In his second start ever for the Phillies, the ninth start of his major-league career, Vince Velasquez racked up 16 strikeouts in a three-hit shutout of the San Diego Padres.
It was a peek at Velasquez’s potential.
But it was also way back on April 14, 2016. And while it was both unfair and unrealistic to hold Velasquez to that standard of dominance, the Phillies waited for much of the past three years for him to string together enough consistently solid starts to be counted on as a reliable member of the starting rotation.
The wait is over.