The Tampa Bay Rays have named Shane McClanahan their Opening Day starter for the 2025 season once they’ll tackle the Colorado Rockies on Friday, March twenty eighth at Steinbrenner Area.
This can be McClanahan’s third time because the Rays Opening Day starter; he began in consecutive years in 2022 and 2023. He sadly would bear Tommy John surgical procedure in August of 2023, resulting in him lacking the complete 2024 marketing campaign. Nonetheless, the Rays ace is now again to full well being and revving as much as kickoff the Rays season.
The information wasn’t meant to be damaged this early however Matt Silverman by chance let it slip throughout the Rays Fan Fest earlier this month. With the cat out of the bag, McClanahan was capable of communicate to reporters about how honored he was to be given the chance.
“To inform you the reality, I didn’t know what to anticipate. I got here into camp preventing for clearly opening day. That’s each pitcher’s aim. I type of got here to the truth that if it occurs, it occurs. If it’s not, you realize there’s 5 different guys on this rotation which might be greater than deserving of it”
As soon as he makes the beginning on Opening Day, McClanahan will tie David Value for third most Opening Day begins in franchise historical past, with Chris Archer and James Shields sharing the highest spot with 4 begins apiece.
Since being chosen by the Rays with the thirty first total collection of the 2018 draft, McClanahan has developed into the most effective beginning pitchers in all of baseball. Though he was by no means thought-about the highest prospect within the Rays system, McClanahan has been among the many greatest residence grown gamers in staff historical past. Amongst pitchers who got here up by means of the Rays system, McClanahan has the seventh highest fWAR.
After making his massive league debut in 2021, McClanahan has compiled a 3.02 ERA | 3.36 FIP with a 28.0 Ok% & 7.1 BB% over 404 2⁄3 innings pitched. McClanahan began the All-Star recreation for the American League in 2022, and acquired some consideration for the Cy Younger award; previous to his damage in 2023, McClanahan acquired a second choice to the Mid-Summer time Traditional.
