On the eve of the MLB Draft, the former No. 2 overall selection in the 2010 draft by the Pittsburgh Pirates will make his long-awaited debut at PNC Park, as pitching prospect Jameson Taillon will toe the rubber against the New York Mets in the finale of the three-game set in Pittsburgh.
Crazy to think of how many people worked so hard with me and helped me on this journey! But, this journey is still just beginning!
— Jameson Taillon (@JTaillon19) June 7, 2016
Taillon, who was drafted out of high school a year before the Pirates took Gerrit Cole, was making his way through the Pirates system before getting derailed by Tommy John Surgery and a hernia, forcing him to miss the 2014 and 2015 seasons.
Taillon returned to a mound in 2016 for the first time since 2013, and he’s shown little signs of rust, pitching to a 2.04 ERA and a 8.9 strikeout rate in 61 2/3 innings pitched.
Coming into the season, there was debate whether it would be Taillon or other top pitching prospect Tyler Glasnow that would get the call to the big leagues first, but with the Pirates placing an emphasis on Glasnow improving his command and development of a third pitch, it’s the 6-foot 5-inch Taillon who is getting the nod first.
With the Super 2 date approaching, Glasnow could join Taillon in the bigs shortly. In his first start, Taillon will have the tall task of facing off against Mets’ ace Noah Syndergaard.
With Taillon making the start on Wednesday, the struggling Francisco Liriano will have his start pushed to Saturday.
Photo credit: @Pirates
