Another former Brooklyn Cyclone, Dillon Gee, made his Major League debut for the Mets tonight against the Washington Nationals. He was opposed by Cuban defector Yunesky Maya, who also made his Major League debut.
Before he even threw his first pitch in the big leagues, Gee was staked to an early 3-0 lead on a three-run first inning homer by Ike Davis. Davis crushed Maya’s offering deep into the center field bleachers for his 18th home run of the year.
Unlike the other Mets’ starters, Gee benefited from actually pitching with the lead. I wonder how Johan Santana feels that the Mets rarely score for him and meanwhile they are plating three runs early for some rookie making his debut.
That being said, Gee looked fantastic tonight, not allowing a hit through the first five innings. Imagine: the Mets haven’t had a pitcher throw a no-hitter in their 48 year history, but could Gee, making his major league debut, be the first?
Naturally, Mets’ fans will have to wait at least one more day, as Met-killer Willie Harris led off the sixth inning with a home run. The homer was the only run allowed by Gee, who finished with seven innings pitched, two hits, one run, three walks, and four strikeouts. He looked very impressive tonight and hopefully can string together a few quality starts as the season winds down.
Gee bares some similarity, in my mind at least, to former Mets’ starter Rick Reed, who pitched for the team in the late 1990s to the early 2000s. Reed was a control specialist who did not overpower hitters but relied more on hitting his spots. Though he had three walks, Gee strikes me as someone who lives and dies by his control. A more contemporary example would be Tom Glavine. Let’s just say Glavine was not too prone to hitting his spots, especially in the unspeakable final game of the 2007 season.
Gee also smacked an RBI single in the second inning, adding to his terrific night.
Rarely does a player collect his first big league win, hit, and RBI in the same night, but Gee was truly something else.
Before we get too excited about Gee, let’s see how he fares in his next few starts. But I do have to say, he certainly earned those next few starts with his performance tonight.
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