Jon Grey did not waste any time making his presence felt Wednesday evening.
4 months after a fractured forearm derailed his season earlier than it even started, the veteran right-hander got here out of the bullpen and threw two scoreless innings, serving to the Texas Rangers edge the Oakland A’s 2-1 within the sequence finale.
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Grey hadn’t pitched in a sport since March 14, when he was struck by a 106.4 mph liner throughout a spring matchup with the Rockies. However when supervisor Bruce Bochy referred to as on him within the sixth inning with two outs and runners on the corners, the 33-year-old regarded ready-if a bit rusty.
“Helman saved me” – How a defensive gem modified the tone of Grey’s return
Earlier than Grey even recorded an official out, rookie outfielder Michael Helman would possibly’ve saved the evening. Tyler Soderstrom despatched a deep fly to middle that regarded destined to tie the game-or worse-until Helman sprinted again and made a backhand catch simply shy of the wall. “He is actually the hero,”Grey mentioned afterward. “That play gave me time to breathe.“
From there, it was clean crusing. Grey retired six straight earlier than giving up a innocent two-out single to Brent Rooker. That will be his final batter. Identical to that, he had his first win of the season-and a key second in what could possibly be a vital second-half run for Texas.
Bochy admitted he did not plan to drop Grey into such a tense second however had no regrets. “Generally, you’ve got simply obtained to belief your man,”Bochy instructed MLB.com. “And Jon’s one among our guys.”
Grey, who’s in the ultimate 12 months of his four-year, $56 million deal, is aiming for a stronger end after accidents lower brief his 2024 marketing campaign. Final season, he went 5-6 with a 4.47 ERA and was sidelined a number of occasions with groin and foot points.
To make room for Grey, the Rangers designated reliever Luke Jackson for project. Jackson had 9 saves this season however had struggled since late April. Texas now returns house with renewed momentum-and with Jon Grey again within the fold, the bullpen simply obtained a bit of extra harmful.
