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Chicago Cubs staff ace Marcus Stroman celebrated the 200th start of his major league career Friday night by blanking the Texas Rangers through six innings in a 2-0 victory at Wrigley Field.
Stroman joined some elite Cubs company, becoming just the fourth pitcher for the ballclub to pitch six-plus shutout innings through his first two starts of the season. He became the first Chicago starter since Mike Bielecki in 1991 to accomplish the feat.
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The Chicago Cubs signed Marcus Stroman to a three-year, $71 million contract before the 2022 season to lead the team's rebuilt starting staff. After meeting with mixed results last year — 6-7, 3.50 ERA, 1.15 WHIP — he has opened 2023 as dominant as the team could have possibly hoped.
Stroman is 2-0 with a 0.00 ERA, 0.92 WHIP and 14 strikeouts. He told MLB.com of how pleasing the results have been in the early going:
"It feels good. I’m a worker, so I’m always working in the offseason. It’s kind of a testament to everything that goes into it."
Marcus Stroman held the Rangers to just two hits and three walks while striking out six Texas batters Friday. Chicago Cubs manager David Ross was smiling ear-to-ear with the result, telling MLB.com:
"He’s been great for us. Every time he steps on, you feel you got a chance to win. That’s why you get those types of guys, give them the opening day start and get them back around as much as possible."
Marcus Stroman pointed to his time spent with Team Puerto Rico in the World Baseball Classic in March for his strong start for the Chicago Cubs. He told the Chicago Sun-Times that the enhanced competition against international teams helped get him into the groove for the rigors of the regular season:
"I feel it puts you in that competitive mind frame and gets you going much earlier than spring training, where you can go through the motions at that time."
Chicago Cubs counting on Marcus Stroman in 2023
When Stroman is on his game, he is one of the toughest pitchers in baseball to defeat. After being named the MVP of the 2017 World Baseball Classic pitching for Team USA, he pitched for Puerto Rico in the 2023 tournament as a tribute to his mother, who was born in the Caribbean island nation.
