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Faria called up to make Major League debut

Rays No. 9 prospect and IL strikeout leader to start Wednesday
Jacob Faria has improved his Triple-A strikeout rate from 8.51 in 2016 to 12.89 this season. (Durham Bulls)
June 6, 2017

After finishing seven innings for the first time all season on Thursday, Jacob Faria will be enjoying another first six days later.The Rays' No. 9 prospect was promoted from Triple-A Durham on Tuesday afternoon and will make his Major League debut Wednesday against the White Sox. Faria will take the

After finishing seven innings for the first time all season on Thursday, Jacob Faria will be enjoying another first six days later.
The Rays' No. 9 prospect was promoted from Triple-A Durham on Tuesday afternoon and will make his Major League debut Wednesday against the White Sox. Faria will take the rotation spot of Matt Andriese, who was placed on the 10-day disabled list May 31.

The 23-year-old right-hander leads the International League with 84 strikeouts, a mark that is tied for second in the Minors with Salem's Michael Shawaryn behind Oklahoma City's Wilmer Font. His six wins are tied for the circuit lead with Lehigh Valley's Ben Lively, and his 1.13 WHIP is third-best among IL pitchers with at least nine starts.

"The biggest thing I've learned from the Rays is the approach -- the thing they teach and really harp on is that you want to get guys out in three or four pitches or less," Faria told MiLB.com after spinning seven scoreless innings against Rochester. "You want to attack. There's no such thing as a wasted pitch. The strikeouts are just coming because of the approach we have -- get ahead early and put them away as soon as you can."
Overall, Faria is 6-1 with a 3.07 ERA and 84-to-22 strikeout-to-walk ratio in 58 2/3 innings for the Bulls. He finished 5-10 with a 3.99 ERA and 157 strikeouts over 151 innings with Durham and Double-A Montgomery in 2016.

Chris Tripodi is an editor for MiLB.com. Follow him on Twitter @christripodi.