Pirates' Bubba Chandler Makes Dream Come True With Debut

Chandler would go on and throw four scoreless innings, securing the 9-0 victory for the Pirates in sensational fashion, receiving great praise from the home fans.

He became the first Pirates pitcher that earned a four-inning save in their debut, just the fourth pitcher in MLB history to do so in their debut and the first pitcher in MLB history that did so with four scoreless innings, since the start originated in 1969.

This moment was a long time coming for Chandler, marking a little more than four years after the Pirates took him with the 72nd overall pick in the third round of the MLB Draft.

He joined the Pirates on a $3 million signing bonus, forgoing his commitment to Clemson for both football and baseball and that decision came to fruition once he finished his outing.

"It feels great," Chandler said. "Kind of everything I've dreamed of. The past 22 years, it's just been 'I want to be on a major league field' and whether it was hitting or pitching, just wanted to be in the game and show what God gave me and I believe I did that."

Chandler showed exactly why MLB Pipeline considered him the top pitching prospect in baseball ahead of his debut.

His dominant fastball reached 100 mph, the fastest for any Pirates pitcher this year. He also mixed his changeup, which hit 93.2 mph on his last strikeout, his slider, which hit 91.6 mph, and also made use of his curveball too.

Chandler was pleased with what he threw against the Rockies and that, while he wasn't perfect, he couldn't had much of a problem with his outing.

"Pretty good, you know? Got some good results," Chandler said on his pitch mix. "I think I threw a lot of pitches that kind of got away from me but at the same time they were in zone, they were ripped and executed and hitting's hard. I try not to overcomplicate it as much as some would. I threw  a lot of good pitches. I threw some pitches I wish we had back but yeah, overall can't complain about however many innings I threw and them being scoreless."

Chandler got to pitch to catcher Henry Davis, who the Pirates selected first overall in the 2021 MLB draft, with whom he built a relationship with in the minor leagues.

He praised Davis' work ethic and that having him behind the plate for his MLB debut made it much easier for him overall.

"Pretty cool. Me and Henry, we go back all the way to 2021," Chandler said. "We lived together and we kind of always talk about this day like, 'hey, whenever my time is, you're going to catch my debut and we're going to have fun. I've never been teammates with him until last year in Triple-A and you know, just kind of the way he goes about stuff. I never shook him once and I don't really plan on shaking him off."

"What he puts in each day, for the fans, the media, that guy gives it his all. It's something pitchers really like. Our job is hard enough, to go out there and you know, try to throw a little white ball and place it in an inch-big zone. Just having the comfort of Hank, whatever he puts down, you know there's thought behind it and it's the right pitch."

Chandler has just begun what he and the Pirates hope is a long and successful career as a pitcher at the MLB level.

The one thing he'll always remember from this outing is how the Pirates fans made him feel like he really made it and how incredible the crowd was the entire time.

"It was great. Everything you could imagine," Chandler said. "Like I said, they said my name and major league debut, this is kind of all I remember and then I blacked out in the first inning but I just kind of heard the place go crazy. I had to turn my PitchCom up because I just couldn't hear what Henry was putting down. That was really cool. I'll never forget. I'll cherish it forever. I want to thank the Pirates for making a dream come true."