Eric George O'Flaherty (born February 5, 1985) is an American 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 played 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 ...

(MLB) for 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 ...

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 (baseball), National League (NL) National League Eas ...

Oakland Athletics The Oakland Athletics (frequently referred to as the Oakland A's) were an American Major League Baseball (MLB) team based in Oakland, California from 1968 to 2024. The Athletics were a member club of the American League (AL) American League We ...

, and

New York Mets The New York Mets are an American professional baseball team based in the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of Queens. The Mets compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National ...

. O'Flaherty was the first reliever in MLB history to record an

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 number ...

below 1.00 with at least 70 appearances in a season, and was the first

in Mariners franchise history to begin his MLB career with seven consecutive wins.

Early career

O'Flaherty graduated from

Walla Walla High School Walla Walla High School (commonly Wa-Hi) is a public high school in Walla Walla, Washington that is the largest school in the Walla Walla Public School System. Located in Walla Walla East, the sprawling 60-acre campus features detached buildings ...

Walla Walla, Washington Walla Walla ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Walla Walla County, Washington, United States. It had a population of 34,060 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, estimated to have decreased to 33,339 as of 2023. The combined populat ...

. As a senior at Walla Walla High School, he had a 5–2

win–loss record Win–loss may refer to: * Win–loss analytics, analysis of the reasons why a visitor to a website was or wasn't persuaded to engage in a desired action * Win–loss record, also winning percentage * Win–loss record (pitching), the number of ...

, an

(ERA) of 1.99, and 83

strikeout In baseball or softball, a strikeout (or strike-out) occurs when a batter accumulates three strikes during a time at bat. It means the batter is out, unless the third strike is not caught by the catcher and the batter reaches first base safe ...

s. He earned Pitcher of the Year honors in the Big Nine Conference. The

selected O'Flaherty in the sixth round of the

2003 Major League Baseball Draft The 2003 Major League Baseball draft, was held on June 3 and 4. It was conducted via conference call with representatives from each of the league's 30 teams. ''Source:MLB.com 2003 Draft Tracker' First round selections Supplemental first r ...

. He was the 176th pick overall. He was the first player since

Drew Bledsoe Drew McQueen Bledsoe (born February 14, 1972) is an American former professional football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 14 seasons, primarily with the New England Patriots. He played college football for Washi ...

was drafted that went to

. As of 2022 he is currently an assistant baseball coach at

Professional career

Seattle Mariners

Minor leagues

O'Flaherty quickly made his way through the Mariners' minor league affiliate teams. He started 2006 with the Single-A

Inland Empire 66ers The Inland Empire 66ers of San Bernardino are a Minor League Baseball team of the California League and the Single-A affiliate of the Los Angeles Angels. The 66ers are based in San Bernardino, California, and play at San Manuel Stadium. Franchi ...

where he had a 3.45 ERA and struck out 33 batters in 16 relief appearances. On May 27, he moved to the Doulble-A

San Antonio Missions The San Antonio Missions are a Minor League Baseball team based in San Antonio, Texas. The Missions compete in the Texas League as the Double-A (baseball), Double-A affiliate of the San Diego Padres. The team plays its home games at Nelson W. W ...

where he had a record of 2–2 with an ERA of 1.14 and seven saves in 25 games. He moved again that same season to the Triple-A

Tacoma Rainiers The Tacoma Rainiers are a Minor League Baseball team of the Pacific Coast League (PCL) and the Triple-A (baseball), Triple-A affiliate of the Seattle Mariners. They are located in Tacoma, Washington, and play their home games at Cheney Stadium, ...

on August 9; he would stay with them until his August 16 appearance with the Mariners. His combined minor league record in 2006 was 3–3 with a 2.01 ERA, eight saves, and 73 strikeouts in 43 games.

Major leagues

O'Flaherty made his debut in the major leagues on August 16, 2006, against the

. He pitched 2/3 of an inning, faced 4 batters, allowed one

hit Hit means to strike someone or something. Hit or HIT may also refer to: Arts, entertainment and media Fictional entities * Hit, a fictional character from ''Dragon Ball Super'' * Homicide International Trust or HIT, a fictional organization i ...

, one

walk Walking (also known as ambulation) is one of the main gaits of terrestrial locomotion among legged animals. Walking is typically slower than running and other gaits. Walking is defined as an "inverted pendulum" gait in which the body vaults over ...

, and got his first

in the major leagues. On the same day of O'Flaherty's debut, the

Seattle Times ''The Seattle Times'' is an American daily newspaper based in Seattle, Washington. Founded in 1891, ''The Seattle Times'' has the largest circulation of any newspaper in the state of Washington and the Pacific Northwest region. The Seattle Time ...

reported that his "big-league visit was too short to qualify as a cup of coffee". The night before he had flown in from Triple-A

Tacoma Tacoma ( ) is the county seat of Pierce County, Washington, United States. A port city, it is situated along Washington's Puget Sound, southwest of Seattle, southwest of Bellevue, northeast of the state capital, Olympia, northwest of Mount ...

in order to replace a seemingly injured

Rafael Soriano Rafael Soriano (born December 19, 1979) is a Dominican former professional baseball pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Seattle Mariners, Atlanta Braves, Tampa Bay Rays, New York Yankees, Washington Nationals, and Chicago C ...

. When O'Flaherty arrived, Soriano convinced coaches he was healthy enough to remain on the Mariners' roster, so O'Flaherty was sidelined out of uniform for the rest of the night. The next day, however,

infielder An infielder is a baseball player stationed at one of four defensive "infield" positions on the baseball field, between first base and third base. Standard arrangement of positions In a game of baseball, two teams of nine players take turns pla ...

