1.
Switch hit
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A switch hit is a modern cricket shot believed to have been first used by Kevin Pietersen on 15 June 2008 in a one-day international against New Zealand. Pietersen actually played the shot for the first time off Muttiah Muralitharan in a test match against Sri Lanka in 2006, the test occurred May 25-28,2006. Despite the shot becoming a fad due to Pietersens successful execution of it, it is believed that Jonty Rhodes actually executed this shot first for a six. He hit a six off Darren Lehmann in a one day international between Australia and South Africa on March 27,2002. A switch hit involved effectively changed from a right-hander to a left-hander just before the ball was delivered by the bowler for the purpose of executing the shot. It is a variation of the sweep, in which the stance is changed during the bowlers delivery action, has been compared to switch-hitting in baseball. Australias David Warner is a user of this shot and was endorsed to use a double-faced bat in Twenty20 cricket. The shot was innovated by Pietersen using which he hit 2 sixes in the cover region, the shot is executed by changing stance from a right-handed to a left-handed batsman or vice versa during the bowlers run-up and hitting it in the cover region. The MCC has also acknowledged that the hit has implications on the interpretation of the on side. In June 2012, the International Cricket Council committee declared it to be a legitimate shot and they issued a statement saying they have decided to make no change to the current regulations. Marillier shot Paddle scoop Switch hitter KP switch shot cleared by MCC
2.
Arrested Development (season 2)
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The second season of the television comedy series Arrested Development aired between November 7,2004 and April 17,2005, on Fox in the United States. It consisted of 18 episodes, each running approximately 22 minutes in length, the second season was released on DVD in region 1 on October 11,2005, in region 2 on January 23,2006 and in region 4 on March 15,2006. On the review aggregator website Metacritic, the season scored 88 out of 100, based on 15 reviews. In 2005, the season received eleven Emmy nominations in seven categories with one win. The episode Righteous Brothers, written by Mitchell Hurwitz and Jim Vallely won for Outstanding Writing for a Comedy Series, the second season also received two Golden Globe nominations in two categories with one win. It was nominated for Best Series Musical or Comedy, and Jason Bateman won for Best Performance in a Musical or Comedy. The second season was released on DVD in region 1 on October 11,2005, in region 2 on January 23,2006, List of Arrested Development episodes at the Internet Movie Database List of Arrested Development season 2 episodes at TV. com
3.
Baseball
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Baseball is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of nine players each, who take turns batting and fielding. A run is scored when a player advances around the bases, Players on the batting team take turns hitting against the pitcher of the fielding team, which tries to prevent runs by getting hitters out in any of several ways. A player on the team who reaches a base safely can later attempt to advance to subsequent bases during teammates turns batting. The teams switch between batting and fielding whenever the team records three outs. One turn batting for both teams, beginning with the team, constitutes an inning. A game is composed of nine innings, and the team with the number of runs at the end of the game wins. Baseball has no clock, although almost all games end in the ninth inning. Baseball evolved from older bat-and-ball games already being played in England by the mid-18th century and this game was brought by immigrants to North America, where the modern version developed. By the late 19th century, baseball was widely recognized as the sport of the United States. Baseball is now popular in North America and parts of Central and South America, the Caribbean, in the United States and Canada, professional Major League Baseball teams are divided into the National League and American League, each with three divisions, East, West, and Central. The major league champion is determined by playoffs that culminate in the World Series, the top level of play is similarly split in Japan between the Central and Pacific Leagues and in Cuba between the West League and East League. The evolution of baseball from older bat-and-ball games is difficult to trace with precision, a French manuscript from 1344 contains an illustration of clerics playing a game, possibly la soule, with similarities to baseball. Other old French games such as thèque, la balle au bâton, consensus once held that todays baseball is a North American development from the older game rounders, popular in Great Britain and Ireland. Baseball Before We Knew It, A Search for the Roots of the Game, by David Block, suggests that the game originated in England, recently uncovered historical evidence supports this position. Block argues that rounders and early baseball were actually regional variants of other. It has long believed that cricket also descended from such games. The earliest known reference to baseball is in a 1744 British publication, A Little Pretty Pocket-Book, David Block discovered that the first recorded game of Bass-Ball took place in 1749 in Surrey, and featured the Prince of Wales as a player. William Bray, an English lawyer, recorded a game of baseball on Easter Monday 1755 in Guildford and this early form of the game was apparently brought to Canada by English immigrants
4.
Batting (baseball)
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In baseball, batting is the act of facing the opposing pitcher and trying to produce offense for ones team. A batter or hitter is a person whose turn it is to face the pitcher. The three main goals of batters are to become a baserunner, drive home, or advance runners along the bases for others to drive home. Hitting uses a motion that is unique to baseball, one that is rarely used in other sports. Hitting is unique because unlike most sports movements in the plane of movement hitting involves rotating in the horizontal plane. In general, batters try to get hits, however, their primary objective is to avoid making an out, and helping their team to score runs. There are several ways they can help their team score runs and they may draw a walk if they receive and do not swing the bat at four pitches located outside the strike zone. In cases when there is a runner on third and fewer than two outs, they can attempt to hit a fly to drive the runner in by allowing the runner on third to tag up. They might even be hit by a pitch, reach on an error or—if first is empty or there are two outs—on a dropped third strike, the defense attempts to get the batter out. The pitchers main role in this is to throw the ball in such a way that the batter strikes out or cannot hit it cleanly so that the defense can get him or her out. Batting is often cited as one of the most difficult feats in sports because it consists of hitting a small ball, usually moving at high velocity. In fact, if a batter can get a hit in three out of ten at bats, giving him an average of.300, he or she is considered a good hitter. In Major League Baseball, no batter has had over a.400 average at the end of the season since Ted Williams in 1941, an OPS at or near 1.000 is considered to be the mark of an exceptional hitter. A sustained OPS at or above 1.000 over a career is a only a few hitters have ever been able to reach. Batters vary in their approach at the plate, some are aggressive hitters, often swinging at the first pitch. Others are patient, attempting to work the count in order to observe all the types of pitches a pitcher will use. In preparation of hitting, every player has their own particular warm-up routine. Warming up before the game is usually done as a team, at the amateur level, the most notable drill used is the Tee Drill, where you hit a ball off a baseball tee and correct any issues you found during previous games or practices
5.
Switch pitcher
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In baseball, a switch-pitcher is an ambidextrous pitcher who is able to pitch with both the right and left hand from the pitchers mound. Four 19th-century pitchers are known to have thrown with both hands, Tony Mullane in 1882 and in 1893, Elton Chamberlain in 1888, Larry Corcoran in 1884, and George Wheeler. Greg A. Harris was one of few major league pitchers in the era to pitch with both his left and his right arm, though he only did so in a single Major League game. A natural right-hander, by 1986 he could well enough left-handed that he felt capable of pitching with either arm in a game. Harris did not throw left-handed in a game until September 28,1995. Harris walked Morris but got Taubensee to ground out and he then went back to his right hand to retire Bret Boone to end the inning. Pat Venditte regularly pitches with both arms, Venditte was drafted by the New York Yankees, played for the Seattle Mariners, and now plays for the Philadelphia Phillies. While with the Staten Island Yankees, the Yankees Single-A affiliate, Henriquez then switched to batting left-handed, and a series of changes continued for several minutes. This prompted the PBUC to issue a new rule about switch-pitching, in short, switch-pitchers must indicate to the umpire, batter, and any runners the hand with which they will use to pitch. The pitcher must continue using this hand for the duration of the at bat, with exceptions for injury. Following this choice, batters can then select with which hand they will bat, right-handed pitcher Yu Darvish throws with his left hand when training. He does this to both arms strong and balanced. He does not pitch left-handed during a game, however, in 2003, the Atlanta Braves drafted switch pitcher Brandon Berdoll of Temple Junior College in the 27th round. He never made it to the major leagues, in the collegiate ranks, Matt Brunnig was able to pitch over 85 mph left-handed and over 90 mph right-handed, but only pitched with both arms in the same game a few times. In college, he pitched more from the side as a starter. When playing the outfield after a start he would play the position with the other arm to rest the arm he just pitched with. Switch-throwers are commonly taught to switch-throw at a young age, for instance, Vendittes father trained him in ambidextrous throwing from the age of three and Brunnigs father taught him from age five. St. Augustine, Florida, BluewaterPress LLC,2010, in this novel Ernest Hemingway smuggles twin Cuban pitchers to the U. S. for a shot at major league fame
6.
Pat Venditte
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Patrick Michael Venditte, Jr. is an American professional baseball pitcher for the Philadelphia Phillies organization of Major League Baseball. After attending Creighton University, Venditte was drafted by the New York Yankees in 2008 and he signed with the Oakland Athletics as a free agent before the 2015 season, and made his MLB debut that year. Venditte is a pitcher, capable of pitching proficiently with both arms. He is recognized as the active professional pitcher who is able to do this. Vendittes rare ability to pitch with either arm required Minor League Baseball to create a rule for ambidextrous pitchers, known colloquially as the Pat Venditte Rule. This rule essentially requires any ambidextrous pitcher to declare which hand he will use to pitch to a batter before the at-bat starts, Pat Jr. was born on June 30,1985 in Omaha, Nebraska, one of four children of Pat Sr. and Janet Venditte. Pat Sr. played college baseball as a catcher, though his son is naturally right-handed, Pat Sr. trained his son to throw with both arms to give his son an edge in athletic competitions. Toward this end, the Venditte backyard included astroturf, a cage, a radar gun. In addition to training both arms from an age, Pat Jr. practiced punting footballs with both legs to establish the leg motion needed when pitching with each arm. Venditte used both arms when playing in Little League, which caused him to be confused for twins. Venditte attended Omaha Central High School and he had a 5–4 win–loss record during his senior year, earning All-Nebraska second-team honors. Venditte joined the Creighton Bluejays in 2005 as a walk-on, Creighton head coach Ed Servais did not allow Venditte to pitch with both arms during his five appearances his freshman year, fearing the spectacle would become a circus. Starting with his season, Venditte regularly used both arms in collegiate play, he posted a 3.02 earned run average in 62 2⁄3 innings pitched. After the season, he played summer baseball for the Quincy Gems of the Central Illinois Collegiate League. In his junior year, Venditte appeared in 36 of Creightons 58 games before appearing in the 2007 NCAA Division I Baseball Tournament and his opponents batting average of.185 was the fourth-best in the nation, and he posted a 1.85 ERA. At one point during the season, Venditte had a streak of 43 2⁄3 scoreless innings, on May 28,2007, Collegiate Baseball named Venditte the national player of the week. He was named to the All-American third team for the 2007 season, Venditte was also voted Midwest Region Pitcher of the Year by online pitching magazine InsidePitching. com. After the season, he played summer baseball for the Wisconsin Woodchucks in the Northwoods League
7.
