Mike Pelfrey
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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| New York Mets — No. 34 | |
| Starting Pitcher | |
| Born: January 14, 1984 | |
| Bats: Right | Throws: Right |
| Major League Baseball debut | |
| July 7, 2006 for the New York Mets | |
| Selected MLB statistics (through 2007) |
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| Win-Loss | 5-9 |
| Earned Run Average | 5.55 |
| Strikeouts | 58 |
| Teams | |
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Michael Alan (Mike) Pelfrey (born January 14, 1984) is a starting pitcher in the New York Mets organization. He is a 6' 7", 210-pound right-handed power pitcher considered by Mets management to have the potential to become a star at the Major League level. His stature and pitching style has led fans and Mets brass to dub him "BIG PELF".[1] His teamates have also nicknamed him Big Donkey similar to Adam Dunn of the Reds.
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[edit] Professional career
After his junior year at Wichita State, Pelfrey entered the June 2005 amateur baseball draft. Having selected Scott Boras as his agent, there were concerns that Pelfrey would hold out or require a higher-than-market value contract.[1]. The Mets selected him with the ninth overall pick, even though he was projected to have gone higher than that. After six months of negotiations, the Mets signed Pelfrey to a four-year major league contract on January 10, 2006. The deal reportedly included a $3.5 million signing bonus and $5.3 million in guaranteed salary.
Pelfrey began the 2006 season on the Single-A St. Lucie Mets, going 2-1 with a 1.64 ERA in four starts before being promoted to the AA Binghamton Mets. With Binghamton, he was 2-1 with a 2.66 ERA and 55 strikeouts in 47 1/3 innings over his first eight starts. He throws a hard four-seam fastball at speeds up to 98 mph, a two-seam fastball, a slider, and a circle changeup. Once known to throw a power curveball, he gave this pitch up and learned a slider.
[edit] Major-league career
Pelfrey made his major-league debut with the Mets on July 8, 2006, earning the win in a 17-3 victory against the Florida Marlins. The Mets hit grand slams (José Valentín and Carlos Beltrán) in Pelfrey's first two major league starts. According to the Elias Sports Bureau, this was a first for a rookie pitcher.[2]. He was sent down to the AAA Norfolk Tides on 2 August 2006.
In 2007, Pelfrey pitched well in spring training and earned a spot in the Mets starting rotation to began the season. However, after starting the season 0-5 with a 6.53 ERA, he was demoted to the AAA New Orleans Zephyrs. He continued to make occasional starts for the Mets throughout the season, at one point running his record to 0-7.
However, Pelfrey found success later in the season. Having been recalled when rosters expanded on September 1 to pitch in Atlanta, Pelfrey put together his best start of the season giving up only one run on one hit in six innings for his first win of the season. Pelfrey would go on to win his next two starts in September in the midst of a close pennant race.
On March 30, 2008 the Mets named Pelfrey as their Number 5 starter. Pelfrey made his first start of the season on April 9, earning a win against the Philadelphia Phillies allowing two runs on five hits and two walks while striking out three in five innings pitched.
Pelfrey then followed up this performance with his best start in the Majors thus far. Using his sinker to get fifteen ground ball outs, Pelfrey pitched seven shutout innings against the Washington Nationals and earned the win. It was the first major league start of his career where he did not give up a run.
On May 15th, 2008, Pelfrey may have just pitched the best game the Mets have seen so far this year. He pitched 7 and 2/3 of an inning, not allowing a hit until the seventh and only gave up one. While the Mets still lost the game, it was a very good performance by Pelfrey..[2]
Pelfrey may be best recognized for the mouthpiece he wears when he pitches. Suffering from TMJ after being hit by a ball in college, he can be seen chewing on it between pitches.[3]
[edit] External links
- Career statistics and player information from MLB, or ESPN, or Baseball-Reference, or Fangraphs, or The Baseball Cube
- No 12. - MLN FAB50 Baseball 2006 - Minor League News
[edit] References
- ^ The Alou Factor. BrooklynMetFan.com. Retrieved on March 21, 2008.
- ^ Pelfrey flirts with no-no,loses to nats. Mets.com. Retrieved on May 15th, 2008.
- ^ Pelfrey's mouthpiece a distraction for opponents. Newsday.com. Retrieved on April 26, 2008.
