Rogers debuts soon after twin brother's save
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SAN FRANCISCO -- Shortly after Taylor Rogers converted his 21st save of the season for the Twins, he returned to the visiting clubhouse at Guaranteed Rate Field and immediately checked in on his twin brother, Tyler, who received his first big league callup from the Giants on Tuesday.
When he saw Tyler warming up in the bullpen, Taylor immediately turned all the televisions over to the Giants game and soon watched his brother make his long-awaited Major League debut by pitching a crisp, 1-2-3 eighth inning in San Francisco’s 3-2 loss to the D-backs at Oracle Park.
“It was awesome,” Taylor said. “I think I was probably the most excited person on planet earth right there.”
The Rogers brothers became the 10th set of twins to reach the Major Leagues, sweetening an already momentous day for Tyler.
“Some of the guys were telling me that we were pitching at the same time or close to the same time,” Tyler Rogers said. “That’s a pretty cool feat in itself right there, for two twin brothers to pitch at the same time in the big leagues. It’s pretty cool.”
While Taylor debuted with the Twins in 2016 and has established himself as an elite left-handed reliever over the last four seasons, Tyler had to wait longer for his first shot in the big leagues. A 10th-round Draft pick of the Giants in 2013, Tyler used his funky, submarine delivery to post a 2.52 ERA over seven Minor League seasons and earn two Triple-A All-Star nods.
Despite his consistently strong numbers, Rogers wasn’t added to the Giants’ 25-man roster until Tuesday, when he was called up from Triple-A Sacramento to replace reliever Trevor Gott, who landed on the 10-day injured list with a right elbow strain.
Before the game, Rogers admitted he was curious to see if his unorthodox style would play in the Majors. The 28-year-old rookie battled nerves as he warmed up in the bullpen, but the jitters dissipated once he crossed the foul line and stepped onto the mound to pitch the eighth at Oracle Park.
None of Rogers' 11 pitches exceeded 83 mph, but he induced three ground balls from Adam Jones, Nick Ahmed and Alex Avila to post the only 1-2-3 inning of the night for the Giants.
“He looked comfortable,” manager Bruce Bochy said. “He got the ground balls. Those guys, you don’t see a lot of them, so they can be tough. He gets a lot of movement and keeps the ball down. He hits his spots. I’m glad this kid is getting a chance. You normally look at guys throwing 95 [mph], and here he is throwing from down there at 83, 84 and he gets outs. That’s what it’s about.”
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After completing his outing, Rogers walked off the field to a standing ovation from the fans in attendance. Two thousand miles away in Chicago, Taylor Rogers cheered, too.
“That was pretty cool,” Tyler Rogers said. “I was pretty surprised by it. I don’t think I’ve heard a roar that big ever in baseball. I kind of looked up at the stands and just took it in. I just went, ‘Wow, this is amazing.’”