CLEVELAND — Although the results don’t show it right now, Guardians starting pitcher Slade Cecconi says he’s close.
Cleveland manager Stephen Vogt agrees, and that’s despite his right-hander starting off 0-3 with a 6.20 ERA through five starts.
Cecconi was roughed up for 10 hits in five innings in a 9-2 loss to the Houston Astros on April 20. He gave up seven runs, six earned, walked two and struck out two.
He also gave up home runs to Christian Walker and Isaac Parades.
“I’ve been going through it, you know, ” Cecconi said. “But, f—, that’s baseball, you know? I got sick for a couple weeks. I pitched in 30-degree weather twice, but it’s going to make me better at the end of the day. I plan on playing this game for a long time, and experiences like this will make me better.”
It’s been a rollercoaster for Guardians right-hander Slade Cecconi so far
It’s been an up-and-down season for Cecconi, whose season debut came on March 29 when he was sick. He pitched 4⅓ innings, gave up six runs, all earned, walked three, struck out five and hit two batters against Seattle.
Starts against the Chicago Cubs and on April 5 and the St. Louis Cardinals on April 15 in which he allowed a combined four hits in 9⅓ innings showed signs of moving forward.
In those two starts, he walked six, struck out 10 and gave up a single earned run on four hits.
But then a night like April 20 happened, and it seemed like it’s back to the drawing board for the second-year starter.
“They had two home runs on the first pitch, [and Carlos] Correa had a first-pitch hit,” Cecconi said. “Paredes jumped on one pitch, [Jose] Altuve [did, too]. They were hacking. A few they hit hard, they got me on a lot of first pitches, and that’s what I do. I attack the strike zone. They won today.”
What needs to happen for Slade Cecconi to get back on track
Vogt said in his pregame news conference he saw tangible things in Cecconi’s last start against the Cardinals that would translate to the series opener against Houston.
He doubled down on the comments after the game.
“It was good to see his velo back up,” Vogt said. “He came out of the chute throwing 95, but was not crispy with his other stuff. He really battled and they got to him in the [four-run] fourth. We saw some good things out of him tonight, so we’ll keep working, keep battling.”
What that means is another solid four days off during which Cecconi can continue to hone his off-speed pitches in anticipation of returning to the form he showed in spring training.
“It looked like they were coming out looking first-pitch fastball,” Vogt said. “That can help you, but they jumped him pretty good tonight. … That’s baseball. I’m not worried about Slade. He knows that he needs to make some adjustments. Our pitching team knows some adjustments need to be made. I would not question Slade working his backside off and making adjustments to get back to being him.”
Brad Bournival can be reached by email at bbournival@usatodayco.com and is on X at @bbournival.
This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Cleveland Guardians manager Stephen Vogt still high on Slade Cecconi
Reporting by Brad Bournival, Akron Beacon Journal / Akron Beacon Journal
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