Daniel Mengden

Position: RHP
Born: 2/19/1993
Height: 6'2
Weight: 190
B/T: R/R
Acquired: Via trade from the Astros on July 23, 2015, along with C Jacob Nottingham in exchange for LHP Scott Kazmir (OAK). Originally drafted in the fourth round of the 2014 MLB First-Year Player Draft (HOU).

Most Recent Stats at Time of Debut
CURRENT SEASON STATS: 5-1 with a 1.19 ERA in 11 starts between Midland (Double-A) and Nashville (Triple-A) striking out 67 in 68.1 IP while walking 22 and allowing 43 hits.

Info & MLB Debut Date
Contract purchased from Nashville on June 11 to fill a slot left open through a flurry of moves in the prior 48 hours, which saw INF Chris Coghlan traded, LHP Rich Hill placed on the 15-day DL and RHP Jesse Hahn sent down while INF/OF Max Muncy and LHP Zach Neal were recalled. In addition, INF/OF Mark Canha was transferred from the 15-day DL to the 60-day DL to open a spot on the 40-man roster.
MLB Debut Date: 6/11/2016

Debut Details
June 11, in a 2-1 loss to the Reds. The losing pitcher, Mengden allowed two runs, both earned, on six hits over 5.2 IP, walking four and striking out five. Both runs came in the third inning on a two-run homer by Jay Bruce. Mengden showed his mental fortitude to battle through challenges, as he had runners on base in each of his six innings of taking the mound. Of his 104 pitches, 69 were for strikes. After striking out the first batter he faced, Zack Cozart, swinging, he gave up his first hit, a single to Joey Votto, and ended up stranding two runners on base in both the first and second innings. In the third, Votto drew a leadoff walk and, after Brandon Phillips lined out, Bruce blasted a two-run homer to right field. Mengden would strand lone runners in the fourth and fifth as well. In the sixth, he issued a leadoff single to Eugenio Suarez and Tucker Barnhart reached via a walk before Mengden was relieved by Ryan Dull, who ended the threat by stranding both runners on base to close the book on Mengden.

Player Notes
Originally drafted out of Texas A&M by his hometown team, the Houston Astros, in 2014, Mengden moved swiftly through the minor league ranks. Pitching very briefly the summer he signed, he posted a 3.27 ERA in six games that year but struck out 17 and walked just one in his 11 innings of work between two Short-Season A-ball stops. In 2015, he split his summer between two High A California League stops, Lancaster (pre-trade) and Stockton (post-trade), combining to go 10-4 with a 3.72 ERA in 26 games, striking out 125 and walking 36 while allowing 128 hits in 130.2 IP.

2080 Notes
You can read more about Mengden from 2080 Baseball’s own Melissa Lockard right here.