New York Yankees
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The Essendon Football Club is a professional Australian rules football club which plays in the Australian Football League, the sports premier competition. Formed in 1871 as a club and playing as a senior club since 1878. It is historically associated with Essendon, a suburb in the north-west of Melbourne, dyson Heppell is the current team captain. A founding member club of both the Victorian Football Association, in 1877, and the Victorian Football League, in 1896, the club claims to have over at least one million supporters Australia wide. Essendon has won 16 VFL/AFL premierships which, along with Carlton, is the most of any club in the competition, the club was founded by members of the Royal Agricultural Society, the Melbourne Hunt Club and the Victorian Woolbrokers. The Essendon Football Club is thought to have formed in 1872 at a meeting it the home of a well-known brewery family, the McCrackens, whose Ascot Vale property hosted a team of local junior players. Robert McCracken, the owner of several city hotels, was the founder and first president of the Essendon club and his son, Alex, Alex would later become president of the newly formed VFL. Alexs cousin, Collier, who had played with Melbourne, was the teams first captain. The club played its first recorded match against the Carlton second twenty on 7 June 1873, Essendon played 13 matches in its first season, winning seven, with four draws and losing two. The club was one of the junior members of the Victorian Football Association in 1877. During its early years in the Association, Essendon played its matches at Flemington Hill. In 1878, Essendon played in the first match on what would be considered by modern standards to be a field at Flemington Hill. In 1879 Essendon played Melbourne in one of the earliest night matches recorded when the ball was painted white, in 1883 the team played four matches in Adelaide. In 1891 Essendon won their first VFA premiership, which they repeated in 1892,1893 and 1894, one of the clubs greatest players, Albert Thurgood played for the club during this period. Essendon was undefeated in the 1893 season, at the end of the 1896 season Essendon along with seven other clubs formed the Victorian Football League. Essendons first VFL game was in 1897 was against Geelong at Corio Oval in Geelong, Essendon won its first VFL premiership by winning the 1897 VFL finals series. Essendon again won the premiership in 1901, defeating Collingwood in the Grand Final, the club won successive premierships in 1911 and 1912 over Collingwood and South Melbourne respectively. The nickname first appeared in print in the local North Melbourne Advertiser in 1889 and it was known firstly as Essendon Town and, after 1905, as Essendon
8.
Mickey Mantle
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Mickey Charles Mantle, nicknamed The Commerce Comet and The Mick, was an American professional baseball player. Mantle played his entire Major League Baseball career with the New York Yankees as a fielder and first baseman. Mantle was one of the best players and sluggers, and is regarded by many as the greatest switch hitter in baseball history, Mantle was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1974 and was elected to the Major League Baseball All-Century Team in 1999. Mantle was arguably the greatest offensive threat of any center fielder in baseball history and he has the highest career OPS+ of any center fielder and he had the highest stolen base percentage in history at the time of his retirement. He also had an excellent 0.984 fielding percentage when playing center field, Mantle was noted for his ability to hit for both average and power, especially tape measure home runs. He hit 536 MLB career home runs, batted.300 or more ten times, Mantle won the Triple Crown in 1956, leading the major leagues in batting average, home runs, and runs batted in, he later wrote a book about his best year in baseball. He was an All-Star for 16 seasons, playing in 16 of the 20 All-Star Games that were played and he was an American League Most Valuable Player three times and a Gold Glove winner once. Mantle appeared in 12 World Series including seven championships, and holds World Series records for the most home runs, RBIs, extra-base hits, runs, walks, and total bases. Mantle was born on October 20,1931 in Spavinaw, Oklahoma and he was of at least partial English ancestry, his great-grandfather, George Mantle, left Brierley Hill, in Englands Black Country, in 1848. Mutt named his son in honor of Mickey Cochrane, a Hall of Fame catcher, later in his life, Mantle expressed relief that his father had not known Cochranes true first name, as he would have hated to be named Gordon. Mantle spoke warmly of his father, and said he was the bravest man he ever knew, No boy ever loved his father more, he said. His grandfather died at the age of 60 in 1944, when Mantle was four years old, his family moved to the nearby town of Commerce, Oklahoma, where his father worked in lead and zinc mines. As a teenager, Mantle rooted for the St. Louis Cardinals, Mantle was an all-around athlete at Commerce High School, playing basketball as well as football in addition to his first love, baseball. His football playing nearly ended his athletic career, kicked in the left shin during a practice game during his sophomore year, Mantle developed osteomyelitis in his left ankle, a crippling disease that was incurable just a few years earlier. Mantle began his baseball career in Kansas with the semi-professional Baxter Springs Whiz Kids. In 1948, Yankees scout Tom Greenwade came to Baxter Springs to watch Mantles teammate, during the game, Mantle hit three home runs. Greenwade returned in 1949, after Mantles high school graduation, to sign Mantle to a league contract. Mantle signed for $140 per month with a $1,500 signing bonus, Mantle was assigned to the Yankees Class-D Independence Yankees of the Kansas–Oklahoma–Missouri League, where he played shortstop
9.
Yankee Stadium (1923)
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Yankee Stadium was a stadium located in the Bronx, a borough of New York City. It was the home ballpark of the New York Yankees, one of the citys Major League Baseball franchises, from 1923 to 1973, the stadium hosted 6,581 Yankees regular season home games during its 85-year history. It was also the home of the New York Giants football team from 1956 through the first part of the 1973–74 football season. It has also known as The Big Ballpark in The Bronx, The Stadium. The stadium was built from 1922 to 1923 for $2.4 million, Yankee Stadium opened for the 1923 MLB season and at the time, it was hailed as a one-of-a-kind facility in the country for its size. Over the course of its history, it one of the most famous venues in the United States, having hosted a variety of events. The stadium went through many alterations and playing surface configurations over the years, the condition of the facility worsened in the 1960s and 1970s, prompting its closing for renovation from 1974 to 1975. The renovation significantly altered the appearance of the venue and reduced the distance of the outfield fences, in 2006, the Yankees began building a new $2.3 billion stadium in public parkland adjacent to the stadium. The price included $1.2 billion in public subsidies, the design includes a replica of the frieze along the roof that was in Yankee Stadium. Monument Park, a Hall of Fame for prominent former Yankees, was relocated to the new stadium, Yankee Stadium closed following the 2008 baseball season and the new stadium opened in 2009, adopting the Yankee Stadium moniker. The original Yankee Stadium was demolished in 2010, two years after it closed, and the 8-acre site was converted into a park called Heritage Field, the new Yankee stadium opened in 2009 and is currently used by the NY Yankees. The Yankees had played at the Polo Grounds in upper Manhattan since 1913, however, relations between the two teams were rocky, with the Giants harboring resentment towards the Yankees. For the 1920 season, the Yankees acquired star slugger Babe Ruth and in his first year with his new team, by the middle of 1920, the Giants had issued an eviction notice to the Yankees, which was soon rescinded. In 1921, the Yankees won their first American League pennant and this exacerbated Giants owner Charles Stonehams resentment of the Yankees and reinforced his insistence that the Yankees find another place to play their home games. The Giants derisively suggested that the Yankees relocate to Queens or some other out-of-the-way place, tillinghast LHommedieu Huston and Jacob Ruppert, the Yankees owners since January 1915, decided to build their own stadium. They did so at considerable financial risk and speculation, Baseball teams typically played in 30, 000-seat facilities, but Huston and Ruppert invoked Ruths name when asked how the Yankees could justify a ballpark with 60,000 seats. The total bill for construction of the stadium was $2.5 million, Huston and Ruppert explored many areas for Yankee Stadium. Of the other sites being considered, the Hebrew Orphan Asylum, consideration was also given to building atop railroad tracks on the West Side of Manhattan and to Long Island City, in Queens
10.
Washington, D.C.
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Washington, D. C. formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, the District, or simply D. C. is the capital of the United States. The signing of the Residence Act on July 16,1790, Constitution provided for a federal district under the exclusive jurisdiction of the Congress and the District is therefore not a part of any state. The states of Maryland and Virginia each donated land to form the federal district, named in honor of President George Washington, the City of Washington was founded in 1791 to serve as the new national capital. In 1846, Congress returned the land ceded by Virginia, in 1871. Washington had an population of 681,170 as of July 2016. Commuters from the surrounding Maryland and Virginia suburbs raise the population to more than one million during the workweek. The Washington metropolitan area, of which the District is a part, has a population of over 6 million, the centers of all three branches of the federal government of the United States are in the District, including the Congress, President, and Supreme Court. Washington is home to national monuments and museums, which are primarily situated on or around the National Mall. The city hosts 176 foreign embassies as well as the headquarters of international organizations, trade unions, non-profit organizations, lobbying groups. A locally elected mayor and a 13‑member council have governed the District since 1973, However, the Congress maintains supreme authority over the city and may overturn local laws. D. C. residents elect a non-voting, at-large congressional delegate to the House of Representatives, the District receives three electoral votes in presidential elections as permitted by the Twenty-third Amendment to the United States Constitution, ratified in 1961. Various tribes of the Algonquian-speaking Piscataway people inhabited the lands around the Potomac River when Europeans first visited the area in the early 17th century, One group known as the Nacotchtank maintained settlements around the Anacostia River within the present-day District of Columbia. Conflicts with European colonists and neighboring tribes forced the relocation of the Piscataway people, some of whom established a new settlement in 1699 near Point of Rocks, Maryland. 43, published January 23,1788, James Madison argued that the new government would need authority over a national capital to provide for its own maintenance. Five years earlier, a band of unpaid soldiers besieged Congress while its members were meeting in Philadelphia, known as the Pennsylvania Mutiny of 1783, the event emphasized the need for the national government not to rely on any state for its own security. However, the Constitution does not specify a location for the capital, on July 9,1790, Congress passed the Residence Act, which approved the creation of a national capital on the Potomac River. The exact location was to be selected by President George Washington, formed from land donated by the states of Maryland and Virginia, the initial shape of the federal district was a square measuring 10 miles on each side, totaling 100 square miles. Two pre-existing settlements were included in the territory, the port of Georgetown, Maryland, founded in 1751, many of the stones are still standing
11.
