Rangers pitcher breaks AL record held by franchise legend
In his second start as a Texas Ranger, Andrew Heaney dazzled the home crowd Monday night versus the Kansas City Royals.
Heaney tied the American League record by striking out nine consecutive batters and broke the Rangers record of seven consecutive strikeouts set by MLB legend Nolan Ryan.
"I don't think I need to say anything more about how great Nolan Ryan was. I mean, we all know that, everybody knows that. Just being mentioned with him is extremely humbling," said Heaney when asked about the accomplishment by MLB.com writer Kennedi Landry.
Breaking a record held by one of the greatest pitchers to play was not something Heaney could have envisioned, but the Rangers brought him in because they knew the talent was there if he could avoid injury.
After inking a two-year, $25M deal with the Rangers in the offseason, Heaney struggled towards the end of spring training and it carried over into his first start with the club.
Giving up seven runs on seven hits and not making it out of the third inning versus the Baltimore Orioles, Heaney showed the ability to shake off a bad start.
"I felt like I owed it to the guys, owed it to the fans and owed it to myself to be better than what I was," Heaney told reporters. "I felt good. I felt prepared."
When asked about his ability to bounce back from his rough opener, manager Bruce Bochy replied, "The last couple of outings have been a little tough on him, but it shows what he's made of to come back and pitch a ballgame like that."
Brought in with Jacob deGrom and Nate Eovaldi, the Rangers dedicated their offseason to improving the starting rotation that plagued them in 2022.
While the sample size is small, the returns have been positive for the Rangers opening the season in first place with a 6-4 record.
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