Matthew James Albers (born January 20, 1983) is an

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

former

professional baseball Professional baseball is organized baseball in which players are selected for their talents and are paid to play for a specific team or club system. It is played in leagues and associated farm teams throughout the world. Modern professiona ...

pitcher In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throws ("pitches") the baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of retiring a batter, who attempts to either make contact with the pitched ball or dr ...

. He played in

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (A ...

(MLB) for the

Houston Astros The Houston Astros are an American professional baseball team based in Houston, Texas. The Astros compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West division, having moved to the division in 2013 after s ...

Baltimore Orioles The Baltimore Orioles are an American professional baseball team based in Baltimore. The Orioles compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. As one of the American League's eight charter ...

Boston Red Sox The Boston Red Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Boston. The Red Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. Founded in as one of the American League's eight ...

, Arizona Diamondbacks,

Cleveland Indians The Cleveland Guardians are an American professional baseball team based in Cleveland. The Guardians compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League Central, Central division. Since , they have ...

Chicago White Sox The Chicago White Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The White Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. The team is owned by Jerry Reinsdorf, and ...

Washington Nationals The Washington Nationals are an American professional baseball team based in Washington, D.C.. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the National League (NL) East division. From 2005 to 2007, the team played in RFK Stadiu ...

, and

Milwaukee Brewers The Milwaukee Brewers are an American professional baseball team based in Milwaukee. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) National League Central, Central division. The Brewers are named for t ...

High school career

In 2001, Albers graduated from William P. Clements High School in Sugar Land, Texas. That year, the

selected him in the 23rd round (686th overall) of the 2001 MLB Draft.

Professional career

Minor leagues

Albers made his professional debut in 2002 with the Rookie-level Martinsville Astros, going 2–3 with a 5.13

earned run average In baseball statistics, earned run average (ERA) is the average of earned runs allowed by a pitcher per nine innings pitched (i.e. the traditional length of a game). It is determined by dividing the number of earned runs allowed by the numb ...

(ERA) in 13 starts. He then spent the next three seasons climbing up the Single-A ranks, spending a season each with the Tri-City ValleyCats,

Lexington Legends The Lexington Legends are an American professional baseball team based in Lexington, Kentucky. They are a member of the South Division of the Atlantic League of Professional Baseball, a "partner league" of Major League Baseball. The Legends hav ...

and Salem Avalanche. Albers started the 2006 season with the Corpus Christi Hooks of the Class AA

Texas League The Texas League is a Minor League Baseball league which has operated in the South Central United States since 1902. It is classified as a Double-A league. Despite the league's name, only its five South Division teams are actually based in the ...

, posting a 10–2

win–loss record In sports, a winning percentage is the fraction of games or matches a team or individual has won. The statistic is commonly used in standings or rankings to compare teams or individuals. It is defined as wins divided by the total number of match ...

with a 2.17 ERA in 19 starts.

Houston Astros

On July 20, 2006, the Astros called him up to the major leagues. Albers pitched a few games in relief, then made his first Major League start against the San Diego Padres on August 3, 2006, allowing five runs on eight hits in five-plus innings. The Astros then sent Albers to the

Round Rock Express The Round Rock Express are a Minor League Baseball team of the Pacific Coast League (PCL) and the Triple-A affiliate of the Texas Rangers. They are located in Round Rock, Texas, and play their home games at the Dell Diamond. The team is named ...

of the Class AAA

Pacific Coast League The Pacific Coast League (PCL) is a Minor League Baseball league that operates in the Western United States. Along with the International League, it is one of two leagues playing at the Triple-A level, which is one grade below Major League Ba ...

two days later. The Astros promoted Albers back to the major leagues when rosters expanded in September. In 2006, Albers was named Texas League Pitcher of the Year. Albers got his first Major League win on May 5, 2007, against the St. Louis Cardinals, when he pitched innings without giving up a run.

Baltimore Orioles

After being a starting pitcher for two years, Albers was traded to the

on December 12, 2007, as part of the

Miguel Tejada Miguel Odalis Tejada ( Tejeda; born May 25, 1974) is a Dominican former professional baseball shortstop who played 16 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB). He played for six teams, most notably the Oakland Athletics and Baltimore Orioles, befo ...

trade. In the middle of the 2008 season, he was placed on the disabled list due to a torn labrum in his right shoulder.

Boston Red Sox

On December 16, 2010, Albers signed a one-year contract with the

. With the 2011 Red Sox, he made 56 relief appearances, compiling a 4–4 record with 4.73 ERA, 68 strikeouts, and 31 walks in innings pitched. On December 12, 2011, Albers signed a one-year deal to return to Boston, thus avoiding arbitration. During his time with the 2012 Red Sox, he made 40 relief appearances and posted a 2–0 record with a 2.29 ERA, 25 strikeouts and 15 walks in innings pitched.

Arizona Diamondbacks

On July 31, 2012, the Red Sox traded Albers and outfielder Scott Podsednik to the Arizona Diamondbacks for relief pitcher Craig Breslow. In 23 relief appearances with Arizona, Albers went 1–1 with a 2.57 ERA.