Griffith Stadium
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Griffith Stadium was a sports stadium that stood in Washington, D. C. from 1911 to 1965, between Georgia Avenue and 5th Street, and between W Street and Florida Avenue NW. An earlier wooden baseball park had built on the same site in 1891. It was called Boundary Field, or National Park as its occupants were then primarily by the nickname Nationals. The stadium was home to the American League Senators from 1911 through 1960, the venue hosted the All-Star Game in 1937 and 1956, as well as World Series games in 1924,1925, and 1933. It served as home for the Negro league Homestead Grays during the 1940s and it was also home to the Washington Redskins of the National Football League for 24 seasons, from the time they transferred from Boston in 1937 through the 1960 season. The ballpark was demolished in 1965 and the Howard University Hospital now occupies the site, on March 17,1911, Boundary Field, also known as National Park and American League Park, was destroyed by a fire started by a plumbers blowtorch. This left the owners of the Washington Senators in a situation, due to the fact that spring training had already begun. Noyes, president of the Senators, gained approval from the board of directors to build a new ballpark with a steel grandstand on the same site as Boundary Field. Opening Day 1911, the grandstand was sufficiently stable to host President William Howard Taft, construction of Griffith Stadium continued while the Senators were on the road, and was not completed until July 24,1911. The stadium was out at an angle within its block in the Washington street grid. Thus it was over 400 feet down the field line to the bleachers. The elevation of the grass playing field was approximately 100 feet above sea level. The Senators groundskeepers maintained a downhill slope from home plate to first base, however, Griffiths groundskeepers were still adept at keeping a fine sod field that was compared to that of the best golf courses. This was in sharp contrast to the field that can be seen in photographs of Griffith prior to 1923. For many years, the right field grandstand wall served as the foul line for the last 15 feet before the foul pole. The 41-foot tall, hand-operated scoreboard in right-center was in play, as was the National Bohemian beer sign, at one point in his youth, future MLB Commissioner Bowie Kuhn was the operator of the scoreboard. The outfield seats in left and center field butted up against 5th Street, the football field ran along the third base line. Clark Griffith took advantage of this trend by making improvements in the stadium in 1920 and 1921
12.
Lance Berkman
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William Lance Berkman, nicknamed Big Puma, is an American former professional baseball outfielder and first baseman. He played 14 seasons in Major League Baseball for the Houston Astros, New York Yankees, St. Louis Cardinals, Berkman is a six-time MLB All-Star and won a World Series championship and the National League Comeback Player of the Year Award with the Cardinals in 2011. He stands 6 feet 1 inch, and weighs 220 pounds, Berkman has spent various seasons of his career as a regular at all three outfield positions. A standout baseball player at Canyon High School, Berkman attended Rice University, named the 1997 National College Player of the Year, the Astros selected Berkman in the first round of that years amateur draft, and he debuted in the major leagues in 1999. He joined the Astros vaunted Killer Bs lineup that included Jeff Bagwell, the Astros traded Berkman to the Yankees at the 2010 trade deadline. He signed with the Cardinals as a agent for the 2011 and 2012 seasons. He played the 2013 season with the Rangers before signing a contract with Houston to officially retire as an Astro. Active in charity work, Forbes recognized him on their list of 50 most generous celebrities in 2012 and he has led a group called Berkmans Bunch, an outreach for 50 underprivileged kids to meet Berkman before each Saturday home game for autographs and other gifts. In 2013, he purchased a truck and donated it to the City of West, Texas. Berkman was born in Waco, Texas, the son of Cynthia Ann and his paternal grandfather, whose familys surname was originally Bjorkman, was of Swedish descent. Berkman graduated from Canyon High School in New Braunfels, Texas and he was invited to visit the White House and dined with President Clinton along with the rest of the Baseball America honorees. Throughout college, he batted a collective.385 with 67 home runs and 272 RBI and his 41 home runs in 1997 ranked third-most in NCAA history. That year he made the all-time record book in RBIs, slugging percentage. Berkman returned to Rice in 2014 to finish his degree, the Houston Astros of Major League Baseball selected Berkman in the first round, with the 16th overall selection, of the 1997 MLB draft. The team assigned him to play with the Kissimmee Cobras, their Class A-Advanced affiliate, in 53 games, he hit.293 with 12 home runs and 35 RBI. In 1998, his minor league season, the Astros promoted Berkman to the Jackson Generals of the Class AA Southern League. His potential was beginning to show, as he hit.306 with 24 home runs and 89 RBI over 122 games, the Astros granted him a mid-season promotion to the New Orleans Zephyrs of the Class AAA Pacific Coast League. He played 17 games in New Orleans, and 1998 would prove to be his last full season in the minor leagues, in 1999, Berkman was midway through a great season in New Orleans when he was called up to the parent club, the Houston Astros
13.
Doug Dascenzo
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Douglas Craig Dascenzo is an American professional baseball coach. The former Major League Baseball outfielder played for the Chicago Cubs, Texas Rangers, and San Diego Padres and he spent 2014 as a third base coach for the Atlanta Braves, and is currently the outfield coach for the Chicago Cubs. As an active player, Dascenzo was a switch hitter who threw left-handed, he stood 5 feet 7 inches tall and he is an alumnus of Oklahoma State University and a graduate of Brownsville Area High School in Brownsville, Pennsylvania. Dascenzo began his Major League career by playing in a then-National League record 241 consecutive games making a error. The streak spanned from his debut in 1988 to the 1991 season when he committed his first error in a game on August 25, during the 1990 and 1991 seasons with the Chicago Cubs, Dascenzo made a total of four appearances as a relief pitcher. He pitched for a total of five innings, giving up three hits, two bases on balls, and achieving two strike outs. Dascenzo ended his career as a member of the San Diego Padres organization after the 1996 season and he made his managerial debut with the Padres Northwest League affiliate, the Eugene Emeralds, in 2006 where he guided the Ems to a 43-33 finish. He was promoted to manage the Fort Wayne Wizards in the Midwest League in 2007 and he led the team to the Midwest League championship in the 2009 season, after they swept the Burlington Bees, 3-0. On December 1,2009, Dascenzo was named the manager of the Double-A San Antonio Missions of the Texas League and he was named Texas League Manager of the Year after leading the Missions to the Texas League Championship. In October 2011, Doug accepted a position with the Atlanta Braves as their minor league base running and outfield coordinator. On October 14,2013, Dascenzo was promoted from the Minor Leagues to the Majors and he was fired by the Braves at the end of the 2014 season and was replaced by Bo Porter. On October 9,2014, Dascenzo was hired by the Chicago Cubs to serve as an outfield, in 2016, he was the outfield coach only. Career statistics and player information from MLB, or ESPN, or Baseball-Reference, or Fangraphs, or The Baseball Cube, or Baseball-Reference
14.
Melky Cabrera
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Melky Astacio Cabrera is a Dominican professional baseball left fielder for the Chicago White Sox of Major League Baseball. He has also played for the New York Yankees, Atlanta Braves, Kansas City Royals, San Francisco Giants, while primarily a left fielder throughout his career, Cabrera also spent a significant amount of his playing time as a center fielder for the Royals and Yankees. Cabrera signed with the Yankees as a free agent. He made his MLB debut for the Yankees in 2005, after playing as a fourth outfielder, the Yankees included him in a trade to the Braves after the 2009 season. Struggling with the Braves in 2010, he was released, recommitting himself to the game, Cabrera had a strong year with the Royals, and was traded to the Giants for the 2012 season. In 2012, Cabrera made his first All-Star Game appearance, winning the All-Star Game MVP Award, one month later, Cabrera received a 50-game suspension after testing positive for high levels of testosterone. Cabrera was signed by the New York Yankees on November 14,2001, at age 17 and he played for the Staten Island Yankees in the Class A Short-Season New York–Penn League in 2003, batting.283 with 31 runs batted in in 67 games. In 2004, he was promoted to the Battle Creek Yankees of the Class A Midwest League and he was promoted to the Tampa Yankees of the Class A-Advanced Florida State League, where he hit.288 with 51 RBIs in 85 games to finish the season. In 2005, Cabrera started off with the Trenton Thunder of the Double-A Eastern League, at the end of June, he was promoted to the Columbus Clippers of the Triple-A International League, where he hit.324 with three homers and 11 RBIs in nine games. On July 7, he made his league debut in center field at Yankee Stadium against the Cleveland Indians. He collected his first major hit, a single, in his third at-bat that day. He was sent down to Triple-A Columbus the next day for 17 games and then demoted again, Cabrera played 6 Major Leagues games batting.211. Cabrera saw a lot of time in spring training of 2006 with starting outfielders Johnny Damon and he impressed the Yankees by hitting.349 in 16 games, but was ultimately sent down to Triple-A Columbus at the start of the season. Cabrera replaced him in field, and hit.318 in May with his first 10 career RBIs. On May 30,2006, batting leadoff for only the time in his career, he recorded his first career 4-hit game. He slumped in June, but hit his first major league home run on June 15. On June 6,2006, in the 8th inning of a 2–1 game against the Red Sox, he made a catch in left-center. This play earned Cabrera a This Year In Baseball award for the play of the 2006 season
15.
Nick Swisher
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Nicholas Thomas Nick Swisher is a former American professional baseball outfielder and first baseman in Major League Baseball. He was a switch hitter who threw left-handed, and played for the Oakland Athletics, Chicago White Sox, New York Yankees, Cleveland Indians and he won the 2009 World Series with the Yankees against the Philadelphia Phillies and was an All-Star in 2010. A power hitter with excellent plate discipline, Swisher hit at least 20 home runs in each of nine seasons from 2005 to 2013. Swisher is the son of former MLB catcher Steve Swisher, who played for various National League baseball clubs in the 1970s and 1980s, Swisher was born in Columbus, Ohio, but grew up in Parkersburg, West Virginia. Before his professional career, Swisher played college baseball for the Ohio State Buckeyes, drafted by the As in the 2002 MLB draft, Swisher made his MLB debut with the Athletics in 2004, and played for the team through 2007. After spending one year with the White Sox in 2008, the Yankees acquired him prior to the start of the 2009 campaign and he played in New York for four years before signing with the Cleveland Indians prior to the 2013 season. Swisher was born in Columbus, Ohio, the son of Lillian Marie Malizia and Steve Swisher and his mother was of part Italian descent, her grandfather immigrated to the Buffalo area from the town of Oliveri, in Sicily. Swishers parents divorced when he was 11 years old and he then went to live with his grandparents in Parkersburg, West Virginia, who raised him during his teenage years. Swisher was a star at Parkersburg High School in football and baseball as well as a letterman in basketball. As a strong safety he was recruited by several Division I-A football programs, including University of Notre Dame, but chose to pursue baseball. Undrafted in the Major League Baseball Draft out of school, Swisher enrolled at Ohio State University, as that school. Playing for the Ohio State Buckeyes baseball team in the Big Ten Conference, Swisher was named Big Ten Freshman of the Year in 2000, after hitting.299 with 10 home runs and 48 runs batted in. He was an All-Big Ten selection as a first baseman as a sophomore in 2001, after hitting.322 with 56 RBI and he earned All-Big Ten honors as an outfielder in 2002, after batting.348 with 10 home runs and 52 RBI. Swisher was selected by the Oakland Athletics with the Boston Red Sox first round pick in 2002 as compensation for the loss of free agent Johnny Damon, Swisher, and the Athletics 2002 draft, are heavily featured in Michael Lewis 2003 book Moneyball. He batted.230 in 76 games for Midland to finish the season, Swisher played for the Sacramento River Cats of the Class AAA Pacific Coast League for the 2004 season. That season, he led all minor league players with 103 walks. Swisher made his MLB debut in 2004 for the Athletics, playing in 20 games, retaining his rookie status for 2005, Swisher hit 21 home runs and recorded 74 RBI in 131 games for the 2005 Athletics. He finished 6th in the American League Rookie of the Year voting, teammate Huston Street won the award, while fellow 2002 Oakland draftee Joe Blanton finished seventh
16.
