SURPRISE, Ariz. — With only two innings left in his spring debut, there wasn’t much Giants starting pitcher Kyle Harrison could do Sunday to grab bragging rights in his family group chat.
His younger brother, Connor “Bear” Harrison, took the catcher spot as a true freshman at St. Mary’s University, hitting two home runs in a game this week and four through his first five games.
“He’s still my favorite kid,” Kyle said Sunday with a smile. “He’s tearing it up there.”
However, Harrison’s brother won a close battle.
Harrison faced a veteran Texas Rangers batting lineup on Sunday and had two no-hitter innings with four strikeouts. He was hit by a pitch by young outfielder Evan Carter, making him the only baserunner, but Harrison beat top prospect Wyatt Langford at 94 mph and the pinch runner was sent to second base.
The debut couldn’t have been better, but it’s worth noting that it happened on Sunday. Harrison is in the lineup as the Giants’ No. 2 starting pitcher for the start of the 2024 MLB season, and Bob Melvin didn’t shy away from that possibility earlier in the week, saying he would be happy if things worked out that way next season. Told. Month.
“It means a lot,” Harrison said. “The opportunities are there and I’m going to grab them and try to take advantage of them, but ultimately I want to win games. I don’t care where I’m pitching or what position I’m in the rotation. I just want to win games. I just want to go out there and give my team the best chance to win.”
Harrison will start the year right behind Logan Webb, the ace of the staff and training partner during the offseason. After making his own start on Saturday, Webb told reporters with a smile that “we’ll find out tomorrow” that Harrison is ready for the job.
“Kyle is probably more prepared than anyone here,” he said.
It certainly looked like that on Sunday, when Harrison struck out All-Stars Marcus Semien and Jonah Heim, Silver Slugger Award winner Nathaniel Rowe and Langford, the No. 4 overall pick in last year’s MLB draft.
All four of his strikeouts came from fastballs, but the one that stood out was his cutter. Especially considering the number of times Harrison threw to maintain leverage in the count 0-1. He developed that pitch last year, but only threw it a few times in the big leagues.
Harrison has been throwing with more power this spring, hitting 90-91 mph on Sunday. He said his increased velocity simply comes from having a better feel for the cutter, but he feels that way about his entire four-pitch repertoire.
“I feel like I’m getting more comfortable with my pitches every year, and I feel like my fastball is even more controllable this year,” he said. “I had a great performance today. I was happy with the result, even though some of it wasn’t strikes.”
Melvin compared Harrison’s development to Webb’s in that he was able to build a two-pitch foundation (fastball, slider) and then add on as he became more comfortable against big league hitters. . Harrison looked comfortable enough Sunday, a great sign for a team that could desperately use another front-line starter with Alex Cobb and Robbie Ray rehabbing.
“Man, he was explosive today,” catcher Tom Murphy said. “I feel like all the guys there felt like they didn’t stand a chance against his fastball. He could have thrown that every pitch, but obviously we came into the spring and prepared. Trying to get in shape, we let him throw a little bit.” But he certainly lived up to the billing. ”
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