.
When Pittsburgh used the second overall pick in 2010 to take this 24-year-old right-hander, they were looking for a top-of-the-rotation hurler to count on for a few years. It took much longer for him to reach the big-league rotation than anyone could’ve expected, but he’s here now and played the role of stopper like he’s been doing it for years.
Nobody wishes to go through the trials and tribulations Taillon went through before reaching the majors. However, he’s probably thankful for every bit of it because at the end of the day, those hard times tested his mental toughness and made him a better pitcher.
That’s good for Taillon and the Pirates, who are finally getting a look at that stud prospect of theirs. And after so many delays, the timing actually couldn’t have been more perfect.
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