Justin Smoak
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Justin Kyle Smoak is an American professional baseball first baseman for the Toronto Blue Jays of Major League Baseball. Smoak played baseball for Stratford High School and the University of South Carolina and he made his debut with the Texas Rangers in 2010, and was traded to the Seattle Mariners that season. He was claimed by the Blue Jays off waivers in 2014, in November 2010, Justin married his high school sweetheart, Kristin Bevacqua. They have one child, a daughter, in April 2011, Smoaks father, with whom he had been very close, died of cancer. Smoak graduated from Stratford High School in 2005, Smoak played four years of high school baseball under coach John Chalus. It wasnt until his year in high school that scouts began to notice his talent because they were originally scouting his teammate. He was named by ABCA, Baseball America, and Collegiate Baseball as a 2005 high school All-American. He was also one of 36 high school players in the nation to play in the 2005 high school All-American baseball game, named South Carolina AAAA Player of the Year in 2004 and 2005, named co-Mr. Baseball for 2005 in South Carolina, made the 2004 and 2005 South Carolina AAAA All-State team, and he was initially drafted by the Oakland Athletics as a 16th-round pick in 2005 upon graduation, but instead attended the University of South Carolina. Smoak went on to college baseball for the South Carolina Gamecocks for three years. After batting.303 with 17 home runs and 63 RBI and he followed up with a.315 batting average,22 home runs, and 72 RBI in his sophomore year, good enough to be tabbed as a third-team All-American. For his junior year, Smoak batted.383, with 23 home runs and 72 RBI, Smoak is South Carolinas all-time home run king with 62, having broken Hank Smalls record of 48, which stood for over 30 years. He is also South Carolinas career leader in RBIs and walks, Smoak was a semi-finalist for the Golden Spikes Award in 2007 and 2008. In the summer of 2006, Smoak played for the Cotuit Kettleers in the Cape Cod Baseball League and he led all hitters with 11 home runs, a.565 slugging percentage, and 21 extra-base hits, en route to the MVP award. In the summer of 2007, Smoak was a representative for Team USA, during the 2007 Pan American Games, Smoak struggled, hitting.190 for the tournament. He won a medal there, when his team lost to Cuba in the finals. Later, he competed with Team USA again in the 2007 World Port Tournament, however, he didnt fare much better, as he finished with a.208 average, though he did lead the tournament with three doubles. In all, Smoak hit.223 and had a.380 slugging percentage for Team USA over the summer, in 2009, Smoak again represented his country in the IBAF Baseball World Cup
17.
Daniel Nava
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Daniel James Nava is an American professional baseball outfielder for the Philadelphia Phillies of Major League Baseball. He previously played for the Boston Red Sox, Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, Tampa Bay Rays, Nava is only the fourth player in MLB history to hit a grand slam in his first major league at bat and the second to do it on the first pitch. Nava was born in Redwood City, California and he played baseball at St. Francis High School in Mountain View, California and received his Psychology degree from Santa Clara University. He was 4 ft 8 in and 70 pounds in his year in high school. After an opportunity to walk-on to the Santa Clara University baseball team, he failed to make the team as a player and he left Santa Clara after two years because he could no longer afford the tuition. He then enrolled in the College of San Mateo and he tried out for the baseball team on the encouragement of an old friend he happened to run into at a gym. While at the College of San Mateo, he became a Junior College All-American, later Santa Clara wanted him back and eventually offered him a full scholarship. He hit.395 with a percentage of.494 in his lone season with the Broncos. He stole 15 bases without being caught, and he had more walks than strikeouts, when Nava graduated from college, he went undrafted and signed with the Chico Outlaws of the Golden Baseball League. The Outlaws cut him after a tryout, only to bring him back a year later to fill a void, in 2007 Nava hit 12 home runs for the Outlaws, with a.371 batting average and a 1.100 OPS. Nava was named the one independent league prospect by Baseball America in 2007. Red Sox assistant director of pro scouting, Jared Porter, recommended the Sox sign Nava from the Chico Outlaws in 2007. The Red Sox paid the Outlaws $1 for the rights to Nava, in 2008, Nava played for high Single-A Lancaster and hit.341 with 10 home runs and 59 RBI in 85 games. His on-base plus slugging percentage was.948, in 2009, he hit.339 at high Single-A Salem before being called up to Double-A Portland, where he batted.364 with four home runs and a 25-to-12 walk-to-strikeout ratio. In 2010, Nava spent two months in AAA, at that time he was quoted as saying, I know I have the talent and the ability, and I can keep playing at the next level, he said. If I didnt think I could, I would have been like, there’s no point. ’ … I definitely thought I could perform and perform well. That’s why I kept on going, quitting’s just not much of an option for me. Nava made his Major League debut with the Boston Red Sox on June 12,2010 at Fenway Park as the left fielder against the Philadelphia Phillies
18.
J. T. Snow
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Jack Thomas J. T. Snow, Jr. is a former Major League Baseball player. He played all but two games in his career as a first baseman, and played nine of his 13½ seasons with the San Francisco Giants and he was known for his exceptional defense, even though he was a very poor defender according to most advanced defensive metrics. After his retirement as a player, Snow worked in radio and he is now a special assistant to the general manager for the Giants. Snow is the son of former NFL Los Angeles Rams Pro Bowl wide receiver Jack Snow and Merry Carole Shane and he has two sisters, Michelle and Stephanie. Snow attended Los Alamitos High School in Los Alamitos, California, after high school, Snow played three seasons at the University of Arizona, where his teammates included Scott Erickson, Trevor Hoffman and Kevin Long. Snow was drafted by the New York Yankees in the round of the 1989 baseball amateur draft. He broke into the Majors with the Yankees at the end of the 1992 season. Traded to the California Angels that year as part of the Jim Abbott deal and he was traded to the Giants after the 1996 season for left-handed pitcher Allen Watson and minor league pitcher Fausto Macey. While a switch-hitter earlier in his career, Snow batted exclusively left-handed after 1998, in 2000, he led the league in sacrifice flies with 14. After a two-year injury-riddled stretch from 2002 to 2003 where his average was.246, Snow rebounded in 2004 with a.327 average. Darren had run out to collect Loftons bat before the play was completed and this turned into a touching and memorable incident, but easily could have resulted in disaster with a small child wandering into the path of Snow and David Bell as they both barreled home to score. Following the incident with Darren Baker, Major League Baseball required batboys, a photograph of this incident now hangs in the Baseball Hall of Fame, in Cooperstown, New York. However, the Giants failed to capitalize on their momentum, eventually falling in the 10th inning and going on to lose the series. On June 26,1999, Snow tagged out Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Carlos Pérez using the ball trick. Snows tenure with the Giants effectively ended when the team declined to offer him salary arbitration before the 2006 season and he signed a one-year, $2 million contract with the Boston Red Sox on January 6,2006. After his fathers death in 2006, Snow wore his fathers number 84 in his honor and he served primarily in a platoon with Kevin Youkilis at first base until he requested to be designated for assignment due to a lack of playing time. He was granted his designation June 19, and was released eight days later. At the end of the 2006 season, Snow retired from baseball and he also serves as an advisor to the Giants general manager, Brian Sabean, and as a roving minor league instructor for the Giants
19.
Mordecai Brown
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Mordecai Peter Centennial Brown, nicknamed Three Finger or Miner, was an American Major League Baseball pitcher and manager during the first two decades of the 20th century. Due to an accident in his youth, Brown lost parts of two fingers on his right hand, and in the process gained a colorful nickname. He turned this handicap into an advantage by learning how to grip a baseball in a way that resulted in an exceptional curveball, with this technique he became one of the elite pitchers of his era. Brown was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1949, Brown was born in Nyesville, Indiana. He was also known as Miner, having worked in western Indiana coal mines for a while beginning his professional baseball career. Nicknames like Miner and Three Finger were headline writers inventions, to fans and friends he was probably best known as Brownie. To his relatives and close friends, he was known as Mort. His three-part given name came from the names of his uncle, his father, according to his biography, he suffered two separate injuries to his right hand. The first and most famous trauma came when he was feeding material into the farms feed chopper and he slipped and his hand was mangled by the knives, severing much of his index finger and damaging the others. A doctor repaired the rest of his hand as best he could, while it was still healing, the injury was further aggravated by a fall he took, which broke several finger bones. They were not reset properly, especially the middle finger and he learned to pitch, as many children did, by aiming rocks at knot-holes on the barn wall and other wooden surfaces. Over time, with constant practice, he developed great control, as a bonus, the manner in which he had to grip the ball resulted in an unusual amount of spin. This allowed him to throw a curve ball, and a deceptive fast ball. The extra topspin made it difficult for batters to connect solidly, in short, he threw ground balls and was exceptionally effective. Brown was a third baseman in baseball in 1898 when his teams pitcher failed to appear for a game and was put in to pitch. Players in the league quickly noticed the spin and movement created by Browns unusual grip, fred Massey, Browns great-nephew, said, It didnt only curve, it curved and dropped at the same time, Massey said. It made it hard to hit and if you did hit it. Browns most productive period was when he played for the Chicago Cubs from 1904 through 1912, during this stretch, he won 20 or more games six times and was part of two World Series championships
20.
Norm Charlton
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Charlton holds three degrees from Rice University. The left-handed Charlton was best known as being part of the infamous Nasty Boys relief pitching corps for the 1990 Reds team who won the World Series, randy Myers and Rob Dibble were the other two members. The Boys were renowned for their clutch, shutdown performances, particularly during the run, their blazing fastballs. Charlton is also famous in Cincinnati for plowing over Mike Scioscia to score a run in a nationally televised Sunday night game, Charlton was also a key member of the two most beloved Mariner teams. During the 1995 Refuse to Lose team that was the first Mariner team to reach the playoffs, before the 1998 season, Charlton signed a contract to join the Baltimore Orioles bullpen. His subsequent poor pitching led to an explosion of his ERA to 6.94. Baltimore was expected to contend in 1998 after having made the playoffs in 1997, Charlton was released on July 28. He signed with the Braves a few days later, on October 22,2007, the Mariners named him their bullpen coach. Charltons contract, along with those of the remainder of the 2008 coaching staff, was not renewed following the hire of Don Wakamatsu as the field manager in November 2008. List of Major League Baseball all-time saves leaders Career statistics and player information from Baseball-Reference, or Fangraphs, or The Baseball Cube, or Retrosheet, or Pura Pelota
21.
