Rookie SP Alex Young gives up 1 run in MLB debut for D-backs win

The expectations are never high when a relatively unknown starter makes their MLB debut and that qualified for Alex Young’s starting nod on Thursday for the Arizona Diamondbacks.

Young, 25, is not ranked as a top 30 D-backs prospect by MLB.com and was needed in an emergency situation with various injuries to Arizona starters.

That made it all the better when he pitched very well in San Francisco for a 5-1 D-backs win, giving up one earned run in 5.0 innings on three hits, a walk and one hit batter with five strikeouts.

Young avoided trouble for the first four innings.

The only batter that reached in the opening three innings was San Francisco catcher Buster Posey, who was hit by a pitch in the bottom of the second.

Young’s lone run allowed came via a solo home run by Giants first baseman Brandon Belt in the first at-bat of the bottom of the fourth, but the left-hander calmly got the next three runners out.

The Giants started getting to Young in the sixth, as Donovan Solano singled to start the inning and Belt walked on six pitches in the next at-bat.

Sensing some danger despite Young being at only 74 pitches, D-backs manager Torey Lovullo didn’t hesitate to get his rookie starter out of the game and let the bullpen handle the rest.

Yoshihisa Hirano cleaned up the jam from there, getting the next three hitters of the inning out.

From there, it was Andrew Chafin, Yoan Lopez and Greg Holland holding the Giants total to one run for a D-backs victory.

Thanks to a Christian Walker fielder’s choice and a Nick Ahmed homer, Young was in line for the win through six innings. A Carson Kelly two-run homer in the seventh made it a three-run cushion for the D-backs.

Crushed by Carson. #RattleOn pic.twitter.com/RCkw6L4RYh

— Arizona Diamondbacks (@Dbacks) June 28, 2019

Eduardo Escobar’s single in the eighth added the fifth and final run of the game for Arizona.

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