Esch impresses as spot starter in MLB debut

NEW YORK — At some point in September, pitching prospect Jake Esch was expected to join the Marlins. The call came quicker than anyone could have expected.

Once David Phelps strained his left oblique, Esch filled in as the emergency starter and he made a promising big league debut on Wednesday night in Miami’s 5-2 loss to the Mets at Citi Field.

With 19 family members and friends on hand, the right-hander gave up just a two-run homer to Wilmer Flores in 4 1/3 innings in a no-decision.

“There’s nothing like getting thrown in the fire,” Esch said.

Rated by MLBPipeline.com as the Marlins’ 10th best prospect, Esch had a whirlwind 24 hours. It started on Tuesday night, when he was with Triple-A New Orleans at Colorado Springs. He was informed Phelps may not be able to pitch, and plans were made to get him to New York.

From St. Paul, Minn., Esch attended Cretin High, the same school that produced Paul Molitor and Joe Mauer. He went on to Georgia Tech, where he was a teammate of Marlins infielder Derek Dietrich.

On Wednesday, Esch had …

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