Eovaldi remains stingy in comeback from second Tommy John surgery

Rays RHP was perfect through 6 innings against the Mets on Sunday.

Tampa Bay Rays starting pitcher Nathan Eovaldi took a perfect game into the seventh inning on Sunday, and is looking strong after coming back from his second Tommy John surgery.

The 28-year-old right-hander retired the first 18 New York Mets he faced on Sunday before Brandon Nimmo broke up the perfect game bid with a single to open the seventh inning. Eovaldi finished with nine strikeouts and no walks in his seven scoreless innings.

He threw just 79 pitches, including 59 for strikes.

Eovaldi has started just eight times this season, and in three of them he has allowed one or zero hits. He pitched six no-hit, scoreless innings against the A’s on May 30 in his first start since Aug. 10, 2016. He missed a year and a half after his second Tommy John surgery (his first surgery came in high school, before getting drafted by the Los Angeles Dodgers in 2008), and was sidelined the first two months of 2018 with loose bodies in his elbow.

But things look just fine now, with Sunday’s gem just two starts after Eovaldi allowed one hit and no runs in six innings in a duel with Washington Nationals ace Max Scherzer on June 26.

Eovaldi has a 3.35 ERA with 44 strikeouts and just six walks in 48⅓ innings this season. Opposing batters are hitting just .191/.223/.390 against him. Making just $2 million in 2018 and a free agent at season’s end, Eovaldi seems like a prime candidate to be dealt before the July 31 non-waiver trade deadline. If Eovaldi keeps pitching like this, it will cost a premium to pry him away from Tampa Bay.