When the Los Angeles Dodgers signed Japanese starting pitcher Kenta Maeda to a an eight-year contract in January, I don’t think they had his hitting skills in mind. But in the second at-bat of Maeda’s MLB debut on Wednesday night against the San Diego Padres, the 27-year-old showed that he can he swing the bat too.
Watch Maeda take Padres pitcher Andrew Cashner deep on an 0-2 count in the fourth inning at Petco Park:
Kenta Maeda’s 1st homer in MLB. (Japanese version) pic.twitter.com/ZbMk0p0af2
— Joseph Kim (@blackwings2011) April 7, 2016
#Dodgers Kenta Maeda is the first non-U.S. born pitcher in baseball history to hit a homer in his #MLB debut.
— Ace of MLB Stats (@theaceofspaeder) April 7, 2016
Rockies need to let Story pitch some so he can keep rookie of the year pace with Maeda now — Brandon McCarthy (@BMcCarthy32) April 7, 2016
That was no cheapie either. That was a bomb.
The dugout reactions were also great, like with Clayton Kershaw here:
And Maeda reacting to the silent treatment his teammates gave him:
While it was an awesome moment for the Dodgers, it had to be a particularly frustrating one for the Padres and the fans. As I write this, the Dodgers lead the Padres 5-0 in the eighth inning, and the Padres have not scored a single run over the three-game series. So, Maeda has driven in more runs on the season than the Padres have!
Oh, and Maeda threw six shutout innings on the mound, showing off the terrific control he’s known for, with zero walks.
UPDATE: Yep, the Padres were shut out, making them the first team in MLB history be shut out in their first three games of the season.
