15 hours Ago
Erick Mejia spent his entire professional career chasing consistent playing time as an infielder or outfielder in five organizations, including the Washington Nationals . So, when he announced in March that he intended to convert from being a position to being a pitcher, it was met with quizzical reactions. The Dominican Republic-born 30-year-old hadn’t pitched since he was a kid.
At this stage of his career, a transition such as this is nearly unheard of. But, after a bumpy start to the season, the right-hander is starting to find consistency with Class-A Fredericksburg . Washington started him at their lowest full-season affiliate because, aside from one inning pitched with Triple-A Rochester last season, he had no professional experience as a pitcher.
That first outing was rough, too. He pitched an inning on April 5 against Carolina and gave up two hits, two earned runs and a home run in one inning. He struck out two and walked none.
Since then, in one- or two-inning stints, he’s been consistently good. He’s appeared in seven games since his debut, all in relief, and in six of those games he hasn’t allowed a run. In fact, he’s thrown five scoreless innings in his last four games, dating back to April 19.
He’s given up just four hits. His only other outing with runs allowed was on April 16 against Fayetteville. He gave up two hits and three earned runs in 1.
1 innings. He also gave up a home run, walked one and struck out two. It’s all added up to a respectable start for a first-year pitcher.
He is 1-0 with a 4.35 ERA in eight games, all in relief, with 15 strikeouts and three walks in 10.1 innings.
Batters are hitting .150 against him and he’s allowed just six hits and five earned runs. What that means for his progression in the minor leagues isn’t clear.
He’s only a month into this new career path. He’s played in the Majors before, as he made his debut with the Kansas City Royals in 2019. He played in the 2020 Summer Olympics and helped his native Dominican Republic win a bronze medal in the tournament.
But he only had 14 at-bats with the Royals in 2020 and managed just one hit. For the balance of his professional career, he’s been in the minor leagues Last season in 66 games at Triple-A Rochester he slashed .192/.
292/.314 with five home runs and 25 RBI. Perhaps, one day, Mejia gets back to Rochester as a pitcher.
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