Kevin Millwood | |
---|---|
![]() Millwood with the Seattle Mariners in 2012 | |
Pitcher | |
Born: Gastonia, North Carolina, U.S. | December 24, 1974|
Batted: Right Threw: Right | |
MLB debut | |
July 14, 1997, for the Atlanta Braves | |
Last MLB appearance | |
September 12, 2012, for the Seattle Mariners | |
MLB statistics | |
Win–loss record | 169–152 |
Earned run average | 4.11 |
Strikeouts | 2,083 |
Teams | |
Career highlights and awards | |
|
Kevin Austin Millwood (born December 24,1974) is an American former professional baseball pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Atlanta Braves,Philadelphia Phillies,Cleveland Indians,Texas Rangers,Baltimore Orioles,Colorado Rockies and Seattle Mariners.
While with the Braves,Millwood was part of a pitching rotation which featured Greg Maddux,Tom Glavine and John Smoltz. In 1999 he was selected to his only All-Star Game and helped the Braves to the 1999 World Series and two seasons later the 2001 National League Championship Series. As a member of the Indians,his 2.86 ERA led all American League pitchers. In 2012,Millwood became the 67th pitcher to record 2,000 career strikeouts.
Millwood was raised by Kathy Coplen and Bill Millwood in Bessemer City,North Carolina. [1] He attended Bessemer City High School where he played baseball,basketball and football. As a basketball player,he scored 1,000 points for the Bessemer City Yellow Jackets. [2] Milwood missed the beginning of every high school baseball season in order to finish the basketball season and did not expect to be drafted by a professional baseball team. [3]
Millwood was drafted by the Atlanta Braves in the 11th round of the 1993 MLB draft. After four years in the minors,Millwood made his debut with the Atlanta Braves on July 14,1997. A year later,he won 17 games. Millwood formed a part of the Braves' star pitching rotation,which also consisted of Greg Maddux,John Smoltz and Tom Glavine. According to Nate Silver,the 1997 Braves starting rotation was the best in the history of baseball as of the 2010 season. [4]
In 1999,Millwood posted career-highs in wins (18,also achieved in 2002),earned run average (2.68),strikeouts (205) and WHIP (0.996). He finished third in the National League Cy Young Award voting (losing to the Arizona Diamondbacks' Randy Johnson) and 26th on the National League MVP ballot. He was selected as an All-Star in 1999,his only appearance in the Midsummer Classic.
Before the 2003 season,Millwood was traded by the Braves to the Philadelphia Phillies for catcher Johnny Estrada in order to cut their payroll in the midst of economic difficulties. He went 14-12 with his new team,including throwing a no-hitter against the San Francisco Giants on April 27 coming in the Phillies' final season at Veterans Stadium (this was one of only two no-hitters ever thrown at the now-demolished stadium). He also led the majors in stolen bases allowed,with 41.
In 2005,Millwood signed a one-year contract as a free agent with the Cleveland Indians. He came back from injury well,leading the American League in ERA (2.86). However,he managed a record of only 9-11,due to poor run support.[ quantify ] During 2005,Millwood again led the majors in stolen bases allowed,with 33. He finished tied for sixth in the balloting for the 2005 AL Cy Young Award. [5]
On December 26,2005,the Texas Rangers signed Millwood to a five-year,$60 million deal. [6]
In 2006,he and Vicente Padilla won 15 games;a total not matched by a Rangers pitcher until Scott Feldman in 2009. [7]
In 2008,when batters did hit the ball against him,it was with uncommon success,as his .358 batting-average-against on balls in play was the highest in the major leagues. [8] 26% of all balls put in play against him were line drives,the highest percentage in the majors. [9]
Millwood was traded to the Baltimore Orioles on December 9,2009,for Chris Ray and a player to be named later (left-handed pitcher Ben Snyder,a Rule 5 pick from San Francisco).
During the 2010 season,Millwood went 4–16 with a 5.10 earned run average,leading the league in losses.
On March 25,2011,Millwood was signed to a minor league contract by the New York Yankees. [10] After making three starts in the minor leagues,he opted out of his contract on May 1. [11]
Millwood signed a minor league contract with the Boston Red Sox on May 19,2011. [12] He was released on August 7,exercising an opt-out clause.
