McKenzie strikes out 10 in debut, Indians beat Tigers 6-1

CLEVELAND (AP) — Triston McKenzie struck out 10 in his major league debut and Domingo Santana delivered a bases-clearing double in the sixth, lifting the Cleveland Indians to a 6-1 win over the Detroit Tigers on Saturday night.

McKenzie (1-0) went six innings, allowing two hits on a Willi Castro homer and a Jeimer Candelario double. The 23-year-old right-hander notched his first strikeout on three pitches to future Hall of Famer Miguel Cabrera in the first.

Santana’s two-out double came off reliever John Schreiber and gave Cleveland a 3-1 lead and Roberto Perez followed with an RBI single. Carlos Santana had a sacrifice fly in the seventh and César Hernández singled in the Indians’ final run in the eighth.

Matthew Boyd (0-4) pitched a season-high 5 1/3 innings for Detroit but remained winless in seven starts dating to Sept. 22, 2019. The left-hander surrendered two runs — both on Santana’s shot to the gap in left-center — and struck out six.

McKenzie held the Tigers hitless until Castro blasted a 445-foot homer in the fourth. The 6-foot-5, 165-pounder had not pitched in an actual game since Aug. 30, 2018 and missed all of last season with a strained right rotator cuff and right pectoral strain.

Francisco Lindor and Hernández each had three hits for Cleveland, which has won 21 of its last 22 games against Detroit.

First base coach Sandy Alomar Jr. managed the Indians with Terry Francona recovering from a medical procedure for a gastrointestinal ailment. The 61-year-old underwent the procedure Friday at Cleveland Clinic and has missed 16 games this season.

McKenzie filled a hole in the rotation created when Mike Clevinger and Zach Plesac were demoted to the alternate training site after violating league rules by leaving the team hotel in Chicago, risking...

source https://www.chron.com/sports/article/McKenzie-strikes-out-10-in-debut-Indians-beat-15507908.php