Maeda enters rare company with stellar 2nd start

One week into the 2016 campaign, the Los Angeles Dodgers' eight-year, $25-million deal with Japanese right-hander Kenta Maeda is working out great.

Like, historically great.

On Tuesday, after holding the San Diego Padres scoreless over six stellar innings in his MLB debut last week, Maeda was equally stingy against the Arizona Diamondbacks, tossing another six shutout frames at Chavez Ravine before departing with a 1-0 lead in the Dodgers' first home game of 2016. Unfazed by the pageantry of Vin Scully's final home opener and the Diamondbacks' unsightly new uniforms, the 28-year-old rookie is now just the 16th pitcher since 1920 to throw at least six innings without allowing a run in each of his first two MLB starts.

Including Maeda, a two-time Sawamura Award winner in Japan, only eight pitchers have accomplished the feat since 2000. Before Maeda, the last pitcher to do it was right-hander Mike Wright, who tossed 14 1/3 scoreless innings in his first two starts after being promoted by the Baltimore Orioles last May (before stumbling to an 8.90 ERA over his next 30 1/3 innings).