Marv Rotblatt
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Marvin Rotblatt, nicknamed Rotty, was a left-handed pitcher in Major League Baseball for the Chicago White Sox in the 1948,1950 and 1951 seasons. His ERAs in 1948 and 1950 were the highest in the majors and he failed to get a base hit in fifteen career at-bats. Rotblatt was born in Chicago, where his father, a Jewish immigrant from Poland and his minor league Southern Association record included a season-high 202 strikeouts and a no-hitter. Before playing professional baseball, Rotblatt played for the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, the 1947-48 team won the Big Nine Championship. Listed at 56, Rotblatt has been considered one of the shortest pitchers in Major League history. While pitching for the 1951 Detroit Tigers, Cain walked Eddie Gaedel, in 1964, students at Carleton College in Northfield, Minnesota named an intramural slow-pitch softball league after Rotblatt. Career statistics and player information from Baseball-Reference, or Baseball-Reference
22.
Johnny Vander Meer
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John Samuel Vander Meer was an American professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball as a pitcher, most notably for the Cincinnati Reds, Vander Meer is best known for being the only pitcher in Major League Baseball history to throw two consecutive no-hitters. After the impressive start to his league career, he experienced problems controlling the accuracy of his pitching. Born in Prospect Park, New Jersey, he moved with his family to Midland Park, Vander Meer threw left-handed and batted as a switch hitter. He had a start to his professional baseball career. He was signed by the Brooklyn Dodgers as a free agent in 1933. Dayton then sold his contract to a Boston Bees minor league affiliate, the Miners found his playing ability to be lacking and sent him to the Cincinnati Reds affiliate, the Nashville Volunteers, in a trade for Tiny Chaplin. From Nashville, he was sent to the Durham Bulls, where the Bulls manager and catcher, in 1936, he posted a record of 19 wins against six losses for Durham. Vander Meer made his league debut with the Cincinnati Reds on April 22,1937 at the age of 22. He won 3 games and lost 4 before being sent back the minor leagues with the Syracuse Chiefs for most of the season when the Reds recalled him in September, the following year on June 11,1938, Vander Meer pitched a no hitter against the Boston Braves. Vander Meers performance earned him the role as the pitcher for the National League team in the 1938 All-Star game held at Cincinnatis Crosley Field. He ended the season with a record of 15 wins against 10 losses and he might have won more games, but spent nearly a month in the hospital being treated for boils late in the season. He posted a record of five wins with nine losses. Early in the 1940 season, he began to experience problems controlling the accuracy of his pitches, in June, the Reds released him back to the minor leagues where he played for the Indianapolis Indians and produced 6 wins against 4 losses. He returned to the leagues in September and posted a 3-1 record, including a 12 inning victory against Philadelphia on September 18. In the 13th inning, Vander Meer hit a double, advanced to third base on a sacrifice fly, then scored the winning run on a squeeze bunt. In the 1940 World Series against the Detroit Tigers, Vander Meer made only one appearance when he entered Game 5 in the inning with the Reds trailing by a score of 7-0. He pitched three innings as the Reds lost the game by a score of 8-0
23.
J. C. Romero
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Juan Carlos J. C. Romero is a Puerto Rican former professional baseball pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball for the Minnesota Twins, Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, Boston Red Sox, Baltimore Orioles, Philadelphia Phillies, Colorado Rockies, Romero played college baseball at the University of Mobile. He was drafted by the Minnesota Twins in the 21st round of the 1997 Major League Baseball draft, Romero was traded by the Twins to the Angels on December 9,2005, for infielder Alexi Casilla. Romero was one of the Puerto Rican players to agree to play for Puerto Rico in the 2006 World Baseball Classic, on October 6,2006, the Angels declined his contract option for 2007, making him a free agent. On December 15, he signed a 1-year deal with the Boston Red Sox, however, on June 9,2007, he was designated for assignment, and then released on June 19,2007. On June 23,2007, Romero signed with the Philadelphia Phillies, during that season, Romeros ERA fell to just over 1.00. Romero improved a weak Phillies bullpen plagued by inconsistency and injuries, Romero was named the Phillies top reliever for the post-season. On November 10,2007, Romero agreed to a deal to remain with the Phillies. On October 29,2008, Romero was the pitcher in Game 5 of the World Series. Along with his win in Game 3, he became the first Puerto Rican pitcher to win two games in one World Series. His club option for 2011 was declined by the Phillies after the 2010 season and he was designated for assignment on June 16 and was released on June 24. Prior to the 2009 season, Romero was suspended 50 games for testing positive for androstenedione, a performance-enhancing drug banned by MLB. Romero said that he bought a supplement named 6-OXO Extreme from a GNC store at the Cherry Hill Mall in Cherry Hill, New Jersey and that he was cleared to take it by two nutritionists. Due to the suspension, Romero lost $1.25 million, so he is suing the makers of the supplement, Ergopharm Inc. along with The Vitamin Shoppe and GNC for his lost salary and punitive damages. Following the 50-game suspension, Romero returned to the Phillies AAA affiliate, Romero returned to the Phillies on June 3,2009. Romero signed a league contract with the Washington Nationals on June 29,2011. On July 14,2011, Romero was granted his release by the Nationals and he signed a minor league contract with the New York Yankees on July 14,2011. He made 11 appearances for the Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Yankees, facing 55 batters, striking out 10 and he requested and was granted his release from the Yankees on August 8
24.
Kyle Snyder
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Kyle Ehren Snyder is a former Major League Baseball relief pitcher. Snyder played with the Kansas City Royals and the Boston Red Sox and he is listed at 6-7 and 225 pounds, is a switch hitter, and throws right-handed. Snyder is currently the coach of the Durham Bulls in the Rays organization. Kyle Snyder was born in Houston, Texas and he graduated from Riverview High School in Sarasota, Florida in 1996. While in high school he lettered in baseball, basketball, swimming and he was drafted by the Tampa Bay Devil Rays in the 1996 amateur draft but chose to attend North Carolina instead, where he played baseball for the Tar Heels. Snyder played three years for North Carolina, and also played for the Chatham Athletics of the Cape Cod Summer league where he was named the top prospect, in summer 1997, Snyder played in the Valley Baseball League for the Winchester Royals. In 1999, he was a first round MLB draft pick of the Kansas City Royals and he played for Spokane Indians in 1999 and was named top prospect in the Northwest League by Baseball America. His career with the Royals was hampered by several injuries and he only pitched 2 games in 2000 and missed the entire 2001 minor league season recovering from Tommy John surgery. Despite his history with injuries, he was named the 7th-best prospect in the organization by Baseball America in 2003. Snyder started the 2006 season with the Royals minor league affiliate, Omaha Royals, after giving up nine runs and ten hits in a two inning start, he was designated for assignment. In June 2006, he was claimed off waivers by the Boston Red Sox and he split the remainder of the season between Boston and the Pawtucket Red Sox. Snyder is perhaps best known in Boston for his 4 1⁄3 inning relief effort for the Red Sox in a July 31,2006 game against the Cleveland Indians. Entering the game with Boston trailing 8-6 in the 5th, he held the Indians scoreless before David Ortiz hit a walk-off 3-run homer in the bottom of the 9th and he allowed only 1 hit while walking none and striking out 6. Snyders first full season in the majors was in 2007, when he appeared in 46 games, in January 2007 he signed a one-year contract with the Red Sox avoiding the arbitration process. In April 2008, Snyder was designated for assignment to make room for Josh Beckett, later in the month, he accepted an assignment to remain in the Red Sox organization with Triple-A Pawtucket. He was granted free agency after the 2008 season and signed a league contract with the New York Mets in January 2009. In 2012 the Tampa Bay Rays hired Kyle Snyder as pitching coach for the Short-Season A level Hudson Valley Renegades, for the 2013 season, Snyder will be the pitching coach for the Bowling Green Hot Rods. The Rays promoted him to the Durham Bulls for the 2015 season, career statistics and player information from MLB, or ESPN, or Baseball-Reference, or Fangraphs, or The Baseball Cube, or Baseball-Reference
25.
Troy Patton
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Troy Jamieson Patton is an American professional baseball pitcher who is currently a free agent. He has played in Major League Baseball for the Houston Astros, Baltimore Orioles, Patton attended Tomball High School in Tomball, Texas. Patton was drafted in the round by the Houston Astros in 2004. In 2007, Patton played in Minor League Baseball for the Corpus Christi Hooks and he made his MLB debut with the Houston Astros on August 25,2007. Patton was part of a package sent by the Astros to the Baltimore Orioles on December 12,2007. Patton spent the 2008 season on the disabled list after suffering a left labrum tear, on September 22,2010, Patton made his first career appearance for the Orioles, in a game against the Boston Red Sox. He pitched 0.2 innings, giving up no runs,1 hit,1 walk, Patton was called up in May 2011 by the Orioles. He made 20 relief appearances, for 30 innings pitched and he posted an ERA of 3.00, with a record of 2–1, with two holds. In the 2012 season, Patton made the team out of spring training and was used out of the bullpen all year. Patton sprained his previously injured ankle while walking through a parking garage, and would go on the disabled list for approximately one month. He finished the season with a 1-0 record and a 2.43 ERA in 54 games pitched, while being a part of the Orioles bullpen. On December 20,2013, Patton was suspended for 25 games after testing positive for amphetamines, on May 24,2014, the Orioles traded Patton to the San Diego Padres in exchange for Nick Hundley and cash considerations. He was designated for assignment on September 2,2014, Patton elected free agency in October 2014. On November 5,2014 he received an 80-game suspension for his violation of MLB drug policy for amphetamine use. On April 4,2015 he signed a minor league deal with the Kansas City Royals, on April 9,2015 he was assigned to AAA Omaha Storm Chasers. On July 4, he was activated by the Storm Chasers upon the completion of his 80-game suspension, on December 21st,2015, Patton signed a minor league deal with the Miami Marlins. On February 23rd,2016, Patton was released by the Marlins because he was suspended for 80 games following his positive test for an amphetamine. Career statistics and player information from MLB, or ESPN, or Baseball-Reference, or Fangraphs, or The Baseball Cube, or Baseball-Reference
26.
Tim Dillard
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Timothy Charles Dillard is a professional baseball pitcher in the Milwaukee Brewers organization. He made his Major League Baseball debut for the Brewers in 2008 and he is the son of former major league infielder Steve Dillard. Dillard was selected by the Milwaukee Brewers in the 15th round of the 2001 Major League Baseball draft and he did not sign with them, and instead attended Itawamba Community College. In 2002, Dillard was selected by the Brewers again in the draft, Dillard signed with the team on May 27,2003. Dillard began his career in 2003, playing at the Rookie Level with the Arizona League Brewers. He played in 14 games, made 4 starts, and went 1–2 with a 3.29 ERA, in 2004, Dillard was primarily a reliever for the Class A Beloit Snappers. He went 2–5 with a 3.94 ERA and was second on the team in saves and he played for the Class A-Advanced Brevard County Manatees in 2005. He made 28 starts, and went 12–10 with a 2.48 ERA and his performance that year included being named to the Florida State League postseason All-Star team. He also led the league in games started, innings pitched, ERA, complete games, Dillard also came in second in wins with 12 and fifth in strikeouts. Following the season, he was named the Brewers Minor League Pitcher of the Year, in 2006, while playing for the Double-A Huntsville Stars, Dillard made 25 starts and 4 relief appearances. In those 29 games, he went 10–7 with a 3.26 ERA and he led the Stars in wins, starts, innings pitched, and came in second in strikeouts. He also tied for first in games and shutouts with one each. Dillard was a Southern League mid-season All-Star that season, Dillard reached the Triple-A level in 2007, playing for the Triple-A Nashville Sounds. He went 8–4 with a 4.74 ERA in 34 games, on November 19, his contract was purchased by the Brewers, protecting him from the Rule 5 draft. He was later optioned back to Nashville on March 15,2008, on May 23, Dillard was called up to the majors for the first time in his career. He made his league debut that night, pitching one inning and recording a strikeout. On February 3,2010, Dillard was designated for assignment by the Brewers to make room on the roster for Marco Estrada and he cleared waivers and was assigned to Nashville on February 5. He played the season with Nashville while he completely overhauled his pitching delivery from traditional over-the-top to sidearm
27.
