Tampa Bay Rays pitcher Zach Eflin delivered an all-time great quote on Tuesday following his shaky outing against the Boston Red Sox.
Eflin battled through five innings, allowing three runs on five hits with one walk and seven strikeouts. He admitted that he was not at his best, and did so with a rather unexpected comparison.
“I think the best way to describe it would be, I felt, like, butt naked stranded on an island somewhere in the middle of the ocean,” Eflin said. “I didn’t really know what I was doing tonight. I could not figure out my mechanics. I couldn’t get ahead of guys. I drilled (Connor) Wong with an 0-0 pitch. I walked (Triston) Casas on four straight balls. I almost hit (Justin) Turner in the face. And then to top it all off I thought I punched (Rafael) Devers out in a 3-1 count and I got drilled in the shoulder. I had no idea where I was out there.”
Credit to Eflin for his honesty. Even if you have never experienced the feeling he describes, it is a vivid way of explaining it. This is not why the Rays pay him the big bucks, but it is a nice bonus.
Despite Eflin’s shakiness, the Rays came back to win 8-6 in 10 innings.
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