1,033 days after his last one, a thankful McClanahan earns the 'W'

CHICAGO — As Rays left-hander Shane McClanahan saw Junior Caminero’s throw whiz past him and nestle into the glove of Jonathan Aranda for the final out of the fifth inning, he was blitzed by so many different sensations.

Frustration, personal pain and loss and, maybe most heavily, the weight of 1,033 days.

That’s how long it had been since McClanahan had won a Major League game, since he really felt like he had a meaningful role in helping the Rays taste victory, as he did in Tuesday night’s 8-5 win over the White Sox at Rate Field, Tampa Bay’s fourth straight win.

“I kind of blacked out after that third out in the fifth inning, and just feel like the last three years of emotions between the surgeries and passing of my dad and just let it out,” McClanahan said after posting his first win since June 16, 2023, against the Padres. “It was probably the adrenaline dump and emotional release that I’ve had in my entire life. Very thankful to be here talking to you guys after 1,000 days.

“Some days, you don’t think you’re ever going to get to this point again. Proud of who I’ve turned into and the work that I put in, and I know it’s going to get better.”

McClanahan missed the past two seasons due to left elbow surgeries – first Tommy John, which wiped out his 2024 campaign, and then a nerve issue that kept him out of last season. His father passed away in January, and he carried that all through his first three starts of the season.

“The weight of the world probably feels like it's been lifted off his shoulders on some level,” pitching coach Kyle Snyder said.

“On some level, I feel that too, because I feel like this is kind of the start of the next 10 years of his career. Like he needs to kind of get the monkey off his back, so to speak, and he did so; he got past that. He made some adjustments within this game that he's not shown the ability to make in the first two games.”

It wasn’t perfect. It wasn’t the vintage McClanahan who burst onto the baseball scene with All-Star appearances in 2022 and ‘23 with tons of strikeouts and few free passes. He walked four in his five innings Tuesday, and he has permitted 11 in 13 2/3 innings across his three starts this year.

But he showed moxie.

McClanahan allowed a three-run home run to Everson Pereira in the bottom of the third, then walked Edgar Quero. That turned a four-run cushion his offense had accumulated on MLB Pipeline’s No. 44 prospect, Noah Schultz, into a fragile one-run lead. Things looked like they could derail until McClanahan struck out Colson Montgomery and induced an inning-ending groundout from Derek Hill two batters later.

“I think he got a little irritated, which, I mean, he's a competitor, and I think he knew where his pitch count was,” manager Kevin Cash said. “He wanted to do everything he could to finish his five innings of work, and he had some work to do.”

When McClanahan returned in the fourth, he was a man on a mission. He attacked the White Sox and tossed a 1-2-3 inning on just 10 pitches. That approach continued in the next frame, as he retired Munetaka Murakami and Pereira on six pitches and then induced a seven-pitch groundout to Quero to end his night and qualify him for the win.

As McClanahan walked off the field, he celebrated with backup catcher Hunter Feduccia in the dugout, his wakeup call from the emotional high he had been on.

“Feddy goes, ‘You punched my hand so hard.’ I go, ‘Dude, I don’t remember. I’m sorry if I did,’” the left-hander said with a smile.

“I’m pretty happy, pretty proud of myself. My mom might watch this, so I love you and thank you for being my biggest supporter and fan and can’t wait to get back and see you. I’m going to give this ball to her.”