Tommy Kahnle bounced back on Thursday from a brutal “MLB The Show” players league debut, managing to win three of four games.
Tommy Kahnle clearly took my advice when I suggested he needed some “MLB The Show” practice. In his second round of players league games, Kahnle strung together three wins to give New York Yankees fans hope.
Game One
In game one, Kahnle faced off against Trevor May of the Minnesota Twins. He showed a lot more confidence on the mound than in his first go-around.
Unfortunately, that confidence didn’t last. The pitching wheels fell off in the second inning which resulted in a three-run homer for Max Kepler. Kahnle couldn’t fight back at the plate and lost the game 3-0.
Game Two
In game two, Kahnle finally secured his first win of the season. Facing Luke Jackson of the Atlanta Braves, Kahnle fell behind early on a solo shot from Freddie Freeman.
Things looked bleak in the second inning with two outs. Gleyber Torres struck out but a dropped third strike put him on first base. Then, Kahnle stepped up to the plate with an extra out and Giancarlo Stanton blasted a go-ahead home run. He held onto the lead and secured the save with Aroldis Chapman for his first win.
Kahnle finally gets his first win, defeating Luke Jackson 2-1. pic.twitter.com/Mp29d4BKCS
— Big Baby David (@BigBabyDavid_) April 17, 2020
Game Three
Game three was Kahnle’s first chance at winning back-to-back games, but poor defense put him down early. An easy fly ball to Aaron Judge wound up falling and rolling to the fence. Down by two, Kahnle chipped away at the lead with a second-inning solo shot by Aaron Hicks.
Kahnle completes the comeback for his second win of both the night and the season. pic.twitter.com/5JBKEQ0J48
— Big Baby David (@BigBabyDavid_) April 17, 2020
Then, Kahnle’s clutch factor came into play. Miguel Andujar pinch-hit to lead off the inning, doubling into the right-field corner. With the bases loaded, Torres hit a sac fly to tie the game. Following that, Stanton knocked an RBI single to give Kahnle the lead. Chapman recorded his second save of the night.
Game Four
Game four was an absolute slugfest for Kahnle. After falling behind 1-0 in the first, Kahnle scored 10 unanswered runs. Hicks gave Kahnle the lead in the second inning with a three-run homer. In the third, Kahnle hung seven runs on the board capped off by a Stanton two-run homer and a Hicks two-run homer.
All in all, this was a huge comeback night for Kahnle. He showed absolutely no promise in the first round of games. Yet he showed dominance on his second night in the players league. He’s finally discovered a pitching method that works for him and he can’t be stopped at the plate.
Kahnle will be back in action on Friday night in an attempt to climb over .500 on the season.
