Jeffrey Ross Zimmerman (born August 9, 1972) is a Canadian former professional

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball sport played between two team sport, teams of nine players each, taking turns batting (baseball), batting and Fielding (baseball), fielding. The game occurs over the course of several Pitch ...

pitcher In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throws ("Pitch (baseball), pitches") the Baseball (ball), baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of out (baseball), retiring a batter (baseball), batter, ...

. He pitched in

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball league composed of 30 teams, divided equally between the National League (baseball), National League (NL) and the American League (AL), with 29 in the United States and 1 in Canada. MLB i ...

from 1999 to 2001 for the Texas Rangers.

Baseball career

Independent baseball

Zimmerman played baseball in the French Elite League for one season with the

Barracudas de Montpellier The Barracudas de Montpellier are a French professional baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball sport played between two team sport, teams of nine players each, taking turns batting (baseball), batting and Fielding (ba ...

. In 1996, he pitched for the Canadian national baseball team; they failed to qualify for the Olympics. After taking some time off from baseball to earn his

Master of Business Administration A Master of Business Administration (MBA) is a professional degree focused on business administration. The core courses in an MBA program cover various areas of business administration; elective courses may allow further study in a particular ...

degree at

Simon Fraser University Simon Fraser University (SFU) is a Public university, public research university in British Columbia, Canada. It maintains three campuses in Greater Vancouver, respectively located in Burnaby (main campus), Surrey, British Columbia, Surrey, and ...

, he played with the

independent Independent or Independents may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Artist groups * Independents (artist group), a group of modernist painters based in Pennsylvania, United States * Independentes (English: Independents), a Portuguese artist ...

Northern League's

Winnipeg Goldeyes The Winnipeg Goldeyes are a professional minor-league baseball team based in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. The Goldeyes play in the American Association of Professional Baseball, which they joined in 2011. Previously, the Goldeyes were members of ...

in 1997.

Texas Rangers

Zimmerman was purchased from Winnipeg by the Texas Rangers in 1998 and played at both the A and AA

minor league Minor leagues are professional sports leagues which are not regarded as the premier leagues in those sports. Minor league teams tend to play in smaller, less elaborate venues, often competing in smaller cities/markets. This term is used in Nort ...

levels. In 1999, he made his way onto the Rangers Major League squad after a short stint at the AAA minor league level. He became a very successful middle

relief pitcher In baseball and softball, a relief pitcher or reliever is a pitcher who pitches in the game after the starting pitcher or another relief pitcher has been removed from the game due to fatigue (medical), fatigue, injury, ineffectiveness, ejection ...

in the

bullpen In baseball, the bullpen (or simply the pen) is the area where relief pitchers warm up before entering a game. A team's roster of relief pitchers is also metonymically referred to as "the bullpen". These pitchers usually wait in the bullpen if ...

and even became an

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that season (his only All-Star appearance). Zimmerman tied the record for most consecutive winning decisions to start a career with nine wins. In 2001, he became the Rangers' closer and amassed 28 saves in a season that culminated in the Rangers naming him the club's Pitcher of the Year. Over the three years from 1999 through 2001, he totaled 17 wins, 32 saves, and a 3.27

ERA An era is a span of time. Era or ERA may also refer to: * Era (geology), a subdivision of geologic time * Calendar era Education * Academy of European Law (German: '), an international law school * ERA School, in Melbourne, Australia * E ...

in 228 IP in 196 games. In the 2001 offseason, the Rangers signed Zimmerman to a three-year contract worth over $10 million. Before the start of the season, Zimmerman suffered a series of injuries that prevented him from throwing another pitch in MLB beginning with a

spring training Spring training, also called spring camp, is the preseason of the Summer Professional Baseball Leagues, such as Major League Baseball (MLB), and it is a series of practices and exhibition games preceding the start of the regular season. Spri ...

injury and continuing through three major surgeries on his elbow, including two Tommy John surgeries. He did pitch in a handful of minor league and

Arizona League The Arizona Complex League (ACL) is a rookie-level Minor League Baseball league that operates in and around Phoenix, Arizona, since 1988. Prior to 2021, it was known as the Arizona League (AZL). Along with the Florida Complex League (FCL), it fo ...

games, but never close to a full season and never at the major league level. Following the end of this contract, which covered 2002 through 2004, the Rangers reinvested in Zimmerman with a minor league contract for the 2005 season. Again Zimmerman suffered injuries that prevented his return to the field of play for the course of the entire season. Zimmerman elected to take the 2006 season off in hopes that his arm would naturally heal over the course of the season. T. R. Sullivan, the Rangers' beat writer on MLB.com, called this decision "his last, best hope" for returning to playing baseball. Having not competed in a game since 2003, Zimmerman retired in 2006 and moved back to

Vancouver, British Columbia Vancouver is a major city in Western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the cit ...

. In 2008,

The Sports Network The Sports Network (TSN) is a Canadian English language discretionary sports specialty channel owned by the Sports Network Inc., a subsidiary of CTV Specialty Television, which is also a joint venture of Bell Media (70%), also owned by BCE ...

listed Zimmerman as retired and gives his career potential as, "After four years out with injuries, he may be done." On January 18, 2006 Lone Star Ball, a Texas Rangers blog, named Zimmerman 46 on "The 50 Greatest Rangers of All Time" list.

Seattle Mariners

On April 7, 2009, Zimmerman came out of retirement, signing a minor league deal with the

Seattle Mariners The Seattle Mariners are an American professional baseball team based in Seattle. The Mariners compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League West, West Division. The team joined the American ...

. He spent the first several weeks of the season in extended spring training. Zimmerman, who had been plagued with injuries for most of his career, said this about his baseball abilities after sitting out for so long:

Right away I was able to throw a baseball without any discomfort at all, I sometimes find it hard to believe that after all that time, I was completely healthy again. I threw the ball in January and I had no trouble getting it into the high eighties.

Zimmerman appeared in one game for the

Arizona League Mariners The Arizona Complex League Mariners are a Rookie-level affiliate of the Seattle Mariners, competing in the Arizona Complex League of Minor League Baseball. The team plays its home games at Peoria Sports Complex in Peoria, Arizona. The team is comp ...

, pitching two innings and giving up one run. It was his last appearance in professional baseball.

Personal

Zimmerman was born in

Kelowna Kelowna ( ) is a city on Okanagan Lake in the Okanagan, Okanagan Valley in the British Columbia Interior, southern interior of British Columbia, Canada. It serves as the head office of the Regional District of Central Okanagan. The name Kelowna ...

British Columbia British Columbia is the westernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Situated in the Pacific Northwest between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains, the province has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that ...

. He attended

Texas Christian University Texas Christian University (TCU) is a private university, private research university in Fort Worth, Texas, United States. It was established in 1873 by brothers Addison Clark, Addison and Randolph Clark as the AddRan Male & Female College. It i ...

. Jeff's brother, Jordan Zimmerman, also played in the major leagues as a pitcher for the

. Jeff recorded a victory against his brother on July 2, 1999.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Zimmerman, Jeff 1972 births American League All-Stars Arizona League Rangers players Arizona League Mariners players Baseball people from Alberta Baseball people from British Columbia Canadian expatriate baseball players in the United States Canadian people of German descent Charlotte Rangers players Living people Major League Baseball pitchers Texas Rangers players Winnipeg Goldeyes players Tulsa Drillers players Oklahoma RedHawks players TCU Horned Frogs baseball players Major League Baseball players from Canada Sportspeople from Kelowna Simon Fraser University alumni Canadian expatriate sportspeople in France