PHOENIX (AP) — Arizona manager Torey Lovullo has often said that Tim Locastro is the fastest man in the majors. You don’t have to take his word for it: The video game MLB The Show agrees.
“He’s got a 99 rating,” Lovullo said, grinning.
Locastro showed off that speed Saturday night with four hits and a stolen base that broke a big league record, helping the Arizona Diamondbacks cool off the Cincinnati Reds 8-3.
Locastro’s theft of second in the sixth inning was the 28th straight stolen base to start his career without getting caught. That broke the mark set by Hall of Famer Tim Raines, who stole 27 in a row from 1979-81. Records have been kept since 1951. The Baseball Hall of Fame requested Locastro’s cleats, which he had specially painted for the occasion.
Locastro grew up in upstate New York, close to the Hall of Fame’s location in Cooperstown.
“Having my cleats there, it’s unfathomable,” Locastro said.
Riley Smith (1-0) threw six impressive innings in his first major league start, giving up just two runs on eight hits against a Reds team that had won six in a row. The 26-year-old right-hander took the rotation spot of lefty Caleb Smith, who was moved to the bullpen after struggling during his first outing.
Riley Smith navigated Cincinnati’s hot lineup with relative ease. His only trouble came in the second when the first four batters reached base on a walk, double and two singles, including run-scoring hits by Nick Senzel and Jonathan India.
Smith was able to limit the damage by retiring Tucker Barnhart and pitcher Jeff Hoffman for the final two outs. He struck out two and walked one.
“He was commanding the baseball on both sides of the plate,” Lovullo said. “Trusting his fastball, and there were some quality changeups that got him back into the…
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