On August 8,2011,Millwood signed a minor league contract with the Colorado Rockies. [13] [14] Millwood was called up August 10 to fill a void after an injury to Juan Nicasio.
On January 22,2012,it was reported that the Seattle Mariners had signed Millwood to a minor league contract. [15] He was called up from Triple-A and made his first major league start of the season on April 22 against the Chicago White Sox. [16] On May 13,Millwood became the 67th pitcher to record 2,000 career strikeouts when he struck out Yankee Curtis Granderson. [17] [18] Millwood notched a win over Yankee starter Andy Pettitte,who was pitching in the majors for the first time since 2010. [19] [20]
On June 8,Millwood pitched the first six innings of a combined no-hitter against the Los Angeles Dodgers before leaving the game due to a groin injury. [21] Charlie Furbush,Stephen Pryor,Lucas Luetge,Brandon League,and Tom Wilhelmsen helped him complete the bid. Millwood was put on the disabled list in September with soreness in his shoulder and missed the remainder of the regular season. [22]
On February 3,2013,Millwood was reported to be retiring. [23]
Millwood was a sinkerball pitcher. His sinker clocked at 89–92 mph and was complemented mostly by an 89–91 mph cutter and 83–86 mph slider. Millwood also threw a curveball (71–74) and a changeup (82–84) that he used against left-handed hitters. He tended to use the cutter early in the count,with higher use of his breaking balls in two-strike situations. [24]
On January 9,1999 in Spartanburg,South Carolina,Millwood married Rena Stevens of Greenville,South Carolina. [1]
Derek Christopher Lowe is an American former professional baseball pitcher. During his career, he played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Seattle Mariners, Boston Red Sox, Los Angeles Dodgers, Atlanta Braves, Cleveland Indians, New York Yankees, and Texas Rangers.
James Kevin Brown is an American former professional baseball right-handed pitcher who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) from 1986 to 2005 for the Texas Rangers, Baltimore Orioles, Florida Marlins, San Diego Padres, Los Angeles Dodgers, and New York Yankees. Brown led the American League in wins once and led the National League in earned run average twice. He was a six-time MLB All-Star and threw a no-hitter in 1997.
Freddy Antonio García is a Venezuelan former professional baseball pitcher. He is best known for his many seasons with seven Major League Baseball (MLB) franchises, including the Seattle Mariners, Chicago White Sox, and New York Yankees. Garcia has also pitched in the Chinese Professional Baseball League (CPBL), Mexican League, and Venezuelan Professional Baseball League.
Bartolo Colón, nicknamed "Big Sexy", is a Dominican-American professional baseball pitcher for the Karachi Monarchs of Baseball United. He previously played for 11 different Major League Baseball (MLB) teams: the Cleveland Indians (1997–2002), Montreal Expos (2002), Chicago White Sox, Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim (2004–2007), Boston Red Sox (2008), New York Yankees (2011), Oakland Athletics (2012–2013), New York Mets (2014–2016), Atlanta Braves (2017), Minnesota Twins (2017), and Texas Rangers (2018). Colón also played for the Águilas Cibaeñas of the Dominican Professional Baseball League and the Acereros de Monclova of the Mexican League.
Félix Abraham Hernández García, nicknamed "King Félix", is a Venezuelan former professional baseball pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Seattle Mariners from 2005 through 2019.
Nicholas Anthony Green is an American former professional baseball infielder. He played eight seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) between 2004 and 2013 for the Atlanta Braves, Tampa Bay Devil Rays, New York Yankees, Seattle Mariners, Boston Red Sox, Los Angeles Dodgers, Toronto Blue Jays, and Miami Marlins. He played in the International Baseball League of Australia before his MLB debut in 2004. Since 2015, he has worked as an analyst on the Braves Live! post-game show, which follows Atlanta Braves games on Bally Sports South and Bally Sports Southeast.
Ross Emery Detwiler is an American professional baseball pitcher who is a free agent. He was drafted by the Washington Nationals in the first round of the 2007 MLB draft and made his MLB debut late that season. He has also played in MLB for the Texas Rangers, Atlanta Braves, Cleveland Indians, Oakland Athletics, Seattle Mariners, Chicago White Sox, Miami Marlins, San Diego Padres and Cincinnati Reds.
