How Max Meyer performed in return from Tommy John surgery

[Kevin Barral]

Max Meyer took the mound in a pro game for the first time since July 2022. Along with Meyer going two scoreless innings, Ryan Weathers struck out five along with an uptick in velo. Tim Anderson made his spring training debut.

Here are the main takeaways from Thursday's matchup between the Miami Marlins and New York Yankees, which ended in a scoreless tie.

 

Ryan Weathers with a career high in velo

Marlins starting pitcher Ryan Weathers had himself a very strong outing against a Yankees lineup which featured DJ LeMahieu, Gleyber Torres, Anthony Rizzo, Giancarlo Stanton, Alex Verdugo and Anthony Volpe. Through 2 ⅔ innings pitched, he gave up only one hit, no runs, one walk and five strikeouts on 48 pitches.

"When your facing a lineup like that, the importance of getting ahead is huge," said Weathers after his start (via Stephen Strom, Marlins Radio Network). "Just got ahead tonight and felt really in control and it's also a little extra juice when you get to face the Yankees...It's the first time I've ever faced them, so it was just a lot of fun having that extra juice facing probably one of the best franchises of all-time."

For Weathers, his velocity was up, averaging 96.2 mph on the fastball. In 2023, his fastball averaged 95.1 mph. Weathers' hardest-thrown pitch last season was a 98.4 mph fastball, but on Thursday, he topped that and hit 98.7 mph while striking out LeMahieu, who has historically been great at making contact against southpaws.

Weathers consistently elevated the fastball, which allowed him to generate four of his six total whiffs.

Weathers incorporated his changeup, sweeper and sinker along with the fastball.

"The more I've thrown it, I think it takes a little bit off my heater," said Weathers about his changeup. "Threw several two-seamers tonight and everything just felt really connected."

The sweeper for Weathers also saw him generate one whiff, which was when he struck out Alex Verdugo.

 

Max Meyer makes his first appearance since surgery

The last time Max Meyer pitched in a game environment, it was for his second-ever start against the Pittsburgh Pirates on July 23, 2022. More than 19 months later, he made it all the way back and went two innings, gave up one hit, no runs, no walks and struck out two.

"It's been great," said Max Meyer after his appearance (via Stephen Strom). "It's been a long process. There's been so many people that helped me out and just being out there. I got to kinda take it in and just great to be able to feel healthy out there, be back with the boys and be able to pitch."

Prior to undergoing Tommy John surgery, Meyer's fastball was averaging around 94 mph and in his return he averaged the same velo, so no concern there. His command and control were also on point—he threw 30 pitches and 20 landed for strikes.

After giving up a leadoff double to Anthony Volpe, Meyer went on to shut out the Yankees lineup. He generated five whiffs off of 16 swings. His slider looked good as it generated three whiffs, with both of his strikeouts coming on that pitch. "It's always going to be there, I never lost it," said Max Meyer when asked about his slider and what he thought of it.

"I thought I filled (the strike zone) well," said Meyer. "Throwing strikes...couple bad misses, but I just liked getting out there and throwing strikes. (Trey) Mancini with a great play and I just gotta remember to trust the defense and it was just great."

Prior to the game, Skip Schumaker told the media that Meyer would most likely be amped out to go out and maybe there was a chance he would have to go and calm down the young pitcher, but that wasn't the case for Meyer. "Not too much," said Meyer. "I just realized what it is. It's a spring training game, I'm trying to pitch for 162 games. Just wanted to compete and I think I controlled my emotions pretty well."

 

Tim Anderson makes his Miami Marlins debut

Although the Miami Marlins new shortstop went 0-for-2 with two strikeouts, Tim Anderson felt good for the most part and just looks to keep it going. "I felt good," said Anderson (via Stephen Strom). "First game, I felt confident, felt comfortable and I'm looking forward to keeping it going."

In his first at-bat of the game, Anderson struck out of three pitches, swinging at strike three. In his second at-bat, strike three was certainly out of the zone, but Anderson just had to take it. "I didn't like my at-bats," said Anderson. "I do think I took some pretty good swings when I did. I feel like I was seeing (the ball) really well. Took some good pitches, but the more at-bats I get, the more comfortable I'll get."

Even if Anderson did have a tough night at the plate, he found success defensively. In the bottom of the second inning, Gleyber Torres hit a grounder that third baseman Jon Berti was unable to grab and after the ball left the infield dirt, Anderson was there to make a 100-foot throw at 78.3 mph to get the final out of the inning.

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[MRDHU75]

About Meyer...His **** was FILTHY.....that is all lol

[Julio]

Though a small sample size, it is very encouraging Meyer throwing like he did vs. Yankees as his first outing back from TJ. He was always highly ranked as a prospect and his two starts in 2023 proved he has MLB stuff. Good to see him back.