A move back west seems to have reinvigorated Andrew Heaney.
Heaney had repeated chances in the Yankees rotation last season despite giving up several runs. The left-hander gave up 13 carries in 35 innings in his 12 appearances with the Yankees and recorded a 7.32 ERA. Including his stats from his time with the Angels in early 2021, Heaney gave up 29 home runs in 129.2 innings with a 5.82 ERA.
With the Dodgers, however, the 30-year-old is yet to give up a earned run in the 10 1/3 innings he’s pitched so far in 2022. A small sample size, but more impressive than anything fans have seen in The Bronx a season before. Pitching against the Reds on Sunday, Heaney’s fastball and newfound slider were instrumental in his 11 in six shutout innings and allowing just one hit and three walks in a 9-1 win.
“I had a good feel for the fastball and the slider, and for the most part we picked that up,” Heaney said. “I think (my) confidence has grown with that breaking ball. You don’t want to be too far ahead of yourself, but I’m getting more confident and that’s a good feeling.”
In his 10.1 innings so far with the Dodgers, Andrew Heaney has yet to give up a deserved run. Getty Images
So far this season, Heaney has run three batters and allowed four hits in two starts for the World Series favorites. In his Dodgers debut against the Twins last Tuesday, he threw himself in the fifth inning and the only run he allowed was undeserved.
“It was just really good to see him build up on that last outing,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said. “[Sunday] it was really fun to watch. He was in full command.”
Sunday marked Heaney’s 15th career start with at least 10 strikeouts. In November, he signed a one-year, $8.5 million contract with the Dodgers.