Christopher Patrick Rusin (born October 22, 1986) is an American

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 (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, who attempts to e ...

who is a free agent. Prior to beginning his professional career, he played

college baseball College baseball is baseball that is played on the intercollegiate level at institutions of higher education. In comparison to football and basketball, college competition in the United States plays a smaller role in developing professional pl ...

at the

University of Kentucky The University of Kentucky (UK, UKY, or U of K) is a public land-grant research university in Lexington, Kentucky. Founded in 1865 by John Bryan Bowman as the Agricultural and Mechanical College of Kentucky, the university is one of the state's ...

. He previously 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 (AL) ...

(MLB) for the

Chicago Cubs The Chicago Cubs are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The Cubs compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as part of the National League (NL) Central division. The club plays its home games at Wrigley Field, which is locate ...

Colorado Rockies The Colorado Rockies are an American professional baseball team based in Denver. The Rockies compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. The team plays its home baseball games at Coors Fi ...

, and

Atlanta Braves The Atlanta Braves are an American professional baseball team based in the Atlanta metropolitan area. The Braves compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) East division. The Braves were founded in B ...

College career

Rusin, a graduate of Divine Child High School, enrolled at the

, where he played

for the

Kentucky Wildcats The Kentucky Wildcats are the men's and women's intercollegiate athletic squads of the University of Kentucky (UK), a founding member of the Southeastern Conference. The Kentucky Wildcats is the student body of the University of Kentucky. 30,47 ...

in the

Southeastern Conference The Southeastern Conference (SEC) is an American college athletic conference whose member institutions are located primarily in the South Central and Southeastern United States. Its fourteen members include the flagship public universities o ...

(SEC). As a junior in 2008, Rusin was named to the All-SEC first team after posting a 6–3

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 ...

and a 3.33

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 ...

. The

Oakland Athletics The Oakland Athletics (often referred to as the A's) are an American professional baseball team based in Oakland, California. The Athletics compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West division. The t ...

drafted Rusin in the 23rd round of the

2008 MLB Draft The 2008 Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft continued Major League Baseball's annual amateur draft of high school and college baseball players, and was held on June 5 and 6, 2008. First round selections ;Key Supplemental first rou ...

, but he opted to return to Kentucky for his senior season.

Professional career

Chicago Cubs

The

selected Rusin in the fourth round, with the 140th selection of the 2009 MLB Draft, and Rusin signed. Rusin started the 2010 season with the

Daytona Cubs Daytona refers to the city of Daytona Beach, Florida, or things named after it. Daytona may also refer to: Locations * Daytona Beach Shores, Florida * South Daytona, Florida * The Daytona Beach metropolitan area * Halifax area, also known as ...

of the

Class A-Advanced High-A (officially Class High-A, formerly known as Class A-Advanced, and sometimes abbreviated "A+" in writing) is the third-highest level of play in Minor League Baseball in the United States and Canada, below Triple-A and Double-A, and abov ...

Florida State League The Florida State League (FSL) is a Minor League Baseball league based in the state of Florida. Having been classified at various levels throughout its existence, it operated at Class A-Advanced from 1990 until its demotion to Single-A follow ...

, and was promoted to the

Tennessee Smokies The Tennessee Smokies are a Minor League Baseball team based in Kodak, Tennessee, a suburb of Knoxville. The team, which plays in the Southern League, is the Double-A affiliate of the Chicago Cubs. They play at Smokies Stadium, directly off I ...

of the

Class AA Double-A (officially Class AA) is the second-highest level of play in Minor League Baseball in the United States since 1946, below only Triple-A. There are currently 30 teams classified at the Double-A level, one for each team in Major League ...

Southern League in August. After pitching for the

Iowa Cubs The Iowa Cubs are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League and the Triple-A affiliate of the Chicago Cubs. They are located in Des Moines, Iowa, and are named for their Major League Baseball (MLB) affiliate. The Cubs play their ho ...

of the

Class AAA Triple-A (officially Class AAA) has been the highest level of play in Minor League Baseball in the United States since 1946. Currently, two leagues operate at the Triple-A level, the International League (IL) and the Pacific Coast League (PCL ...

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 Bas ...

in 2012, he made his major league debut for the Cubs on August 21. He pitched in seven games in 2012, winning two and losing three. Rusin returned to the Iowa Cubs where he spent the 2013 season until July 2, when he was called up and started a game against the Oakland Athletics. He made 13 appearances in 2013, pitching to a 3.93 ERA on the year. Rusin was among the last players cut from the major league team in

spring training Spring training is the preseason in Major League Baseball (MLB), a series of practices and exhibition games preceding the start of the regular season. Spring training allows new players to try out for roster and position spots, and gives estab ...

in 2014. Pitching for Iowa, Rusin threw a

no-hitter In baseball, a no-hitter is a game in which a team was not able to record a hit. Major League Baseball (MLB) officially defines a no-hitter as a completed game in which a team that batted in at least nine innings recorded no hits. A pitcher w ...

on May 7. He allowed 10 runs in 12.2 major leagues innings for the Cubs in 2014.

Colorado Rockies

On September 27, 2014, Rusin was acquired by the

, after being placed on waivers by the Cubs. In 2015, Rusin recorded a 6-10 record and 5.33 ERA in 24 games for the Rockies. In 2016, he pitched to a 3.74 ERA with 69 strikeouts in 84.1 innings of work. On August 7, 2016, he gave up

Ichiro Suzuki , also known mononymously as , is a Japanese former professional baseball outfielder who played professionally for 28 seasons. He played nine years of his career with the Orix BlueWave of Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB), where he began hi ...

's 3,000th hit. Rusin made 60 appearances for Colorado in 2017, registering a 5-1 record and 2.65 ERA in 85.0 innings. In 2018, Rusin appeared in 49 games for the Rockies, struggling to a 6.09 ERA with 47 strikeouts in 54.2 innings. Rusin spent the majority of the 2019 season in Triple-A with the

Albuquerque Isotopes The Albuquerque Isotopes are a Minor League Baseball team of the Pacific Coast League and the Triple-A affiliate of the Colorado Rockies. They play home games at Rio Grande Credit Union Field at Isotopes Park in Albuquerque, New Mexico, at an ...

, also allowing 4 earned runs in 1.0 major league inning. On June 7, 2019, Rusin was designated for assignment by the Rockies. On June 12, he was outrighted to Triple-A. On October 3, 2019, Rusin elected free agency.

Atlanta Braves

On January 18, 2020, Rusin signed a minor league deal with the

. Rusin started 2020 in major league spring training. However, the completion of spring training and start of the regular season was delayed by the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identified ...

. On June 29, Rusin was included among the Braves‘ pool of 60 players eligible to play in 2020. On August 1, Rusin’s contract was selected to the 40-man roster. Three days later, Rusin was designated for assignment, then outrighted on August 6. The Braves released Rusin on September 5.

Colorado Rockies (second stint)

On April 12, 2021, Rusin signed a minor league contract with the

organization. Rusin made 30 appearances in 2021 for Triple-A Albuquerque, struggling to a 10.41 ERA with only 23 strikeouts. On August 26, 2021, Rusin was released by the Rockies.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Rusin, Chris Living people 1986 births Baseball players from Detroit Major League Baseball pitchers Chicago Cubs players Colorado Rockies players Atlanta Braves players Kentucky Wildcats baseball players Arizona League Cubs players Boise Hawks players Daytona Cubs players Tennessee Smokies players Iowa Cubs players Leones del Escogido players American expatriate baseball players in the Dominican Republic Hartford Yard Goats players Albuquerque Isotopes players