Tyler Johnson (baseball)
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Tyler James Johnson is a former left-handed Major League Baseball relief pitcher. Johnson spent most of the 2006 season with the Cardinals minor league team, the Triple-A Memphis Redbirds and he pitched again for the Cardinals in 2007 before becoming injured and missing the 2008 season. He was non-tendered following the 2008 season, on February 5,2009, Johnson signed a minor league contract with an invitation to spring training with the Seattle Mariners. After 2 months in the minors rehabbing, Johnson was released on June 6, signed a minor league contract for 2012 season with the Colorado Rockies. As of 2007, Johnson featured a fastball at 88–92 mph. Baseball Reference Tyler Johnson player profile page at stlcardinals. scout. com
28.
Carlos Zambrano
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Carlos Alberto Zambrano, nicknamed Big Z or El Toro, is a former Venezuelan professional baseball pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball from 2001 to 2012 for the Chicago Cubs, Zambrano, who stands 6 feet 4 inches and weighs 275 pounds, was signed by the Cubs as a free agent in 1997 and made his debut in 2001. After being used in both starting and relief duties, he enjoyed his first full season as a starter in 2003, finishing with a 13–11 record,168 strikeouts, Zambrano is known as one of the best hitting pitchers of recent times. He was a switch-hitter with a career.238 batting average with 24 home runs,71 RBIs, the 23 home runs are the most ever by a Cubs pitcher. He also tied with Ferguson Jenkins for the record for home runs by a pitcher in a single season. Zambrano was called on to pinch hit 20 times in his career, Zambrano was the only National League pitcher to win at least 13 games in each year from 2003 to 2008. In 2006, he became the first player from Venezuela to lead the National League in wins and his most-used pitch was a heavy sinker at 88–92 mph designed to get ground balls. His next-most used pitch was a cutter, followed by a splitter and he also threw a four-seam fastball, slider, and curveball. The only major variation in his approach to right-handers and left-handers was that he threw the splitter much more to lefties and that pitch was a favorite with two strikes against lefties, while he threw the cutter most often in those counts against righties. The combative Zambrano was known for being highly emotive on the mound, often antagonizing opponents and he behaved especially poorly when he did not pitch well, often blaming others. He incurred lengthy team suspensions in June 2010 and August 2011 after unleashing tirades in the wake of bad pitching performances. In another incident, he was suspended six games and fined $3,000 by Major League Baseball for arguing with umpire Mark Carlson, in other instances, he quarreled—and physically fought—with teammates for what Zambrano considered their poor effort or performance. Zambrano was called up to the Cubs and pitched in his first game on August 20,2001, Zambrano started the game well, retiring nine of the first ten batters faced. He ran into difficulties in the inning, and was removed before getting any outs in the fifth. He was charged with seven earned runs, walked four batters, one month later, on September 20, Zambrano earned his first big-league victory by finishing out the fifth inning against the Houston Astros. Zambrano pitched just two-thirds of an inning in relief of Juan Cruz and he played 6 games making 1 start with a 1-2 record and a 15.26 ERA. Zambrano did not have any starts in the season. On July 1,2002, Zambrano started against the Florida Marlins, Zambrano logged sixteen starts for the Cubs, recording four wins and eight losses
29.
Dock Ellis
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Dock Phillip Ellis, Jr. was an American professional baseball player. A pitcher, Ellis played in Major League Baseball from 1968 through 1979 for the Pittsburgh Pirates, New York Yankees, Oakland Athletics, Texas Rangers, and New York Mets. In his MLB career, he had a 138–119 win–loss record, a 3.46 earned run average, Ellis threw a no-hitter on June 12,1970. He later stated that he accomplished the feat under the influence of LSD, reporters at the game say they do not believe the claim. Ellis was the pitcher for the National League in the All-Star Game in 1971. That year, the Pirates were World Series champions, joining the Yankees in 1976, he helped lead the team to the 1976 World Series, and was named the American League Comeback Player of the Year in the process. Ellis was an individual who advocated for the rights of players. He also had a substance abuse problem, and he acknowledged after his retirement that he never pitched without the use of drugs, after going into treatment Ellis remained sober and devoted the remainder of his life to counseling drug addicts in treatment centers and prisons. He died of an ailment in 2008 at the age of 63. Ellis attended Gardena High School in Gardena, California, at the age of 14, he began drinking and using drugs. Ellis played for the basketball team, recording 21 assists in one game. However, Ellis refused to play for the Gardena High School baseball team, when Ellis was caught drinking and smoking marijuana in a high school bathroom during his senior year, the school agreed not to expel him if he agreed to play for the schools baseball team. He appeared in four games and was named all-league, Ellis then attended Los Angeles Harbor College, a junior college. At the age of 17, Ellis was diagnosed with sickle cell anemia, the diagnosis was later changed to sickle cell trait. He was arrested for stealing a car, and given probation, brewer, working as a scout for the Pirates, signed Ellis to the Pirates, as a result of the arrest, the Pirates offered Ellis $500 a month and a $2,500 signing bonus. Ellis played for the Batavia Pirates of the Class A New York–Pennsylvania League in 1964, the next season, he played for the Kinston Eagles of the Class A Carolina League and the Columbus Jets of the Class AAA International League. Ellis pitched in a game for the Pirates against the Cleveland Indians in July. After the season, the Pirates added Ellis to their 40-man roster, in 1966, Ellis played for the Asheville Tourists of the Class AA Southern League, pitching to a 10–9 win–loss record, a 2.77 earned run average, and an All-Star Game appearance
30.
Vida Blue
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Vida Rochelle Blue Jr. is a former Major League Baseball left-handed pitcher. During a 17-year career, he pitched for the Oakland Athletics, San Francisco Giants and he won the American League Cy Young Award and Most Valuable Player Award in 1971. Blue, the oldest of six children, was born and raised in Mansfield in DeSoto Parish in northwestern Louisiana and his father worked as a laborer in an iron foundry. In high school, Blue pitched for the team and also was the quarterback for the football team. In his senior year, he threw for 3,400 yards, also in his senior year, Blue threw a no-hitter. In seven innings pitched one game, Blue had 21 strikeouts and he received several offers to play college football, but after his father died suddenly Blue signed a contract with the Oakland As. Blue benefited from coverage by Jerry Byrd of the since defunct Shreveport Journal, unlike many southpaws, Blue was a power pitcher who worked fast and pounded the strike zone. He threw a curveball to keep hitters off balance and an above average change-up. In 1970, after spending the season in the leagues with the Iowa Oaks of the American Association, Blue was called up in September. On September 11, he shut out the Kansas City Royals 3–0, giving up one hit. Ten days later, he no-hit the Minnesota Twins, 6–0, at Oakland–Alameda County Coliseum, Blue had a 24–8 record in 1971, winning both the Cy Young and MVP awards. He was the first Athletic to win the award since another pitcher, Bobby Shantz. He also led the American League in complete games, shutouts and that season, the Athletics won the American League West title for the franchises first postseason berth since the Philadelphia Athletics in the 1931 World Series. He got off to a start, going 10-1 when he linked up with Bostons Sonny Siebert. The game was won by Siebert and the Red Sox 4-3 and he was the youngest American League player to win the MVP Award in the 20th century. He was the pitcher for the American League in the 1971 All-Star Game. In 1971 he became the player ever to be a starting pitcher in the league opener, the All-Star Game. In 1971, he was on the covers of Sports Illustrated, in 1972, his success in baseball led Blue to a small role in the film Black Gunn, starring Jim Brown
31.
Kris Medlen
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Kristopher Allen Medlen is an American professional baseball pitcher currently a free agent. He has played in Major League Baseball most recently for the Kansas City Royals and he spent the earlier portion of his career with Atlanta. Medlen graduated from Gahr High School in Cerritos, California in the year 2003 and he attended El Camino College his freshman year and hit.296 with 18 RBIs as an infielder. As a pitcher, Medlen posted a 2.84 ERA with 17 Ks in 19 innings of work, Medlen redshirted the next year, before transferring to Santa Ana College. At Santa Ana, Medlen played as the shortstop and hit.332 with 10 HRs and 42 RBI. He also served as the closer, posting a 2.23 ERA with 16 saves. Medlen was drafted by the Atlanta Braves in the 10th round of the 2006 Major League Baseball draft, the Braves saw promise for Medlen as a relief pitcher, and drafted him with the intention of using him in the bullpen. Medlen played his first professional game on June 22,2006. He appeared in 20 games for Danville, and pitched a total of 22 innings, being credited with 1 win, no losses, in those 22 innings, Medlen allowed 14 hits and only 1 earned run. He struck out 36 batters, and allowed only 2 walks and his ERA was 0.41 and his WHIP was 0.727. Medlen played for three of the Braves minor league teams during 2007, progressing from the Rome Braves, to the Myrtle Beach Pelicans and ending the season with the Mississippi Braves. For the Myrtle Beach Braves, Medlen appeared in 18 games, pitching 24 innings, with 28 strike-outs and 9 walks, he had an ERA of 1.12 and a WHIP of 1.230. For the Mississippi Braves, Medlen appeared in only 3 games and he had 2 strike-outs and 2 walks, allowing 4 hits and 3 earned runs. Medlen spent the entire 2008 season with the Mississippi Braves of the Southern League and he made 19 relief appearances from April 5 to June 1, and got his first start on June 5,2012, against the Mobile BayBears. For the season, Medlen started 17 games, with 6 wins and 5 losses. Medlen began his league career as a starter, making his debut on May 21,2009 pitching just 3.0 innings. Medlen earned his first major win on May 31,2009 against the Arizona Diamondbacks pitching 6 innings. For the 2009 season, Medlen pitched a total of 67.2 innings, gave up 65 hits and 30 walks and his record was 3 wins and 5 losses, with an ERA of 4.26
32.
