ST. LOUIS – After four big-league starts, Tyler Mahle is the first to say that he’s yet to pitch his best possible game.
“That would be a perfect game,” he pointed out.
That would be an impossible standard for most rookie pitchers, but not for the 22-year-old Cincinnati Reds right-hander. After all, he pitched one earlier this year with Double-A Pensacola. The majors has been harder – his walks are up, his pitch efficiency is down – but not too much of a challenge so far.
Even without the consistent excellence that defined his year in the minors, Mahle has a 2.