CHICAGO | His fastball crackled in at up to 99 mph on one radar gun, and the majority of 41,570 Wrigley Field fans got juiced up every time Jeff Samardzija got to strike two as he faced the Florida Marlins in his big-league debut Friday.
The best pitcher/wide receiver to come out of Valparaiso in memory was faster than the Marlins bats -- but not when it counted in the first of two innings he worked. He did not have a finishing kick to a pair of quality major-league hitters, giving up a single to Hanley Ramirez and a game-tying double to Jorge Cantu on two-strike counts as the Marlins touched him up for a run.
The fans knew they had a fresh, new talent in their midst, though, and that's why Samardzija drew four standing ovations in his first inning of work, including one when he walked off the mound after finally retiring the side in the seventh.
"I loved it, I couldn't ask for anything more," Samardzija said. "They were standing up cheering and I was all for it."
A tough self-critic of his pitches to Ramirez and Cantu, Samardzija had an easier time in the eighth, retiring Dan Uggla on a grounder, Josh Willingham on a fly ball and tricking Cody Ross on an 0-and-2 breaking ball for a swinging strike three.
Putting his philosophy of not letting a freshly-called-up rookie sit, manager Lou Piniella had thrown "The Shark" into roiling waters in his first day in the majors trying to protect a 2-1 Cubs lead. The biting went both ways.
"He threw the ball well ... and showed some poise out there," Piniella said.
Samardzija struck out Alfredo Amezaga, the first hitter he faced on a 97 mph 3-and-2 fastball before giving up the run. He also reached 99 mph on his first pitch to veteran Luis Gonzalez in the seventh.
"I don't really pay too much attention to the gun," Samardzija said. "I was happy with my fastball. A couple of them stayed up that first inning. The fastball was a little erratic the first inning and (better) the second inning.
"My mechanics were a little more smooth coming out of the windup."
A rookie will be helping another rookie in Samardzija's case. Although catcher Geovany Soto is still learning his craft, he'll be a teacher for the pitcher. He ran out to counsel Samardzija when he was off-target with his first two pitches to Amezaga.
"I'll try to help him as much as I can," Soto said. This is a matter of keeping him calm. When you come up for the first time, your emotions can betray you a little bit. Just keep him focused and try to keep him in the game."
