San Diego – Riley Greene stood in front of his locker and tried to put what he’d just seen from rookie Kevin McGonigle in some kind of perspective.
“Just phenomenal,” he said. “When I was going through my debut, I couldn’t even feel my body. I didn’t even really know what was happening. It looked like that was his 700th game out there. Pretty impressive to see.”
That it was.
McGonigle, the 21-year-old, No. 2-ranked prospect in baseball, registered four hits in his Major League debut, igniting the Tigers’ season-opening 8-2 romp over the San Diego Padres on a sun-drenched Thursday before 45,673 patrons at Petco Park.
“He’s a special talent,” said Tarik Skubal, who allowed just one unearned run in six strong innings in his third straight Opening Day start. “He doesn’t really need any help. He just needs to be Kevin. He’s a really good baseball player and he proved it today.
“But what I love about him, I don’t think he’s going to think about today tomorrow. He’s going to come to the yard, fresh slate, and go to work again. That speaks to who he is as a human and a competitor. I’m excited he’s on our club.”
McGonigle is the youngest Tigers player to get four hits in his debut and the first since Billy Bean in 1987. He joins a list of six players in the game’s history who debuted with four hits on Opening Day since 1900.
The last was Delino DeShields, Sr., in 1990.
“I mean, I guess I’ve got to start not sleeping before every game,” McGonigle said with a laugh. “Last night I barely got any sleep. I’m just happy we won. I’m looking forward to keep helping this team as much as I can.”
McGonigle slapped a double to right-field on the first pitch he saw in the big leagues, knocking in two runs in a four-run first inning. First at-bat, check. First hit, check. First extra-base hit, check. First RBI, check.
Swinging at the first pitch after Padres starter Nick Pivetta had just walked in a run was telling, too.
“First pitch cutter up in the zone,” McGonigle said. “I knew he was going up with something firm and he threw it right in the spot I was looking. I was happy to pull it down the line.”
BOX SCORE: Tigers 8, Padres 2
Manager AJ Hinch had no issue with McGonigle being aggressive in that spot.
“He can hit,” Hinch said. “He won’t be as nervous as that at-bat again, but if that’s the nervous version of him, we’re in for a fun year. I like that he was aggressive on his pitch. That was a big hit to open up the game. That set the tone for a really good day for him and a good win for us.”
McGonigle lashed a double in his second at-bat, too. First multi-hit game, check.
This one capped an impressive six-pitch at-bat against Pivetta. McGonigle fought out of an 0-2 hole, took a curveball, fouled off a curveball and then barreled a 92-mph fastball. The ball left his bat at 105.9 mph and hit off the right-field wall, missing a home run by a couple of feet.
For good measure, he tested and beat the elite throwing arm of right fielder Fernando Tatis Jr., to earn the hustle double.
McGonigle rolled an infield single in his third at-bat. Then in ninth, against lefty Wandy Peralta, he spanked another pull-side single for his fourth hit.
Magical stuff.
“Any time you can contribute to a win at this level, especially when you first get here, he will sleep good tonight,” Hinch said.
McGonigle had a bag of balls, presumably they were collected after his four hits, and he was on his way to deliver them to his parents. He and his father no doubt shared a chuckle at the irony of him collecting four hits in San Diego where Tony Gwynn played.
His father used Gwynn as a role model when McGonigle was learning how to hit.
“Yeah, walking around here, you see Tony Gwynn posters,” McGonigle said. “It reminded me of all the times dad and I talked about him.”
McGonigle also fielded his five chances at third base without issue. He made an excellent play in the seventh, ranging far to his left to cutoff a slow roller and throwing out Jake Cronenworth on a close play.
“He’s not scared of anything,” Greene said. “He’s always up for what’s next. He’s never going to back down from anyone. And he loves the game of baseball. His day-to-day is pretty impressive to see.”
The offense, which included a two-run, 403-foot blast by catcher Dillon Dingler and a two-run single by Parker Meadows, gave Skubal a luxurious cushion he didn’t really need, but given his bustling offseason, it was nice to have just the same.
“This guy has had as public of a life as anyone in baseball,” Hinch said before the game. “I’m looking forward to just him pitching. Just having a day where he can prepare, go out against an opponent and get after it the way he loves to do.”
Skubal was in the public glare all winter, from winning his second straight Cy Young award, to his high-profile arbitration case to his polarizing one-and-done outing for Team USA in the World Baseball Classic.
“He handled all of that with great class and transparency,” Hinch said. “He should be complimented for that. There is nothing he does now that doesn’t get a reaction out of fans, out of the media, out of everybody around him.
“The best thing he can do is pitch.”
He pitched extremely well Thursday, mostly breezing through six innings. At one point, after a couple of first-inning singles, he retired 15 straight hitters before an errant throw by shortstop Javier Báez ended the streak.
Xander Bogaerts doubled down the line at third to score the only run Skubal allowed, albeit unearned.
“Pitching with a lead, that’s the best thing to do,” Skubal said. “Just challenging guys and competing in the strike zone. Not that I don’t always try to do that, but in certain counts, it allows you to go right after them and see if they can hit the ball out of the ballpark.”
The Padres, like most teams do, were trying to attack Skubal early in the count. The result was a lot of early, a lot of one-pitch outs. He was at just 53 pitches through five innings.
“I like it when guys are swinging from the first pitch,” said Skubal, who struck out six with no walks and got nine whiffs on 11 swings with his changeup. “Because it’s going to allow me to get deeper in the game. If I’m executing pitches, I don’t really care if they’re swinging. I can pitch deeper in the game and save our bullpen and it generally means we are winning, too.”
Skubal, now 29-1 in his career when he gets at least six runs of support, has been anxious to put all the offseason chatter behind him.
“None of that matters now,” he said. “Things I do are going to be decently public. It’s just part of the gig. But none of that stuff has ever impacted my ability to focus on the things I need to do.”
There was no evidence to the contrary Thursday.
“We’re 1-0, that’s the most important thing,” he said. “We’re 1-0 with an opportunity to win a series tomorrow with Framber (Valdez) pitching. Starting the season 1-0 is a big step. I want to be 2-0 after tomorrow.”
Chris.McCosky@detroitnews.com
@cmccosky
This article originally appeared on The Detroit News: Spectacular start! Kevin McGonigle, Tarik Skubal star as Tigers romp
Reporting by Chris McCosky, The Detroit News / The Detroit News
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
