Pitcher Brad Penny is back on a major league mound after a two-year hiatus.
The former Boston Red Sox starter was called up by the Miami Marlins, a team he played for from 2000 through 2004, on Saturday to face the Cincinnati Reds. It was Penny’s first action in the majors since the 2012 season when he pitched in relief for the San Francisco Giants. He hadn’t made a start since September 2011 when he was a member of the Detroit Tigers.
Penny got the win in his first start in nearly three years, as he pitched five innings, allowed one earned run and struck out three in Miami’s 4-3 victory. The 36-year-old said he was thrilled to be back out on the mound.
“It’s been a long time,” Penny said, via the Associated Press. “I’m lucky to get another opportunity to pitch at this level.”
Marlins manager Mike Redmond, who was Penny’s catcher during the pitcher’s first tenure with the team, said Penny was mostly the same pitcher he remembers from his catching days.
“During the course of the game, we had a couple of conversations like we had when I was back catching him,” Redmond said. “We laughed. … He was the same guy out there, for sure. Just a little bigger in that jersey.”
Photo via David Kohl/USA TODAY Sports Images
