Port Washington alum George Klassen makes MLB debut with Angels
Making a start in an emergency for the Los Angeles Angels, hard-throwing George Klassen of Port Washington made his first big-league appearance.
Port Washington High School alumnus George Klassen got called upon on short notice to make his Major League debut on April 5, getting a short start for the Los Angeles Angels in what became an 8-7 win over the Seattle Mariners. The Angels scratched scheduled starter Ryan Johnson because of illness and turned to Klassen, a top-five prospect in the organization who began the season at Class AAA Salt Lake. The 24-year-old worked 2⅔ innings, allowing two earned runs on three hits with five walks and four strikeouts in a game the Angels eventually won in the 11th inning, 8-7.
“I think we saw maturity,” Angels manager Kurt Suzuki said after the game. “In the sense of when things kind of got rolling a little bit in spring, he made adjustments quickly. In the past, things probably would have snowballed a little bit on him.
He's always had the stuff, but he was a lot more consistent in the zone and attacking. ” Klassen was dealt to the Angels from the Phillies in 2024 as part of a deal that sent reliever Carlos Estévez to Philadelphia. Last year in the Angels organization, Klassen had a 5.
22 ERA but struck out 134 batters in 109 innings, and he did a lot of that after getting hit on the head with a line drive in May. He also got selected for the All-Star Futures Game. In his first start of the year at Salt Lake, Klassen allowed one run over 4⅔ innings with five strikeouts and no walks.