Houston Astros manager Dusty Baker claimed that he never saw Shane McClanahan of the Tampa Bay Rays pitch. As it turns out, he did.
The starters for the American and National League teams in the 2022 MLB All-Star Game were revealed last week. One thing that was not known was who would be the starting pitchers. On July 18, it was revealed that Clayton Kershaw of the Los Angeles Dodgers is starting for the NL All-Star team, while Shane McClanahan of the Tampa Bay Rays will take the mound for the AL All-Star team.
During a press conference, AL manager Dusty Baker spoke about choosing McClahahan as his starting pitcher, but said that he has never seen him pitch. The video comes courtesy of ABC Action News’ Kyle Burger.
The moment when AL manager Dusty Baker named Shane McClanahan as the AL starting pitcher: “I’ve never seen him pitch.” #AllStarGame #RaysUp pic.twitter.com/k9clzPXRso
— Kyle Burger (@kyle_burger) July 18, 2022
Astros: Dusty Baker has actually seen Shane McClanahan pitch
The thing is, as a variety of media members have pointed out, is that Baker actually has seen McClanahan pitch up close. That was in Game 6 of the 2020 ALCS between the Astros and Rays.
It is worth noting that Shane McClanahan pitched against the Astros in Game 6 of the 2020 ALCS, a game Dusty Baker managed in the third-base dugout. McClanahan allowed five hits and three runs in 1.2 innings.
— Chandler Rome (@Chandler_Rome) July 18, 2022
McClanahan entered that contest in the top of the sixth inning with the Rays trailing 4-1. Things did not get any better, as he surrendered three earned runs on five hits in just 1.2 innings of work. Those runs arrived on a solo home run by Kyle Tucker in the sixth, an RBI single by Michael Brantley in the seventh, and a sacrifice fly by Tucker in the seventh.
Houston won Game 6 by the score of 7-4 to force a Game 7. McClanahan and Tampa got the last laugh, as the Rays won 4-2 to advance to the World Series.
This season, McClanahan leads the league with a 1.71 ERA, a 212 ERA+, a 0.795 WHIP, a 5.6 hits-per-nine innings average, and a 7.74 strikeouts-to-walk ratio.
Baker actually did get McClanahan pitch, but it was far from the greatest outing for the Rays pitcher. but, he has the chance to watch McClanahan up close and personal on Tuesday night at Dodger Stadium.