CLEVELAND — Triston McKenzie leaned against the dugout railing during the Indians’ clash Friday night with the Tigers. He texted with Shane Bieber and Aaron Civale on Saturday morning, seeking insight into how his day would unfold. He walked into the home clubhouse at Progressive Field on Saturday afternoon and marveled at the red No. 26 uniform hanging from his new locker. A few hours later, he hopped over the third-base line, peered up and pointed to the sky as Future’s “Call the Coroner” blared from the ballpark speakers.

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But when Roberto Pérez snagged his first offering, a 94 mph fastball, and rolled it toward the Indians’ dugout so it could be secured as a souvenir, that’s when it struck McKenzie.

“I was like, ‘Wow, this is really happening,’” he said.

McKenzie battled another team for the first time in 723 days, a layoff that included a couple of significant injuries and a lengthy, monotonous stay in Goodyear, Ariz. So as his major-league debut approached, he reached out to anyone who could help him relax: his family, his girlfriend and his fellow starting pitchers, who reminded him that everyone endures those first-day jitters.

And then McKenzie reminded everyone why he was such a heralded prospect before the injury bug threatened his development process.

McKenzie limited the Tigers to one run on two hits over six innings Saturday night in the Indians’ 6-1 win. He racked up 10 strikeouts, the second-highest total in team history for a pitcher making his big-league debut. Luis Tiant tallied 11 strikeouts against the Yankees on July 19, 1964.

“It didn’t go like this in my head,” McKenzie said. “Not even close.”

He recorded 17 swings-and-misses in 80 pitches. For reference, Civale induced 15 whiffs in his 109-pitch complete game in Pittsburgh on Wednesday. Bieber registered 16 whiffs in 99 pitches a day later.

For his first career strikeout, McKenzie slung an 89 mph slider past future Cooperstown resident Miguel Cabrera, “a living legend” to those in McKenzie’s native Royal Palm Beach County, Fla. McKenzie was six weeks shy of his sixth birthday when Cabrera broke into the majors with the nearby Marlins. In their second and final encounter, McKenzie pumped a 96.5 mph fastball past Cabrera for another strikeout.

“I’m still floating right now,” McKenzie said. “It’s really gonna hit me when I go home and play MLB The Show and I face Miggy in the game.”

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McKenzie’s fastball averaged 94.5 mph and topped out at 96.5 mph. He mixed in 18 curveballs, his most reliable off-speed pitch, as well as a handful of sliders and changeups. The fastball can sneak up on hitters, thanks to McKenzie’s frame. His wingspan — he’s 6-foot-5 with long, slim levers — allows him to release the baseball closer to home plate than most hurlers. Sandy Alomar Jr. compared McKenzie’s build to that of Oil Can Boyd or an early-career Pedro Martínez.

“When I saw him walking yesterday,” Alomar said, “I was surprised. But, man, he’s got talent. Sometimes frames are deceiving.”

McKenzie committed his only gaffe when he left a changeup over the plate that Willi Castro, his friend and former teammate at Double-A Akron, swatted 445 feet for Detroit’s only run. When reminded of their connection, McKenzie put his head down for a moment before muttering: “Sore subject.”

For a couple of years, McKenzie stood atop the organization’s prospect rankings, a former first-round pick who oozed potential and breezed through the minor leagues. When upper back and pectoral strains cost McKenzie his 2019 season, Nolan Jones supplanted him as the club’s top-ranked prospect. McKenzie missed more than a year of action, and just as he was readying to participate in Cactus League games in the spring, the pandemic arrived. Another setback, again out of his control.

McKenzie said he doesn’t pay attention to the rankings — “I know the type of player I am” — but he did occasionally tease Jones for dethroning him as the organization’s top prospect. Saturday night, Jones watched his friend’s debut from the rooftop of the parking garage that overlooks left field.

“He didn’t have to do that,” McKenzie said, “but he did and I’m gonna try to be there for his.”

Well, it’s certainly possible that McKenzie will be in the Indians’ dugout or on the mound whenever Jones earns a promotion to the big-league roster. Indians pitching coach Carl Willis, team president Chris Antonetti and general manager Mike Chernoff were discussing McKenzie’s next move after the game Saturday.

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As Alomar said: “With that performance, I don’t see why (he would) not get another opportunity.”

For now, McKenzie will reply to the barrage of congratulatory texts he received. He’ll send his keepsakes to his parents, who he said will “eat this up.”

“My mom loves scrapbooking,” he said.

And, at some point, it will sink in that he authored one of the most dazzling pitching debuts in team history. As much as it exceeded McKenzie’s expectations, the same can’t be said for his friend, Todd Isaacs, who played in Cleveland’s organization from 2015-18.

One week ago, Isaacs texted McKenzie that he had dreamed the night before that McKenzie was making his major-league debut and tallied 10 strikeouts. McKenzie replied that he was trying to “turn that into a reality.”

As he reflected on that exchange Saturday night, McKenzie knocked on the table in front of him three times.

“Today,” he said, “I did.”

(Photo: Jason Miller / Getty Images)