Jhoulys Jose Chacín Molina is a Venezuelan-American professional baseball pitcher for the Saraperos de Saltillo of the Mexican League. He has previously played for the Colorado Rockies, Arizona Diamondbacks, Los Angeles Angels, San Diego Padres, Milwaukee Brewers, Boston Red Sox and Atlanta Braves. Listed at 6 feet 3 inches (1.91 m) and 215 pounds (98 kg), he throws and bats right-handed.
Douglas Wildes Fister is an American former professional baseball pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Seattle Mariners, Detroit Tigers, Washington Nationals, Houston Astros, Boston Red Sox, and Texas Rangers from 2009 through 2018.
Manuel Bañuelos is a Mexican professional baseball pitcher for the Rakuten Monkeys of Chinese Professional Baseball League (CPBL). He has previously played in MLB for the Atlanta Braves, Chicago White Sox, New York Yankees and Pittsburgh Pirates, in the CPBL for the Fubon Guardians and in Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) for the Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles.
Blake William Beavan is an American former professional baseball pitcher. A first-round draft pick in the 2007 MLB Draft by the Texas Rangers, Beavan was traded to the Seattle Mariners in 2010 in a package of prospects for Cliff Lee. In 2011, he made his Major League Baseball (MLB) debut with the Mariners.
Erasmo José Ramírez Olivera is a Nicaraguan professional baseball pitcher in the Tampa Bay Rays organization. He has previously played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Seattle Mariners, Boston Red Sox, New York Mets, Detroit Tigers and Washington Nationals. Listed at 6 feet 0 inches (1.83 m) and 215 pounds (98 kg), he both throws and bats right-handed. He represents the Nicaraguan national team in international competition.
James Alston Paxton, nicknamed "Big Maple", is a Canadian professional baseball pitcher for the Los Angeles Dodgers of Major League Baseball (MLB). He has previously played in MLB for the Seattle Mariners, New York Yankees, and Boston Red Sox.
Tomaso Anthony Milone is an American professional baseball pitcher for the Saraperos de Saltillo of the Mexican League. He has previously played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Washington Nationals, Oakland Athletics, Minnesota Twins, Milwaukee Brewers, New York Mets, Seattle Mariners, Baltimore Orioles, Atlanta Braves, and Toronto Blue Jays.
Lucas Lester Luetge is an American professional baseball pitcher in the Boston Red Sox organization. He has previously played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Seattle Mariners, New York Yankees and Atlanta Braves.
Stephen Michael Pryor is an American former professional baseball pitcher. Pryor made his MLB debut with the Seattle Mariners on June 2, 2012. He won his first game on June 8, 2012, in a combined no-hitter started by Kevin Millwood.
Dallas Keuchel is an American professional baseball pitcher who is a free agent. He has previously played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Houston Astros, Atlanta Braves, Chicago White Sox, Arizona Diamondbacks, Texas Rangers, Minnesota Twins, and Milwaukee Brewers.
Justus Kane Sheffield is an American professional baseball pitcher in the Cincinnati Reds organization. He has previously played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the New York Yankees and Seattle Mariners.
José Miguel Ureña Rodríguez is a Dominican professional baseball pitcher for the Texas Rangers of Major League Baseball (MLB). He has previously played in MLB for the Miami Marlins, Detroit Tigers, Milwaukee Brewers, Colorado Rockies, and Chicago White Sox.
James Ryan Weber is an American professional baseball pitcher who is a free agent. He has played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Atlanta Braves, Seattle Mariners, Tampa Bay Rays, Boston Red Sox, Milwaukee Brewers, and New York Yankees. Listed at 6 feet 1 inch (1.85 m) and 180 pounds (82 kg), he throws and bats right-handed.
Awards and achievements | ||
---|---|---|
Preceded by | Philadelphia Phillies Opening Day Starting Pitcher 2003–2004 | Succeeded by |
Preceded by | No-hitter pitcher April 27, 2003 | Succeeded by |
Preceded by | No-hit game June 8, 2012 (with Furbush, Pryor, Luetge, League, & Wilhelmsen) | Succeeded by |
Preceded by | Fewest hits per nine innings (NL) 1999 | Succeeded by |