Guardians’ Triston McKenzie on ‘ego heaters,’ Francona’s managing style, more at Hot Stove Banquet
AKRON, Ohio – When Triston McKenzie takes the mound for the Cleveland Guardians, what fans see is a lanky right-hander who came into his own in 2022, his third big-league season, winning 11 games.
But the other side is a 25-year-old who is seriously considering becoming a doctor in his eventual post-baseball life, a personable, articulate, easy-going young man who spent two and a half hours Saturday meeting patients and playing with Legos with kids at Akron Children’s Hospital. He was simply “playing hero” said Christopher Gessner, the hospital’s president and chief executive officer.
“And,” he said, “we really need heroes today.”
McKenzie spoke Saturday night at the Akron RubberDucks’ annual Hot Stove Banquet at the Hilton Garden Inn in downtown Akron.
It was a bit of a homecoming for McKenzie, who played for the RubberDucks in 2018. McKenzie, a first-round pick of Cleveland out of Royal Palm Beach Community High School in Florida in 2015, had started the 2018 campaign injured but remembers his time fondly.
“This was by far the best minor-league affiliate I played at,” he said. “Being a step away from Cleveland was a blessing.”
He had to overcome self-doubt and “doubled down on what mattered to me” to grow into the pitcher he has become. McKenzie went 11-11 last season and 2.96 ERA. He recorded 190 strikeouts in 191.1 innings.
“Going through rehab, I definitely saw how quickly for me a little elbow injury almost (derailed his career),” he said. “The first thing I did when I found out, the doctors told me, I left the room to give myself a second. And then I started crying. I didn’t know what to do. I felt like - not that my life is over – but my dream can be at an end right now. It’s a scary feeling.”
For his Major League debut in 2020, he said, “I don’t think I’ve ever been more nervous before a baseball game ever in my life.” He shook off the nerves enough to strike out 10 over six innings to gain a 6-1 victory against Detroit at Progressive Field.
He had a rocky 2021 season highlighted by striking out eight consecutive batters against the White Sox for a club record.
“I’ve had a couple of high-performance games like that. … that one was – I don’t even know what was going on – they just missed the ball,” he said.
McKenzie’s humility before baseball fans and youth players assembled for the dinner was refreshing. Rather than rant about greatness, he seemed generally aware of enjoying the game every time he takes the mound. When asked when he knew he was special, he paused.
“I don’t think I ever knew. I think it was just always something that I always wanted,” he said. “There was never a moment in time when I felt that I was different from anyone else. I felt like I was good and could play the game at a high level. But I never thought I was better than anyone else.”
This from a self-described “late bloomer in high school” despite always being around a diamond. From about age 5, McKenzie said, he spent most of his time in rec-league baseball – either playing in games or playing with a tennis ball with friends when his brother had a game. That period of his life, learning the game, having fun and not worrying about stats and finding your friends “is what led me to where I am now.”
And where he is means being ingrained in a rotation that includes ace Shane Bieber, who McKenzie says he tries to watch when he’s throwing in the bullpen and from whom he seeks advice.
“It’s a blessing” he said, being able to play with Bieber, Cal Quantrill and others while knowing younger players with potential like Daniel Espino and Xzavion Curry are waiting in the wings.
McKenzie also spoke highly of Terry Francona’s management style, balancing his gut with analytics.
“Once we got to the halfway point … and we had a talk with Tito and he brought us in the locker room and said, ‘Look boys, one - great job for being in that position. Second, no one expected us to be here, so why not go out and win the whole damn thing?’ If we can play our best, there was no reason we couldn’t win the division,” he said.
“I think he has that old-school feel. If a guy is out there and throwing good, even if they say, ‘Don’t leave that guy out there,’ he’s going to go with his gut and let the game of baseball tell him. Which as a baseball player I really appreciate.”
“He leaves us alone. He lets the team be the team. He’ll interact with guys one on one. I think he’s a player-first manager. He always puts the players first; he always wants to make the guys feel comfortable. I think he has the utmost respect from every one of us. When he does say something, it’s more shut up and listen as opposed to more of a back and forth. Tito never really says anything to you unless he really feels it means something to him. I think we have the trust and respect in him to really listen to what he is saying.”
For now, McKenzie, sporting a shorter haircut than last season, is spending his off-season playing video games and going to Topgolf with friends. McKenzie – tabbed “Dr. Sticks” because of his affinity for Doc Gooden and Doc Holliday and his interest in medical studies – said he is unsure about his potential next career down the road.
“It’s something I’ve been thinking about. I don’t honestly know. Some people tell me I should do communications and be on TV. I’m kind of open to anything. I very much would like to go back to school and be a doctor. … I enjoyed hanging out with the kids, I enjoyed being in the hospital earlier and trying to help people in any way, shape or form.”
McKenzie fielded a variety of questions from host Ray Horner of WAKR and those in the audience at the event, which packed a ballroom with about 250 people.
Did he tire of hearing about the team being so young? “I think we played with a chip on the shoulder, and I think we did it from the beginning to the end,” he said. “We played as a unit.”
On what he does between starts: McKenzie spends time preparing, running, weights and throwing. “All the position players like to make fun of us because they say we don’t do anything,” he said.
Would he have done anything differently when he was younger: “I wish I would have thrown more strikes when I came up,” he said to the crowd chuckling, and then: “That was not a joke.”
Elite player has he had success against: Shohei Ohtani.
Elite batter toughest against him: Mike Trout.
On what pitching coach Carl Willis says on the mound: “I think he does a good job of coming out there and calming us down and getting back to the game plan. … The best thing to do is to eliminate the past and focus on the present. Execute the current pitch, executing the current strike. If you’re a hitter, executing the current swing. If you’re worried about the last swing or the last at-bat, you’re already kind of defeated.”
On what Francona says on the mound: “Good job, kid.”
On his favorite pitch to throw: “The one they don’t hit.” He said he likes his curve ball, “but I don’t think anything beats trying to throw a heater right by a guy. There’s just a machismo thing. I call them ‘ego heaters.’ It’s your best vs. his best.”
On what it’s like to hit in the big leagues: “Career average is .500. Let’s go DH!”
RubberDucks general manager Jim Pfander called the event a “kick-off” to the baseball season, which Akron opens Thursday, April 6, at home vs. the Erie SeaWolves.
“Hot Stove” is a 19th century reference to informal, off-season winter baseball chats. Previous speakers at the Ducks’ banquet include Jim and Andrea Thome, Carlos Baerga, Roberto Alomar, Rajai Davis, ESPN’s Tim Kurkjian and actor Corbin Bernsen (“Major League”).
The final question at Saturday’s banquet came from a woman at the back of the room.
“Some of us are getting older,” she told McKenzie. “Will you please win us a World Series?”
Said the pitcher: “I will try my best.”
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