Jake Diekman had one hell of a major league debut on Tuesday afternoon at Citizens Bank Park.
Did Charlie Manuel ease the rook into a situation where the Phillies had a comfortable lead and the kid could slowly step into the shallow end of the pool for his first swim? Nope. You don't have that luxury when your bullpen is under-performing as badly as the Phils. But Diekman pulled off a fantastic cannonball from the high dive today.
"I really thought I was going to have a four or five run lead or something like that," Diekman said of his first MLB opportunity.
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As for what he was thinking about when coming in from the pen?
"I couldn’t feel my legs when I was running up to the mound. The first pitch was terrifying," he said.
"I had to make sure I didn't trip down the stairs first. And then, I had to make sure I made it all the way to the mound without tripping. That's the one thing that went through my head."
Stumble he did not. 1.1 innings of work, 3 strikeouts, and one major league win under his belt. I'd call that a stellar debut.
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With that delivery, he may already be the Phillies best situational lefty. Perhaps more in time.