Justin De Fratus
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Justin Andrew De Fratus is an American professional baseball relief pitcher who is a free agent. De Fratus grew up in Oxnard, California and played baseball in school prior to playing at Ventura College. The Philadelphia Phillies selected him in the 11th round of the 2007 Major League Baseball draft. He methodically moved his way up through the Phillies system, spending one year at each level from rookie to Class A. In 2011, De Fratus made his MLB debut and, by 2013, in 2014, he used his slider to dominate the league, and establish himself as a reliable reliever capable of pitching in late-inning situations. De Fratus has a repertoire that consists of a fastball and a slider. He embraces a propensity to work quickly on the mound, off the field, De Fratus is a member of the Roman Catholic church, and uses baseball to strengthen his faith. He sees evangelism as a duty of Christians, and would like to go to seminary when he finishes his baseball career, De Fratus attended Rio Mesa High School in Oxnard, California, from which he graduated in 2005, he was a fan of the Los Angeles Dodgers. His high school coach, David Soliz, asserted that he could pitch in the leagues for a long time, saying. Justin has the stuff, but he also has the confidence, the odds were against him being drafted in the 11th round out of Ventura College. De Fratus was the first Rio Mesa player to reach the majors during Solizs tenure and he went on to attend Ventura College where, like at Rio Mesa, he was a starting pitcher.30 earned run average in 10 games. The next season,2008, he advanced to the Williamsport Crosscutters and he led the New York–Penn League in innings pitched, pitching at least six in almost 65% of his starts, the Phillies named him their minor league player of the week in mid-June. On the season, he posted a 5–6 record with a 3.19 ERA in 36 games, after the season, he participated in the Florida Instructional League. He had a successful 2010 season, splitting time between the High-A Clearwater Threshers and Double-A Reading Phillies, and posting a 1.94 ERA with 21 saves in 49 games. De Fratus began the 2011 season with Double-A Reading, and was promoted to Triple-A Lehigh Valley on June 16 after much success in Reading, during his debut, an opposing batter fouled a ball off, and De Fratuss brother caught the ball. Ultimately, it was a debut, and he went on to pitch four more big-league games that season. At the end of the season, Baseball America rated him the seventh-best prospect in the Phillies minor league system. Before 2012, like in 2011, he was given an opportunity to open the season in the Phillies bullpen, but ended up injuring his shoulder and he called the injury a beat down both physically and mentally, but he returned and pitched with the big-league club in September
33.
Drew Storen
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Drew Patrick Storen is an American professional baseball relief pitcher for the Cincinnati Reds of Major League Baseball. The Washington Nationals selected him with the 10th overall selection in the 2009 MLB draft, in 2016, Storen was traded to the Toronto Blue Jays, and later to the Seattle Mariners. Storen attended Brownsburg High School in Brownsburg, Indiana and he participated in the 2007 Indiana North-South All-Star Game, and was a state nominee for the 2006 Wendys High School Heisman Award. He was ranked 49th among the 2007 Top 100 High School prospects by Baseball America, Storen was drafted by the New York Yankees in the 34th round of the 2007 Major League Baseball draft but did not sign. Storen enrolled at Stanford University to play baseball for the Stanford Cardinal. Over two seasons at Stanford, Storen went 12–4 with a 3.64 ERA and 15 saves, in 99 innings, he allowed 43 runs on 87 hits with 23 walks and 116 strikeouts. In both seasons he made the First All-Pac-10 Conference team, the Nationals selected Storen with the tenth overall pick of the 2009 MLB draft, which they received as compensation for failure to sign 2008 MLB draft first-round pick Aaron Crow. Storen, expressing a desire to make it to the majors as quickly as possible, upon signing, Storen was assigned to the Class-A Hagerstown Suns of the South Atlantic League. Storen made an early and strong impact during his time with the Suns, Storen made his first pitching appearance with Potomac on July 21, earning a six out save, striking out three batters and allowing only one hit. Overall, Storen posted a 1.80 ERA in seven games with Potomac to earn a promotion to the Double-A Harrisburg Senators of the Eastern League, in 12 1⁄3 innings with Harrisburg, he did not allow an earned run. He lasted at Syracuse just three weeks, in which he made six appearances allowing just one earned run before getting promoted to the Nationals on May 16. Storen made his league debut on May 17,2010 against the St. Louis Cardinals. Storen recorded his first major league save on August 6,2010 against the Los Angeles Dodgers, in 2010, he pitched 55 1⁄3 innings over 54 games, finishing with a 4–4 record and a 3.58 ERA with five saves. In 2011, Storen became the teams closer and he pitched 75 1⁄3 innings over 73 games, finishing the year with a 6–3 record with 43 saves and a 2.75 ERA. He tied for fourth in the MLB in saves, prior to the 2012 season, Storen had surgery to remove a bone chip from his elbow, and missed the first 89 games of the season. He made his debut on July 19,2012. Tyler Clippard remained the Nationals closer after Storens return, though they shared the role later in the season, in the 2012 regular season, Storen posted a 3–1 win–loss with a 2.37 ERA,4 saves, and 24 strikeouts over 30 1⁄3 innings. Storen took on the role for the 2012 National League Division Series against the St. Louis Cardinals in the Nationals first playoff appearance since the team moved to Washington
34.
Kenley Jansen
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Kenley Geronimo Jansen is a Curaçaoan professional baseball pitcher for the Los Angeles Dodgers of Major League Baseball. He has played for the Dodgers since his MLB debut in 2010 and he appeared in the MLB All-Star Game in 2016. Jansen was born in Willemstad, Curaçao, the youngest of three sons of Isidor and Bernadette Jansen and his father worked in construction until suffering a stroke when Kenley was 12, his mother is a travel agent. He had two hits in 11 at-bats in three games for Ogden and he was back with the Gulf Coast team the following season, hitting.245 in 35 games. After the season he played for the North Shore Honu in the Hawaii Winter Baseball League, Jansen split 2007 between the Raptors and the Class-A Great Lakes Loons of the Midwest League, hitting.207 in 73 games. After the season, he played in Hawaii Winter Baseball. He was selected to the mid-season Midwest League All-Star game, in 2009, he was the starting catcher for the Netherlands team in the World Baseball Classic. In the Netherlands upset of the favored Dominican Republic team, Jansen threw out Willy Taveras on a steal of third base in the ninth inning. He began 2009 with the Inland Empire 66ers of San Bernardino, despite that, he appeared in eight games for the Triple-A Albuquerque Isotopes, but had just five hits in 27 at-bats. The Dodgers convinced Jansen that he had no future at catcher because of his offensive numbers. Under the tutelage of former major league Charlie Hough, he made the conversion in the half of the 2009 season at Inland Empire. He pitched 11 2⁄3 innings for the 66ers, allowing six earned runs and he continued the conversion in the Arizona Fall League for the Peoria Javelinas. Jansen was added to the Dodgers 40 man roster on November 19,2009 and he started with Inland Empire again and allowed only five runs in 18 innings while striking out 28 batters. On May 15,2010, he was promoted to the Double-A Chattanooga Lookouts and he pitched 27 innings in 22 games for the Lookouts, with a 1.67 ERA. On July 23,2010, Jansen was promoted to the Dodgers and he made his Major League debut in relief on July 24 against the New York Mets, where he pitched a scoreless inning, retiring all three batters he faced and striking out two. The very next day on July 25, he recorded his first Major League save, the hit was a single up the middle against Kyle Kendrick of the Philadelphia Phillies. Jansen recorded his first win against the Houston Astros on September 11 in Minute Maid Park and he appeared in 25 games with the Dodgers in 2010, working 27 innings with a 1–0 record and a 0.67 ERA. He also saved four games in 2010, in 2011 Jansen became a key member of the Dodgers bullpen
35.
Tomo Ohka
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Tomokazu Ohka is a Japanese professional baseball pitcher who is a free agent. He started his career with the Yokohama BayStars in Nippon Professional Baseballs Central League. He throws right-handed and is a switch hitter, on November 20,1998, Ohka was purchased by the Boston Red Sox from the Yokohama BayStars. Ohkas statistics in Japan were less flattering, but his ability to control his pitches sparked the interest of the Red Sox. In 1999, Ohka began his MLB career with the Red Sox Double-A affiliate at that time, in 12 starts he went 8-0 with a 3.00 era. He was promoted to the Triple-A Pawtucket Red Sox where he had a 1.92 era, on July 19,1999 he made his major league debut. Ohka found himself in the again in 2000. With Pawtucket, he went 9-6 in 19 starts with a 2.96 era, with 3 complete games, in both 1999 and 2000, The Red Sox named Ohka their minor league player of the year. Ohka was in the All-Star Futures Game in 1999 and 2000, Ohka became the first player from Japan to play for the Red Sox when he debuted in 1999. During the middle of the 2001 season, Ohka was sent to Montreal for the veteran closer Ugueth Urbina, Ohka had a mildly successful run with the Expos. His most productive season came with the Expos in 2002, when he posted 13-8 with 118 strikeouts, in June 2004, Ohkas right forearm was broken when he was hit by a line drive off the bat of Carlos Beltrán in Kansas City. Ohka underwent major surgery and was out until mid-September and he finished 3-7 with a 3.40 ERA in 15 starts. Ohka protested being removed from a game, a move which resulted in a fine from the team. This disagreement, along with an injury to Nationals second baseman José Vidro, was enough to deal Ohka. On June 10,2005, the Washington Nationals traded Ohka to the Milwaukee Brewers for second baseman Junior Spivey, in Ohkas first game with his new club on June 14, he threw a shutout against the Tampa Bay Devil Rays during interleague play. On January 23,2007, the reached a tentative agreement with the Toronto Blue Jays on a one-year contract. The agreement was made official on January 25,2007, Ohka could earn an additional $1,500,000 in incentives. Incentives are usually based upon innings pitched or game appearances, on June 7, after compiling a 2–5 record in 10 starts, the Toronto Blue Jays designated Ohka for assignment and subsequently released him on June 18
36.
