St. Louis – Blade Tidwell made quite an entrance on Sunday, getting his feet wet in the big leagues.
In his debut for the Mets, the right-hander reached speeds of 97 mph, managing to limit hard contact for the most part. Still, the Cardinals found ways to disrupt his performance.
Tidwell lasted just four innings, giving up six runs in a 6-5 loss during the first game of a split doubleheader at Busch Stadium.
At 23, Tidwell was brought up from Triple-A Syracuse as the sixth starting pitcher.
After the game, he reflected momentarily on the experience while also helping create a roster spot for Dedoniel Nuñez, who was called up for the second game.
“That was amazing, in words, really,” Tidwell shared. “That’s everything I wanted.”
Over 3 2/3 innings, he gave up six runs on nine hits, with three walks and two strikeouts before being pulled after throwing 82 pitches. Tidwell acknowledged the need to improve his command.
“I lost the command last time,” he remarked. “If I can get back to that, I’ll be better.”
He was gifted an early 1-0 lead, but Willson Contreras quickly answered back with a home run, which was followed by another homer, making things difficult for Tidwell.
The Cardinals, not letting up, threatened again with two more baserunners before he managed to get Lars Nothall out.
“Contreras hit a good ball,” Tidwell commented. “I thought I threw the pitch where I wanted, but maybe it was the wrong choice.”
Unfortunately for Tidwell, he faced three consecutive singles that loaded the bases, leading to Nolan Gorman’s sacrifice fly that evened the score at 2-2. It was in the fourth that the Cardinals finally broke through against him.
After Alec Burleson walked to fill the bases, Brendan Donovan hit an RBI single, and Nolan Arenado followed suit with a walk. Then Contreras delivered a two-run single, putting the Mets in a 6-2 hole.
“I saw flashes of his potential, particularly with his fastball,” said coach Carlos Mendoza. “But he needs to develop a secondary pitch. At this level, you need that to help with batters and regain control of the count.”
