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Just three seasons ago, Cleveland Guardians right-handed pitcher Triston McKenzie looked like one of the next up and coming pitchers in the game. He turned in a 2.96 ERA across 31 starts in just his second full season in the big leagues and it looked like Cleveland had quite the superstar on its team.
Fast forward to Monday and McKenzie is no longer with the organization, as he was designated for assignment after a horrendous start to this season. McKenzie had racked up an ERA of 11.12 in just four appearances and 5 2/3 innings.
McKenzie can be traded or placed on outright waivers any time prior to Friday and he if clears waivers, he will be free to sign with any team. If that is what happens, here are three potential landing spots for the young right-hander.
New York Yankees
Gerrit Cole’s season-ending injury played a big part in the Yankees making this list. A recent injury to Marcus Stroman also makes pitching a position of need for New York.
Injury history of both Clarke Schmidt and Luis Gil could be a concern, so a signing of McKenzie and a stint in Triple-A to allow him to get built back up as a starter could be a good idea for New York and it could give itself more depth if another starter goes down with an injury.
Baltimore Orioles
The Orioles starting pitching rotation has the worst ERA in MLB at 6.11 along with the lowest strikeout rate at 15.4%, meaning there is no reason they should not take a chance on a young arm like McKenzie’s.
With its current injury situations, Baltimore has just one starter in its rotation that is under the age of 25. The O’s have two starters that are 35 or older in Charlie Morton (41) and Tomoyuki Sugano (35). A fresh start for McKenzie and another young arm in the Orioles rotation could help them get out of the funk they are in.
Tampa Bay Rays
The theme of this list has become clear now. Almost the entire AL East needs pitching help.
Tampa Bay has a notorious history of acquiring pitchers and turning their careers around, and the Rays could do the same thing with McKenzie. McKenzie could become the next project of the Rays’ pitching lab.
All three teams listed are in the bottom seven in Wins Above Average at the starting pitching position. While his season has been shaky, a change of scenery in any of these three cities could greatly benefit McKenzie’s future.
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