Greg Dobbs was returned to Triple-A, allowing O'Flaherty to pitch his first major league game. During his debut season in 2006, O'Flaherty faced some challenges: however, his pitching became more refined in the 2007 season and O'Flaherty quickly become a mainstay relief pitcher for the Mariners. Things went downhill for him in 2008. In 7 games for the Mariners, O'Flaherty gave up 15

earned run In baseball, an earned run is any run that was fully enabled by the offensive team's production in the face of competent play from the defensive team. Conversely, an unearned run is a run that would not have been scored without the aid of an erro ...

s for a 20.25 ERA and was optioned to the minors.

Atlanta Braves

On November 20, 2008, O'Flaherty was claimed off waivers by the

. On April 7, 2009, O'Flaherty made his Braves debut, pitching scoreless innings and allowing one hit. He spent the entire 2009 season on the active roster and finished the year with a 3.04

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 ...

, a 1.243 WHIP, and a 39-to-18 strikeout-to-walk ratio in innings. O'Flaherty was particularly effective against left-handed batters, who hit only .215 and posted a .270 on base average and a .290 slugging average off of him. O'Flaherty served as an important part of the Braves bullpen during the 2011 season where he pitched primarily during the 7th inning. Along with

Craig Kimbrel Craig Michael Kimbrel (born May 28, 1988) is an American professional baseball pitcher in the Texas Rangers organization. He has previously played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Atlanta Braves, San Diego Padres, Boston Red Sox, Chicago ...

and Jonny Venters, the three formed the back end of the Braves bullpen. As of August 21, 2011 the trio had three of the six lowest ERAs in the NL. In fact, O'Flaherty became the first pitcher ever to post a sub-1.00 ERA in 70 or more appearances. In January 2012, the Braves and O'Flaherty agreed on a 1-year deal worth $2.49 million, that nearly tripled O'Flaherty's previous salary of $895,000. O'Flaherty performed well in the 2012 season playing 64 games with a 3-0 and a 1.73 ERA. O'Flaherty was placed on the disabled list on May 18, 2013, due to a left elbow strain. An MRI revealed that there was a torn UCL in his left elbow. O'Flaherty underwent

Tommy John surgery Ulnar collateral ligament reconstruction, sometimes referred to as Tommy John surgery is a surgical graft procedure where the ulnar collateral ligament in the medial elbow is replaced with either a tendon from elsewhere in the patient's body, ...

on May 21, 2013, and was knocked out for the rest of the 2013 season.

Oakland Athletics

O'Flaherty signed a two-year contract with the

on January 22, 2014. In 2015, O'Flaherty spent time on the 15-day disabled list. He was activated from the DL on June 2. After struggling to a 5.91 ERA for the A's, O'Flaherty was

designated for assignment Designated for assignment (DFA) is a contractual term used in Major League Baseball (MLB). A player who is designated for assignment is immediately removed from the team's 40-man roster, after which the team must, within seven days, return the pla ...

on August 1.

New York Mets

The

acquired O'Flaherty and cash considerations for a

player to be named later In Major League Baseball, a player to be named later (PTBNL) is an unnamed player involved in exchange or "trade" of players between teams. The terms of a trade are not finalized until a later date, most often following the conclusion of the seaso ...

, minor league pitcher Darwin Frias, on August 4, 2015. He pitched in many relief appearances throughout the regular season, and made the postseason roster. He subsequently became a free agent.

Second stint with Braves

O'Flaherty signed a minor league deal with the

Pittsburgh Pirates The Pittsburgh Pirates are an American professional baseball team based in Pittsburgh. The Pirates compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League Central, Central ...

on February 11, 2016. On March 27, he was traded to the

. O'Flaherty pitched to a 6.91 ERA in 39 games, and spent two stints on the disabled list, the first time for a strained knee. He returned to the DL for on August 19 with neuritis, ending his season. The Braves resigned O'Flaherty to a minor league contract in December. He was released on July 21, 2017, to create room for

Anthony Recker Anthony Vito Recker (born August 29, 1983) is an American broadcaster and former professional baseball catcher and first baseman. He previously played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Oakland Athletics, Chicago Cubs, New York Mets, and Atla ...

who had his contract purchased.

Pitching style

O'Flaherty's main weapon was a sinker in the low 90s that he threw about half the time. He complemented the sinker with a

four-seam fastball A four-seam fastball, also called a rising fastball, a four-seamer, or a cross-seam fastball, is a pitch (baseball), pitch in baseball. It is a member of the fastball family of pitches and is usually the fastest ball thrown by a pitcher. It is s ...

, a slider in the mid 80s, and a changeup in the mid 80s. His pitch selection did not vary greatly between right-handed and left-handed hitters, although lefties tended to see fewer sinkers and more sliders. O'Flaherty often favored the slider when he was ahead in the count.

References

External links

O'Flaherty's Minor League stats
{{DEFAULTSORT:Oflaherty, Eric 1985 births Living people Baseball players from Seattle Sportspeople from Walla Walla, Washington Major League Baseball pitchers Seattle Mariners players Atlanta Braves players Oakland Athletics players New York Mets players Arizona League Mariners players Everett AquaSox players Wisconsin Timber Rattlers players Inland Empire 66ers players Tacoma Rainiers players San Antonio Missions players West Tennessee Diamond Jaxx players Gwinnett Braves players Stockton Ports players Sacramento River Cats players Nashville Sounds players Walla Walla High School alumni