Parker Messick's early All-Star call only further affirmed his meteoric Guardians rise

Last year, Parker Messick had the honor of starting for the American League in the Futures Game, which ended up serving as the precursor to his August call-up and subsequent domination. 

While he didn’t get the start for the American League in Tuesday’s All-Star Game, he got the next-best honor by being the first pitcher out of the bullpen for the American League, where he pitched a scoreless inning in the AL’s 3-0 win. 

A year ago, Messick had yet to touch a big league diamond, and yet he still pitched a scoreless inning on one of baseball’s biggest stages. 

Parker Messick announced himself to MLB at the All-Star Game

Messick came on the reliever Blue Jays pitcher Dylan Cease, who pitched a stuck out the side in the first inning on 25 pitches. 

He faced off against the middle of the National League’s stacked lineup, but worked with his trademark speed and efficiency. He got Max Muncy to pop out to third base (one pitch) and Ozzie Albies to ground out to shortstop (two pitches) before striking out Brandon Marsh (seven pitches). 

That All-Star performance is yet another strong performance in what’s quickly becoming a signature season for Messick. He entered the All-Star Break with a 2.73 ERA in 112 innings, and he’s allowed three earned runs or less in 16 of his 19 starts this season. 

Messick’s fastball ranks as one of the best in MLB (100th percentile in run value) along with being in the 84th percentile in hard-hit rate and 82nd percentile in barrel rate. 

Not bad for a guy who earned his roster spot in the final week of spring training. 

Messick’s ascension has come at the perfect time for a Guardians team that needs as much starting pitching as it can get. While Cleveland’s rotation has been steady as a whole (3.69 ERA), Messick’s steadiness has been on another level. 

Joey Cantillo has the second-best ERA in Cleveland’s rotation (3.56), but he struggled through the first couple months. The same can be said for Tanner Bibee (3.90 ERA), whereas Gavin Williams has a 6.04 ERA in June. Slade Cecconi also has a serviceable 4.55 ERA after a strong June. 

But perhaps the best way that Messick has made an impact on Cleveland’s pitching staff is by being able to take the ball every fifth day considering the Guardians barely have any MLB-ready pitching depth. 

They’re the only team in baseball to only use five starters. If they’re able to keep the feat up all season, they’d become the first team since the 2003 Mariners to need just five starters.

Messick may not have the most experience on Cleveland’s roster, but he’s quickly becoming one of the most important players on it. Tuesday’s All-Star Game was just another avenue for him to show off that importance. 

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