The Walk Off: Kenta Maeda continues historic start to MLB career
By Mark Townsend
13 hours ago
Big League Stew
Welcome to The Walk Off, the nightly MLB recap from Big League Stew. Here we'll look at the top performers of the night, show you a must-see highlight and rundown the scoreboard. First, we start with a game you need to know about.
It's been 35 years since Fernandomania took over Los Angeles. Now it's Kentamania, or perhaps you prefer Maedamania, that's taking over, as 28-year-old right-hander Kenta Maeda continues spinning gems.
In the Dodgers 4-1 victory against the Rockies on Saturday, Maeda pitched 6.1 scoreless innings. From a historical perspective, that made him the first pitcher ever to allow just one total run in his first four MLB starts. No one else has done that. Not Clayton Kershaw. Not Greg Maddux. Not Pedro Martinez. Maeda stands alone, and it looks like he'll be standing for a long time to come.
View photo
(APi)
It's interesting too, because Saturday's start took many of us back 20 years when another right-hander from Japan, Hideo Nomo, made history by firing a no-hitter against the Rockies at Coors Field. Maeda threatened to repeat history by holding the Rockies hitless into the sixth inning. He would end up allowing three hits, but lowered his ERA to a remarkable 0.36. Maeda also earned his third win.
There's no doubt Maeda is making the exact impact Los Angeles hoped he would, though some challenges do lie ahead still. Mainly, there will be adjustments made by the hitters he'll face, which will force Maeda to adjust as well.
That will be interesting to watch play out. However, Maeda has had hitters so off balance so far that's it difficult to imagine him not staying one step ahead.
Poster Comment:
Kenta Maeda must have some hot stuff. Only one run in his first four starts. Fantastic!