M¨¢rquez sets Rockies' career K's mark in '24 debut: 'It's an honor'
Bill Ladson
@ladsonbill24NEW YORK -- One thing can be said about Rockies right-hander Germán Márquez: He is not afraid to tell you how he feels when he is on the mound.
On Sunday afternoon at Citi Field, M¨¢rquez acknowledged he was nervous at the start of the first-half finale against the Mets -- and for a good reason.
After missing 445 days because of Tommy John surgery, M¨¢rquez made his season debut. He got off to a great start. His curveball looked great, but he ended up with a no-decision after setting the franchise record for career strikeouts in the Rockies¡¯ 8-5 victory.
¡°It was like my debut, no doubt,¡± M¨¢rquez said about being nervous. ¡°After I threw my first pitch, the nerves went away.¡±
M¨¢rquez left the game with the score tied at 3 after four innings and put himself in the Rockies¡¯ record books with his 986th strikeout, surpassing the previous mark held by Jorge De La Rosa (983). He reached the milestone in the second inning when Pete Alonso struck out on a knuckle curve.
¡°It¡¯s an honor to break that record. Plus, [De La Rosa] is my friend,¡± M¨¢rquez said. ¡°I have to keep going.¡±
It didn¡¯t take long for M¨¢rquez to get run support. In the first inning, the Rockies took a 2-0 lead on Ezequiel Tovar¡¯s two-run homer off Mets starter Jose Quintana that landed a Statcast-projected 431 feet in the second deck in left field.
But the oil started to leak in the bottom of the fourth inning. After Francisco Alvarez reached base on an infield single, Alonso swung at the first pitch and hit a two-run homer over the left-field wall to tie the score at 2.
New York ended up batting around that inning and scored the go-ahead run on a bases-loaded walk by Francisco Lindor. M¨¢rquez threw 30 pitches in that inning.
¡°We saw this in the Minor League rehab games,¡± manager Bud Black said . ¡° ... He is not there yet. But he will get there. He felt good coming out of [the game]. He seems healthy and he is in good spirits.¡±
However, M¨¢rquez left the game with a no-decision after Colorado made it a 3-3 game in the top of the fifth on Michael Toglia¡¯s home run over the right-center-field wall -- the first of his three jacks on the day.
Although M¨¢rquez is considered their best pitcher, the Rockies will not rush him back on the mound. For right now, he will be the fifth man in the rotation.
¡°They are going to slow me down a little bit. I¡¯m going to start the fifth game after the break and give me a little time,¡± Marquez said.