A tough reunion on the mound. Paddack vows to regroup after a challenging Marlins debut, leaning on teammates and coaches to find his rhythm.
Monday's game against the Chicago White Sox became a full-circle moment turned disaster for Miami Marlins starting pitcher Chris Paddack.
Paddack, the Marlins' eighth-round selection in the 2015 draft, made his debut in the first game of the current White Sox series, and it trended well for a bit. He pitched two scoreless innings, recording three strikeouts, two on his changeup pitch.
Then the 30-year-old right-hander gave up eight runs in the third and fourth innings. The large deficit proved too much for Miami to overcome, and Chicago broke the Marlins' three-game winning streak.
"This loss is on me," Paddack told reporters after the game.
Although his performance spoiled a return to the Marlins franchise, he's taking a serious approach to bouncing back. Paddack said he'd reconvene with the coaching staff to get back on track before his next start.
"I think the biggest thing, and I'm going to talk with our staff, is I just let up a little bit of conviction there in some of my pitches," Paddack added. "That's not like me, and it caused me to not execute when we needed to."
Paddack pitched four innings, throwing 79 times and collecting six strikeouts, before manager Clayton McCullough subbed him out for right-handed pitcher Lake Bachar. His eight runs allowed is a franchise record in a player's club debut.
Alongside consulting the coaching staff, Miami's ace pitcher, Sandy Alcantara, reassured Paddack the team believes in him.
"He approached me right away, and he said, 'Hey man, you're here for a reason. We believe in you. I believe in you,'" Paddack recalled. "We had a conversation that I won't say on air, but he has my back. It was cool to hear that from our ace."
Paddack said Alcantara noticed some changes from the first and last two innings he pitched on Monday. Hearing these insights from his teammate, Paddack went into the clubhouse and jotted down what he heard for future reference.
The Marlins reunited with Paddack when he signed a one-year deal worth $4 million, including an additional $500,000 in incentives, last month. Paddack is part of a starting rotation that includes Alcantara, Janson Junk, Max Meyer and Eury Perez.
Monday's performance is a one-game sample size for Paddack, meaning he will get many more starts for Miami.
"If I get the opportunity, I'm going to have 31 more starts," Paddack said. "That's a long journey ahead."
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