SAN FRANCISCO – Scott Kazmir is back in the big leagues and he was good enough on Saturday to make people wonder if he was a break from a game or a potential factor in the future.
Kazmir, who has been out of the majors since 2016, gave up just two hits – a home run in the bay and a single from Max Muncy – and a run in four innings against the Los Angeles Dodgers at Oracle Park.
Jarlin Garcia came in fifth after Kazmir dropped 55 places, 38 for strikes. He walked with no one and turned down two. By the age of 37, Kazmir’s Fastball was consistently mixed between 91 and 93, with an alternation between 80 and 81.
Kazmir was signed by Triple-A Sacramento to start for the Giants against the Dodgers, for whom he threw his last pitch in the Majors in 2016.
The man who broke the news was Giants manager Gabe Kapler, a teammate from Kazmir with the Tampa Bay Rays in 2009.
« I spoke to him late, late, late last night and again this morning, » Kapler said during a pre-game video conference. « It’s actually quite enjoyable to deliver this to him. I could tell through the phone that he was smiling. »
The only thing Kazmir didn’t have to smile about on his Giants’ debut was a 1-1 move to Muncy in the first inning. Muncy scored his ninth home run of the season as well as his fourth splash hit as a guest player.
Kazmir was 1-0 with 2.84. Average earned run in Triple-A Sacramento in two single-start games. A year ago Kazmir played in Eastern League Baseball for Eastern Reyes del Tigre in Sugar Land, Texas. He had struggled with arm injuries since 2017, most recently for Single-A Rancho Cucamonga in the Dodgers organization.
The Giants looked at Kazmir in spring practice and were pleasantly surprised by what they saw.
« It’s a fantastic story. It’s a story of perseverance and resilience, » said Kapler. « Last year he played independent baseball, had the opportunity to come to camp with us, and was hard at his craft I remember seeing his first bullpen in Scottsdale and it didn’t look much different from what the 16 of us saw. »
Kazmir was 10-6 with the Dodgers in 2016 before his arm problems started. He had also resurrected his career in Oakland once before with the A’s, with whom he was between 15 and 9 years old in 2014, and received his third pick for the All-Star game.
In 12 major league seasons, Kazmir has a record of 108-96 and an earned run average of 4.01. He earned his first two all-star appearances with Tampa Bay and also played for Cleveland, the Los Angeles Angels and Houston.
« It’s not easy to be an established major league pitcher with a long career and a lot of service time, make a ton of money, and then go back to an independent ball and get another shot because you’re on Believing yourself and thinking of yourself can get out in the top league, ”said Kapler. « Seeing it all come together for him is quite a story. »
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« It’s not Scott Kazmir around 2005, but it’s not far from where he was near the end of his last stint in the Major League, » said Kapler. “Change looks good. It was an effective weapon for him throughout his career. Delivery looks good. Strong and healthy. »
The Giants will try to get a couple of innings out of Kazmir before passing the ball to the bullpen against Dodger’s starter Walker Buehler (2-0, 2.98 earned run average).
Left-handed Sam Selman has been transferred to Sacramento, and outfielder Braden Bishop has been designated for the assignment.
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