Last night, I was in attendance for Robert Stephenson’s start in Louisville. In the first inning, Stephenson hit Edwin Espinal in the face, breaking his jaw. He also hit the first batter of the second inning and things got very tense for a while. And yet, he went 6 innings on 88 pitches, allowing 1 run. He retired the last 11 batters he faced. Except for the pitch count, it was vintage Stephenson. Control issues aplenty, but otherwise unhittable (he did not allow a hit after the first).
I talked to Bats manager Dick Schofield after the game and asked about the situation that occurred in the game and Stephenson’s pitching in general.