Gavin Stone was one of the most highly-touted pitching prospects entering the 2023 season, but his career with the Los Angeles Dodgers got off to a poor start.
Stone made his MLB debut on May 3 against the Philadelphia Phillies and pitched in four games, leading to less-than-desired results before getting optioned back to Triple-A Oklahoma City. The right-hander posted a 12.75 ERA and 3.00 WHIP during that time, and his struggles continued in the Minor Leagues.
However, Stone got back on track over the past two months and earned another opportunity with the Dodgers when they recalled him Sunday to cover the bulk of the innings against the Boston Red Sox.
Pitching at Fenway Park is something Stone has wanted to do since he was a child, so he explained what special meaning the opportunity held on top of also performing well, via SportsNet LA:
“This is a dream come true, pitching at Fenway. But it’s just baseball and what I’ve done since I was a little kid. That’s what you have to put your mind to. That how I tried to mentally prepare, was just thinking about being a little kid and being at Fenway, and just having fun with it.”
Stone turned in a solid outing overall, giving up four runs over six-plus innings of work. All four runs came via the long ball and ironically two of the runs allowed were because he was pitching at Fenway Park and not anywhere else.
The first two runs Stone gave up came when Tristan Casas hit his 21st homer of the season, but the ball was not hit particularly well. The batted ball left Casas’ bat at 97.1 mph with a 43-degree launch angle and it traveled 319 feet, making Fenway Park the only stadium in the Majors where it would’ve been a home run.
The next two homers Stone allowed were back-to-back from Justin Turner and Adam Duvall to start the eighth inning, when he probably should’ve been out of the game already after six solid innings of work.
Dodgers manager Dave Roberts likely left Stone in to see if he could squeeze one more inning out of him, but they ended up calling on Ryan Brasier to finish the eighth.
Regardless of the home runs, Stone showed he can be an effective pitcher for the Dodgers if they end up needing him again this season.
What’s next for Gavin Stone?
It seems likely the Dodgers will option Stone to OKC and call up a relief pitcher to fill his spot, but he could also remain on the roster to help replace Tony Gonsolin, who is out for the remainder of the season.
Roberts named Stone, along with Ryan Pepiot and Ryan Yarbrough, as the potential options to fill in as the fifth starter, but Pepiot should have the edge on taking the rotation spot if the Dodgers decide on one candidate.
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