Brendan McKay, fresh off a remarkable first pitching start in Major League Baseball over the weekend, made another debut on Monday with Tampa Bay. This time at the plate for the Rays against the Baltimore Orioles.
This one, not quit as impressive, with the former University of Louisville baseball star going 0-for-4 as the designated hitter, batting eighth in the lineup in a 6-3 win over the visiting Orioles.
“I felt like I had some good at-bats,” he said after the game. “Obviously not the results you want. Now it’s just time to find holes in the defense and get your first hit out of the way.”
Two of his at-bats were against Tom Eshelman, a former pitcher at Cal State Fullerton, who threw against UofL in the 2015 Super Regional at Jim Patterson Stadium. McKay grounded out to first with the bases loaded and two outs to end the first inning and a fourth-inning grounder against Eshelman who was making his major league debut.
McKay got picked off second base in the sixth after reaching on the fielder’s choice.
“To see him on the other side, it was kind of funny,” Eshelman said. “I knew what not to throw him because he hit a homer off me in that game. Yeah, congrats to him. To be able to do it two ways in the big leagues is pretty awesome. So, it was definitely a weird feeling facing him in a big league uniform, but it was fun.”
McKay is the fourth player since 1913 to begin his career with a start as a pitcher and a non-pitcher within his first two games, according to the Associated Press.
During his big league debut on Saturday, McKay entered the sixth inning with a perfect game against the Texas Rangers. He left the game after allowing only one hit in sixth innings.
The left-handed McKay is scheduled to pitch again Friday night against the New York Yankees at Tropicana Field in Tampa Bay.