PHOENIX — Before Friday, Payton Tolle’s first professional season had been virtually perfect. He dominated enough across three minor league levels to have his big league debut fast-tracked to a date just 14 months after he was drafted — then showed his tantalizing talent with an eight-strikeout performance in an electric first outing last Friday night at Fenway Park.
A week removed and more than 2,600 miles away from that magical night at Fenway came the reality check at Chase Field, where Tolle had little command and was hit hard in a three-inning dud that led to a 10-5 loss. Seven days after what Tolle called the “greatest experience” of his life came a crash course — and crash landing. The lefty produced an ugly line, allowing five earned runs on five hits (including two deep homers), and walked four batters while tossing just 77 pitches and recording only nine outs.
With the high highs come the low lows for rookies, something the 22-year-old Tolle had enough perspective to acknowledge after the game.
“Got to learn fast,” said Tolle, “but trying to ask questions about it. We hate failing but if you don’t fail, you’re not gonna learn anything. Gotta pull something out of it. Can’t just go back to the hotel room and sit there and feel sorry for myself. I’ve got to learn about something and be able to take it into next week.”
Tolle was off from the beginning Friday night in Phoenix, as the second batter he faced, Geraldo Perdomo worked a nine-pitch at-bat before sending a 417-foot homer to center field. With the game tied in the second after Nathaniel Lowe hit an RBI triple, Tolle allowed a leadoff single to Jordan Lawlar, then had two outs and two strikes on star Ketel Marte when he lost feel for a changeup and airmailed it to the backstop, allowing Lawlar to score from third. Marte won that 13-pitch battle and walked, leaving Tolle — who was going to max out at around 90 pitches — having thrown 52 bullets through two frames.
The avalanche came fast in the third when Tolle issued back-to-back one-out walks to Gabriel Moreno and Blaze Alexander, then a no-doubt three-run shot by Ildemaro Vargas that made the score 5-1. With Greg Weissert already warming, that 112 mph blast spelled the effective end of Tolle’s outing despite the fact he got the final two outs of the third.
That Vargas was sitting fastball — a pitch Tolle once again threw more than half the time Friday — was emblematic of a night in which he had little else going. Tolle, who effectively used his cutter to keep the Pirates off balance in his debut, threw just 16 of his 38 off-speed offerings in the zone.
“He didn’t have any secondary pitches today and then the fastball command was off,” said manager Alex Cora. “The first one, it was up and he attacked the upper rail. Today, he was trying to do that, but he was down and they did a good job covering that pitch.
“They kept fouling off pitches and he walked four, too, so that’s part of the equation. At this level, if the line keeps moving, at one point, they’re gonna do damage.”
A year ago, Tolle faced the likes of Florida Gulf Coast, Houston and Cincinnati as a member of TCU’s rotation. His minor league season started at High-A Greenville and took him through Double-A Portland and Triple-A Worcester for abbreviated stints. It’s no surprise then, that he has encountered just as much opponent game-planning in his last two outings than he has in the last two years.
“They’re going to be up there with a plan and they’re going to execute that plan, too, more times than not,” said Tolle. “Guys are thinking through at-bats more. It’s something I’ve got to keep learning. It sucks, but I’ve got to learn and learn that quick, too.”
For prospects as highly-touted as Tolle, early-career struggles rarely portend long-term strife. He needed to look no further than across the visiting clubhouse for a shining example of that. Across the way was three-time All-Star Alex Bregman, who started his career hitting 1-for-32 with the Astros in 2016.
“I think he’s gonna have a hell of a career and I think it’s good, sometimes, to fail, you know? It’s not always a bad thing. I think he’ll be great,” Bregman said. “I think he’s gonna be just fine. He’s going to be really, really good in this game He’ll learn from it, make some adjustments, bounce back for his next start. Can’t wait for him to get back out there.”
The date of Tolle’s next outing remains to be determined, as the Red Sox are hesitant to pitch him on four days rest and seem more likely to hold him until Friday against the Yankees than throw him Wednesday afternoon against the Athletics in Sacramento. With the rotation depleted behind the top trio of Garrett Crochet, Brayan Bello and Lucas Giolito, the Red Sox have little choice but to let Tolle keep learning on the fly.
“He wouldn’t be making that start if we didn’t believe in him,” Bregman said.
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