Cincinnati Reds manager Terry Francona had much to say about Chase Burns after his successful MLB debut, but he had even more to say about the scout who found him. At 22 years old, Burns’ MLB career is just beginning as he struck out the first five batters he saw against the New York Yankees. Cincinnati defeated the Yankees, 5-4, in 11 innings on a night that Francona or Burns won’t soon forget.
Terry Francona Jokingly Calls Out the Scout Who Found Chase Burns
Through five innings pitched, Burns’ day was done after 81 pitches. He gave up six hits in his MLB debut, with all three runs being earned. He didn’t record a decision, but most will remember his debut for the incredible eight strikeouts without allowing a single walk.
Francona is a known jokester, and the media is getting a laugh out of his post-game press conference.
Wait for what Tito says about the scout that scouted Chase Burns 🤣🤣 https://t.co/MRK7X4SAJP pic.twitter.com/v9CPXc3Aol
— Reds Daily (@RedsDaily4) June 25, 2025
“The scout, I know he’s here tonight, I could go kiss him right on the lips,” Francona said. “I don’t know if you guys noticed but there was a couple of small little adjustments I talked to him about.”
Burns was largely considered the top pitching prospect in baseball since being drafted with a top-two pick less than a year ago.
“We kind of watch for everything. He didn’t get too excited, I think he enjoyed the competition. There’s a lot to like.” Francona said.
Burns will go down in history as the first starting pitcher in the expansion era to strike out the first five batters he faced in his major league debut. He would go on to strike out seven of the first 10 batters he faced. Sure, he gave up a home run, but Francona knew that he was starting to “run out of gas” towards the end of his start.
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As the No. 2 in the 2024 draft, Burns made his MLB debut in record time. The Wake Forest ace started three games in A+, eight in AA, and only needed two AAA starts before he was called to the big leagues. He went 7-3 with a 1.77 ERA through 66 innings pitched in the minors.
With a WHIP of 0.77, Burns struck out 89 batters, averaging roughly 1.35 strikeouts per inning. Two of his three losses came in A+ as he was 0-2 during his three starts in Dayton. From there, he went 6-1 in AA with a remarkable 1.29 ERA through 42 innings pitched. Burns’ strikeout-to-walk rate was phenomenal as the 22-year-old walked just 13 batters, with four coming in his 12.1 AAA innings.
Expect him to find even more success as he gets comfortable in the bigs.