Cleveland Indians

On December 11, 2012, Albers was traded along with relief pitcher Bryan Shaw and starting pitcher Trevor Bauer to the

as part of a three-way deal involving the Diamondbacks and

Cincinnati Reds The Cincinnati Reds are an American professional baseball team based in Cincinnati. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) National League Central, Central division and were a charter member of ...

Drew Stubbs Robert Andrew Stubbs (born October 4, 1984) is an American former professional baseball outfielder. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Cincinnati Reds, Cleveland Indians, Colorado Rockies, Atlanta Braves, Texas Rangers, Baltimore ...

went from the Reds to the Indians, the Arizona Diamondbacks received relief pitcher Tony Sipp and first baseman Lars Anderson from the Indians, and shortstop Didi Gregorius from the Reds. The

received right fielder Shin-Soo Choo, infielder Jason Donald, and $3.5 million from Cleveland.

Houston Astros (second stint)

On December 16, 2013, Albers signed a one-year contract worth $2.45 million that came with a club option for 2015. Houston declined his 2015 option on October 9, 2014, making him a free agent.

Chicago White Sox

On February 13, 2015, he signed a minor league contract with the

. On April 22, 2015, Albers was involved in a bench-clearing brawl against the

Kansas City Royals The Kansas City Royals are an American professional baseball team based in Kansas City, Missouri. The Royals compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. The team was founded as an expans ...

. Albers suffered a fractured finger trying to escape the fracas, which placed him on the 15-day disabled list. On January 21, 2016, Albers signed a one-year, $2.25 million contract. On June 1, 2016, Albers hit a double in the 13th inning, advanced on a wild pitch, and scored on a sacrifice fly. It proved to be the winning run as the White Sox won against the Mets 2–1.

Washington Nationals

Albers signed a minor league contract with an invitation to spring training with the

for the 2017 season. He was released on March 27, 2017, despite giving up no earned runs over innings. The Nationals re-signed Albers, and promoted him to the major leagues on April 9. On May 5, 2017, Albers recorded his first career save in a 4–2 victory over the

Philadelphia Phillies The Philadelphia Phillies are an American professional baseball team based in Philadelphia. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the National League (NL) National League East, East division. Since 2004, the team's home sta ...

Milwaukee Brewers

Albers signed a two-year, $5 million deal, with the

on January 30, 2018. He elected free agency on October 31, 2019.

Pitching style

Albers is mainly a

sinkerball In baseball, a sinker or sinking fastball is a type of fastball which has significant downward and horizontal movement and is known for inducing ground balls. Pitchers capable of utilizing the sinker are able to throw the pitch almost exclusivel ...

pitcher, throwing it in the 93–96 mph range. He complements the sinker with a hard slider and an occasional

curveball In baseball and softball, the curveball is a type of pitch thrown with a characteristic grip and hand movement that imparts forward spin to the ball, causing it to dive as it approaches the plate. Varieties of curveball include the 12–6 curv ...

Personal life

As of 2017, Albers and his family reside in

The Woodlands, Texas The Woodlands is a special-purpose district and census-designated place (CDP) in the U.S. state of Texas in the Houston–The Woodlands–Sugar Land metropolitan statistical area. The Woodlands is primarily located in Montgomery County, with p ...

, a suburb of

Houston Houston (; ) is the most populous city in Texas, the most populous city in the Southern United States, the fourth-most populous city in the United States, and the sixth-most populous city in North America, with a population of 2,304,580 ...

. Albers' wife Tara was eight months pregnant with the couple's second child when

Hurricane Harvey Hurricane Harvey was a devastating Category 4 hurricane that made landfall on Texas and Louisiana in August 2017, causing catastrophic flooding and more than 100 deaths. It is tied with 2005's Hurricane Katrina as the costliest ...

hit the region in August 2017. She and their son evacuated to

Dallas Dallas () is the third largest city in Texas and the largest city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States at 7.5 million people. It is the largest city in and seat of Dallas County ...

as a result of the storm. Albers partnered with

teammate

Anthony Rendon Anthony Michael Rendon (, ; born June 6, 1990) is an American baseball third baseman for the Los Angeles Angels of Major League Baseball (MLB). He has previously played for the Washington Nationals and was a member of the Nationals' 2019 World S ...

, a fellow

ian, to set up a YouCaring fundraiser page to raise money for donations to the Houston Food Bank in the wake of the hurricane.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Albers, Matt 1983 births Living people Major League Baseball pitchers Baseball players from Houston Houston Astros players Baltimore Orioles players Boston Red Sox players Arizona Diamondbacks players Cleveland Indians players Chicago White Sox players Washington Nationals players Milwaukee Brewers players San Jacinto Central Ravens baseball players Martinsville Astros players Tri-City ValleyCats players Lexington Legends players Salem Avalanche players Round Rock Express players Mesa Solar Sox players Corpus Christi Hooks players Aberdeen IronBirds players Norfolk Tides players Pawtucket Red Sox players Charlotte Knights players Birmingham Barons players