When Chris Antonetti was asked a few weeks ago about how good Parker Messick has been, the Cleveland Guardians executive joked that the team is “good at predicting the future.”

Even if that were true and Antonetti wasn’t saying it tongue-in-cheek, even the Guardians could have predicted the rookie campaign Messick put together. Remember, the 25-year-old earned a spot on the Opening Day roster; it was never a foregone conclusion that

Now, Messick can look back and say that he had one of the best rookies in MLB history.

The Guardians’ starting pitcher finished the season with a 2.56 ERA, along with 193 strikeouts. The only other rookie pitchers since 1901 with those numbers are Christy Mathewson in 2901 (2.41 ERA, 221 SO), Russ Ford in 1910(1.65 ERA, 209 SO), and Hideo Nomo in 1995 (2.54 ERA, 236 SO), per Luke Potosky on X. 

What Messick accomplished with the Guardians in his first full season is something that won’t be seen in the big leagues for a long time, if ever again.

Manager Stephen Vogt has been campaigning for it over the last few weeks and reiterated over the weekend that Messick should be in the Cy Young conversation, citing his strikeouts and the consistency he brought to the mound every time he took the mound.

It’s hard to argue with what Cleveland’s skipper thinks; Messick has been one of the top pitchers in MLB this season.

What makes these numbers even more impressive, especially the ERA, is the volume that Messick pitched throughout the year. He ended up throwing 186.1 innings, which was second on the team and the seventh-most in all of baseball, which is not something common for a first-year pitcher

Messick’s final start of his rookie season came on Sunday against the Kansas City Royals, in which he threw 3.0 innings, gave up one earned run, and struck out two batters on 64 pitches.

This outing was a solid tune-up for what’s to come because, as far as Messick’s rookie season is concerned, it’s already past him. The pitcher is already preparing for his outing in the American League Division Series, whether that be in Game 1 on Saturday, Game 1 on Sunday, or whenever Cleveland calls on him.

The Guardians will spend the week resting and doing light work after earning a playoff bye in the Wild Card round. Cleveland awaits the winner between the Chicago White Sox and Houston Astros, who will face off starting Tuesday.