Houck strikes for charity in Red Sox debut
Prior to his Major League debut Tuesday, Tanner Houck made it known that he wanted his first appearance on the mound to be about more than just baseball. He came through. Boston’s No. 10 prospect tossed five stellar innings in his first big league start, notching seven strikeouts -- and
Prior to his Major League debut Tuesday,
Boston’s No. 10 prospect tossed five stellar innings in his first big league start, notching seven strikeouts -- and making a charitable impact with them -- while allowing just two hits and picking up the win as the Red Sox blanked the Marlins, 2-0.
#RedSox No. 10 prospect Tanner Houck is a big leaguer.
— Minor League Baseball (@MiLB) September 16, 2020
5⃣ IP
2⃣ H
0⃣ R
7⃣ K'spic.twitter.com/VXb4tzokHq
“The reality is definitely everything I could have imagined,” Houck told reporters after the game. “Especially now, getting to pitch for my cause and my charity is definitely a bonus on top of gaining this experience. It was … I can’t even put it into words.”
Houck threaded strikeouts throughout his start, recording at least one in each inning. The Missouri product said on Twitter on Monday that he planned to donate $100 to Pitch For Adoption for each whiff he racked up in the debut. The proceeds benefit Caritas Family Solutions in Belleville, Illinois, 10 miles south of his hometown of Collinsville. When he was a prep star at Collinsville High, Houck’s family adopted his then-4-year-old sister, Reanna, inspiring the pitcher to use his platform to advanced the adoption cause.
“Definitely having my sister come into my life was such a big thing for my whole family,” Houck said. “I’ll never forget the day that she came in. I was pitching in high school on the JV field as a freshman. I remember watching my mom walk up with a stroller and a little girl in there.
“I was like, ‘Who is that?’ She said, ‘It’s your new sister.’ Just being able to help her change her life was just so inspiring for me. I want to continue to do that for other kids. They’re our future. I was lucky enough to have parents that gave me everything I wanted and helped me get to this to live out my dream. I want to continue to help kids like that fulfill their dreams.”
Rarely challenged in his first start in The Show, Houck surrendered a leadoff single to left field by Corey Dickerson in the first inning, but the outfielder was thrown out trying to stretch it into a double. After retiring the next four, the right-hander yielded a two-out single to center by Garrett Cooper and followed it with a walk to Miguel Rojas but fanned baseball’s No. 66 overall prospect
Houck only faced two more baserunners, issuing free passes to Matt Joyce and Cooper in the fourth. The 24-year-old finished on a roll, retiring the final four batters he faced.
“Getting that win was truly amazing,” Houck said. “The guys went out there and did what they had to do. Swinging the bat, they did absolutely everything they could, and then the bullpen coming in was amazing. But for me, getting to go out there, getting to warm up the first time, definitely had the heart pounding a little bit more than usual. It was a surreal moment.”
The 24th overall selection of the 2017 First-Year Player Draft out climbed swiftly to Boston. Houck pitched in a combined 33 games (17 starts) between Double-A Portland and Triple-A Pawtucket last year, going 8-6 with a 4.01 ERA and 107 strikeouts in 107 2/3 innings. After the season, he went to the Arizona Fall League and compiled a 3-2 record and 3.47 ERA in six starts for Peoria before playing for USA Baseball at the Premier12 tournament in Mexico and Japan. Though he took losses in both of his starts on the international stage, Houck struck out 11 in 9 1/3 innings against Mexico and Australia and finished the tournament with a 3.86 ERA.
Houck’s United States teammate
In other action:
D-backs 9, Angels 8
Arizona's No. 3 prospect
Reds 4, Pirates 1
Second-ranked Pirates prospect
Rays 6, Nationals 1
No. 21 overall prospect
Phillies 4, Mets 1
Out of the three-spot in the order, Philadelphia's top prospect
Astros 4, Rangers 1
Texas’ No. 25 prospect
Yankees 20, Blue Jays 6
New York’s third-ranked prospect Deivi Garcia made the most of his team’s offense en route to his second win four big league games. The 21-year-old righty scattered three runs on six hits and two walks, striking out six, over seven innings. The game’s No. 95 prospect sports a 3.28 ERA. No. 26 Michael King was tagged for three runs in the ninth, but left the bases loaded with Vladimir Guerrero Jr. at the plate needing a triple for the cycle. The righty allowed five hits and two walks while striking out one in two frames. Toronto’s No. 11 prospect
Braves 5, Orioles 1
Tigers 6, Royals 0
Detroit’s No. 17 prospect Bryan Garcia allowed a hit while closing out the game for his second save. The 25-year-old righty hasn’t given up a run since his debut on Aug. 22, and his career has fallen to 1.47. Sixth-ranked
White Sox 6, Twins 2
Chicago’s No. 7 prospect
Rockies 3, A’s 1
Colorado’s No. 18 prospect
Cubs 6, Indians 5
Cleveland's No. 17 prospect
Tyler Maun is a reporter for MiLB.com and co-host of “The Show Before The Show” podcast. You can find him on Twitter @tylermaun.