Steve Kline (left-handed pitcher)
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Kline attended West Virginia University, where he played college baseball for the Mountaineers. Known for his colorful sound bites, he has accused umpires of favoring the New York Yankees and has said he thought about putting one ump in the Kobra Klutch. One of Klines signature pitches is a sinker that seems to roll off the kitchen table and he utilized this pitch frequently when serving as a setup man for the St. Louis Cardinals. He also had an average slider that he often featured against left handed batters throughout his career. Though he did not bat often, Kline, a switch hitter, Kline was selected by the Cleveland Indians in the 8th round of the 1993 draft as a starting pitcher. Following a difficult season in 1996, where Kline went 8-12 with a 5.46 ERA at the Double A level, Kline made his major league debut with the Indians in their 1997 season opener. He entered in the 6th inning with 1 out and a runner on base and he induced a flyout from Scott Spiezio for his first major league out, and the baserunner was caught stealing on the next pitch. He earned his first major win as the Indians rallied to take the lead in the next half inning with Kline as the pitcher of record. He would go on to strike out his first major league batter in his next appearance, Kline ultimately struggled early in the season, and was sent back down to Triple A, where he continued to be used primarily as a reliever. At the 1997 MLB Trading Deadline, Kline was traded to the Montreal Expos for pitcher Jeff Juden, Kline appeared in 26 games with the Expos in 1997, though he struggled to a 6.15 ERA. Combined, his 1997 ERA between both Montreal and Cleveland was 5.98, however, Kline began to take big strides forward as a left handed reliever during the 1998 season. He held left handed batters to a.178 average, and he earned his first major league save on August 9 against the Arizona Diamondbacks, entering the game to start the 8th inning in a save situation, and finishing off what became an 8-2 victory. He finished 1998 with a 2.76 ERA in 78 appearances and his 78 appearances tied for second in the National League with Robb Nen and Chuck McElroy, and sixth in baseball. In 1999 and 2000, he continued his strong pitching and he posted a career high total for wins in a single season in 1999, and achieved a rare feat by striking out 4 batters in an inning against the San Francisco Giants on August 17. In 2000, Kline was actually used as the closer in June and part of July, during his time in St. Louis, Kline quickly became a fan favorite, known for the dirty hat he always wore when pitching. It was even inspiration for a Cardinals promotion at the ballpark in 2002, which the team called Steve Kline Hat Day, Kline was also active in the community with charity work, and quickly became known as an everyman who enjoyed spending time with fans and signing autographs. It was the third consecutive season Kline had tied or led MLB in appearances and he held left-handed batters to a.149 batting average. Additionally, not only did Kline not allow a batter to hit a home run off him all season
37.
Bob Gibson
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Robert Bob Gibson is a retired American baseball pitcher who played 17 seasons in Major League Baseball for the St. Louis Cardinals. Nicknamed Gibby and Hoot, Gibson tallied 251 wins,3,117 strikeouts, a nine-time All-Star and two-time World Series champion, he won two Cy Young Awards and the 1968 National League Most Valuable Player Award. In 1981, he was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in his first year of eligibility, the Cardinals retired his uniform number 45 in September 1975 and inducted him into the team Hall of Fame in 2014. Born in Omaha, Nebraska, Gibson overcame childhood illness to excel in youth sports, after briefly playing under contract to both the basketball Harlem Globetrotters team and the St. Louis Cardinals organization, Gibson decided to continue playing only baseball professionally. Once becoming a starting pitcher in July 1961, Gibson began experiencing an increasing level of success. Gibson won two of three games he pitched in the 1964 World Series, then won 20 games in a season for the first time in 1965, Gibson also pitched three complete game victories in the 1967 World Series. The pinnacle of Gibsons career was 1968, when he posted a 1.12 ERA for the season, over the course of his career, Gibson became known for his fierce competitive nature and the intimidation factor he used against opposing batters. Gibson threw a no-hitter during the 1971 season, but began experiencing swelling in his knee in subsequent seasons, after retiring as a player in 1975, Gibson later served as pitching coach for his former teammate Joe Torre. At one time a special instructor coach for the St. Louis Cardinals, Gibson is the author of the memoir Pitch by Pitch, with Lonnie Wheeler. Gibson was born in Omaha, Nebraska, the last of Pack, Gibsons father died of tuberculosis three months prior to Gibsons birth, and Gibson himself was named Pack Robert Gibson in his fathers honor. While he revered his fathers legacy, Gibson disliked the name Pack, Gibsons brother Josh, who was 15 years his senior, had a profound impact on his early life, serving as a mentor to him. Gibson played on a number of basketball and baseball teams his brother coached. Gibson attended Omaha Technical High School, where during his tenure he participated on the track, basketball, and baseball teams. Health issues resurfaced for Gibson, though, and he needed a permission to compete in high school sports because of a heart murmur that occurred in tandem with a rapid growth spurt. While at Creighton, Gibson majored in sociology, and continued to experience success playing basketball, at the end of Gibsons junior basketball season he averaged 22 points per game, and made third team Jesuit All-American. As his graduation from Creighton approached, the spring of 1957 proved to be a time for Gibson. Aside from getting married, Gibson had garnered the interest of Harlem Globetrotters basketball team, in 1957, Gibson received a $3,000 bonus to sign with the Cardinals. He delayed his start with the organization for a year, playing basketball with the Harlem Globetrotters, earning the nickname Bullet and becoming famous for backhanded dunks
38.
Dwight Gooden
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Dwight Eugene Doc Gooden, nicknamed Dr. K, is an American former professional baseball pitcher who played 16 seasons in Major League Baseball. Gooden pitched from 1984 to 1994 and from 1996 to 2000 for the New York Mets, New York Yankees, Cleveland Indians, Houston Astros, and Tampa Bay Devil Rays. In a career spanning 430 games, he pitched 2,800 2⁄3 innings and posted a record of 194–112, with a 3.51 earned run average. In 1985, he won the NL Cy Young Award and achieved the pitching Triple Crown, compiling a 24–4 record and a league-leading 1.53 ERA,268 strikeouts, the following season, he helped the Mets win the 1986 World Series. Gooden remained a pitcher in subsequent years, but his career was ultimately derailed by cocaine. After posting a record in each season from 1992 to 1994. As a member of the Yankees in 1996, Gooden pitched a no-hitter and he pitched four additional years for as many teams, but never approached the success of his peak years with his Mets. In 2010, Gooden was inducted into the New York Mets Hall of Fame, Goodens troubles with addiction continued after his retirement from baseball and resulted in several arrests. He was incarcerated for seven months in 2006 after violating the terms of his probation, a native of Tampa, Florida, Dwight Gooden was drafted in the first round in 1982, the fifth player taken overall. He spent one season in the minors, in which he led the Class-A Carolina League in wins, strikeouts, Gooden made his major-league debut on April 7,1984 with the New York Mets at the age of 19. He was dubbed Dr. K, which became shortened to Doc. Gooden soon attracted a section at Shea Stadium that called itself The K Korner. When he took the mound in the inning on July 10,1984. He complemented this distinction by striking out the side, AL batters, Lance Parrish, Chet Lemon, and Alvin Davis. Setting up Gooden, NL Pitcher Fernando Valenzuela had already struck out the side in the fourth, putting down future Hall of Famers Dave Winfield, Reggie Jackson, and George Brett. The two pitchers combined performance broke an All-Star game record, coincidentally on its celebrated 50th Anniversary—Carl Hubbells five consecutive strikeouts in 1934. That season, Gooden won 17 games, the most by a 19-year-old since Wally Bunker won 19 games in 1964, Gooden won eight of his last nine starts, in his final three starts of the 1984 season, he had 41 strikeouts and 1 walk. Gooden led the league in strikeouts, his 276 breaking Herb Scores rookie record of 245 in 1955, as a 19-year-old rookie, Gooden set the then-major league record for strikeouts per 9 innings, with 11.39, breaking Sam McDowells record of 10.71 in 1965
39.
Creighton Bluejays baseball
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The Creighton Bluejays baseball team represents the Creighton University in NCAA Division I college baseball. Creighton competes as a member of the Big East Conference and plays its games at TD Ameritrade Park Omaha. Creightons baseball team played its first Big East season in 2014 and they are coached by Ed Servais who is entering his twelfth season as head coach of the Bluejays. His record at Creighton is 389-230, the team plays its home games at TD Ameritrade Park Omaha, also the home of the College World Series. Creighton appeared in the NCAA College World Series for the time in 1991. The Jays advanced to the CWS by defeating the Hawaii Rainbows 15-8 in finals of the NCAA West I Regional in Los Angeles, prior to the victory over Hawaii, the Jays swept the four-game regional by beating Pepperdine, Minnesota and host team USC in a 10-inning 8-7 victory. The seventh-seeded Bluejays opened play against the second seeded Clemson Tigers in front of then record crowd of more than 16,000 at Rosenblatt Stadium, the game ended with an 8-4 Creighton victory, setting up a second round match with MVC rival Wichita State. The Jays had finished the 1991 regular season with an record of 46-18. The Shockers had swept the regular season series with the Jays. In one of the more games in College World Series history. The game was ranked third in the list of the 25 greatest games in College World Series history by the Omaha World-Herald. The Jays bounced back to defeat Long Beach State 13-4 in an elimination game, a trip to the title game for Creighton was not to be, however, as Wichita State advanced to the National Championship game after defeating Creighton for the eighth time that season, 11-3. LSU defeated Wichita State 6-3 to win the 1991 NCAA Baseball National Championship, the Bluejays Head Coach during that memorable 1991 season, Jim Hendry, is a former General Manager of the Chicago Cubs. Jim Hendry is also the only former Creighton Bluejay to have his number retired and his name and number hang on the center field fence of Creighton Sports Complex
40.
Oakland Athletics
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The Oakland Athletics are an American professional baseball team based in Oakland, California. The Athletics compete in Major League Baseball as a club of the American League West division. The club plays its games at the Oakland–Alameda County Coliseum. The club has won nine World Series championships, the third most of all current Major League Baseball teams, the Athletics 2017 season will be the teams 50th season in Oakland. One of the American Leagues eight charter franchises, the club was founded in Philadelphia and they won three World Series championships from 1910 to 1913 and two in a row in 1929 and 1930. The teams owner and manager for its first 50 years was Connie Mack and Hall of Fame players included Chief Bender, Frank Home Run Baker, Jimmie Foxx, the team left Philadelphia for Kansas City in 1955 and became the Kansas City Athletics before moving to Oakland in 1968. They won three World Championships in a row from 1972 to 1974, led by players including Catfish Hunter, Reggie Jackson, ace reliever Rollie Fingers, after being sold by Finley to Walter A. Haas, Jr. The film Moneyball, and the book on which it is based, the As made their Bay Area debut on Wednesday, April 17,1968, with a 4-1 loss to the Baltimore Orioles at the Coliseum, in front of an opening-night crowd of 50,164. The Athletics name originated in the term Athletic Club for local gentlemens clubs—dates to 1860 when an amateur team, the team later turned professional through 1875, becoming a charter member of the National League in 1876, but were expelled from the N. L. after one season. A later version of the Athletics played in the American Association from 1882–1891, McGraw and Mack had known each other for years, and McGraw accepted it graciously. By 1909, the As were wearing an elephant logo on their sweaters, over the years the elephant has appeared in several different colors. In 1963, when the As were located in Kansas City and this is rumored to have been done by Finley in order to appeal to fans from the region who were predominantly Democrats at the time. Since 1988, the Athletics 21st season in Oakland, an illustration of an elephant has adorned the sleeve of the As home. Beginning in the mid 1980s, the on-field costumed incarnation of the As elephant mascot went by the name Harry Elephante, in 1997, he took his current form, Stomper. Through the seasons, the Athletics uniforms have usually paid homage to their forebears to some extent. Until 1954, when the uniforms had Athletics spelled out in script across the front, furthermore, neither Philadelphia nor the letter P ever appeared on the uniform or cap. The typical Philadelphia uniform had only a script A on the left front, in the early days of the American League, the standings listed the club as Athletic rather than Philadelphia, in keeping with the old tradition. Eventually, the city came to be used for the team
