"He's a big league pitcher now."
Gavin Stone (Los Angeles Dodgers) pitched 3 1/3 innings of one-hit ball, striking out eight and walking none in the second game of the 2024 MLB World Tour Seoul Series Special Game against the South Korean National Baseball Team at Gocheok Sky Dome in Seoul, South Korea, on Monday.
Before the game, head coach Dave Roberts explained the pitching plan: "Miller would go five innings and then Stone would go three or four." Stone pitched three and a third shutout innings to preserve the win.
Stone took over the baton from Miller in the top of the sixth. He fanned the first batter he faced, Kang Baek-ho, with a four-seam fastball, then followed with two low, outside changeups to induce a wild swing. He then got Noh Si-hwan to ground out to shortstop and walked Na Seung-yeop, but then threw another decisive changeup to Park Sung-hwan for a strikeout.
After getting leadoff hitter Choi Ji-hoon to fly out to center field in the top of the seventh, Stone struck out Son Sung-bin and Choi Jae-jin, using his sinker and changeup for strikes. In the eighth, he retired all three batters he faced. He threw a changeup to Moon Hyun-bin and Moon Bo-kyung and a four-seam fastball to Yoon Dong-hee to induce a wild swing.
He stayed on the mound in the ninth, striking out Noh Si-hwan before 바카라 handing the bases over to J.P. Fireleisen.
Stone was selected by the Dodgers with the 159th overall pick in the fifth round of the 2020 draft and made his first big league appearance last season. In eight games (four starts), he went 1-1 with one win, one loss, one save, and a 9.00 ERA in 31 innings pitched, but he earned a spot in the starting rotation this season after excelling in spring training.
"I think the biggest thing that stood out to me is that he's showing maturity for a young guy," Roberts said of Stone in his postgame press conference, "His velocity was up and his stuff was consistent on the mound. He was averaging 96 mph (about 154 km/h). His changeup was good. Overall, it's good to see Stone build off of last year and look good heading into spring training and the season opener."
"Last year, everybody said he had flaws, but now he's a complete big league pitcher. That's what everybody is saying."
"When I was told I was going to be in the starting rotation, I was really grateful. "I worked on my mind control (in the offseason), and that's something I hope to bring to the table once the season starts," Stone said.
