Jamie Moyer

Jamie Moyer (born November 18, 1962) is an American former professional baseball pitcher. Over his 25-year career in Major League Baseball (MLB), Moyer pitched for the Chicago Cubs, Texas Rangers, St. Louis Cardinals, Baltimore Orioles, Boston Red Sox, Seattle Mariners, Philadelphia Phillies, and Colorado Rockies.

At the time of his final game, he was the oldest player in the major leagues and had the most wins, losses, and strikeouts of any active MLB pitcher. He was likened to Phil Niekro due to his long career and relatively old age upon retirement. On April 17, 2012, Moyer became the oldest pitcher in MLB history to win a game. On May 16, 2012, he broke his own winning-pitcher record and also set the record for the oldest MLB player to record a run batted in (RBI). He also holds the major league record for most home runs allowed with 522.

Moyer made the All-Star team in 2003, while with the Mariners. Moyer has received numerous awards for philanthropy and community service, including the 2003 Roberto Clemente Award, the 2003 Lou Gehrig Memorial Award, the 2003 Hutch Award, and the 2004 Branch Rickey Award. Moyer is one of 31 players in baseball history to date to have appeared in MLB games in four decades. At the time of his retirement, Moyer had faced 8.9% of all MLB hitters ever. He was inducted into the Mariners Hall of Fame in 2015.

Amateur career

Moyer attended Souderton Area High School in Souderton, Pennsylvania, where he played baseball, basketball, and golf. In his junior year of baseball, he had a 10–0 win–loss record and threw three consecutive no-hitters.

Moyer enrolled at Saint Joseph's University and played college baseball for the Saint Joseph's Hawks baseball team. In 1984, he set the school's single-season records in wins, with 16, earned run average (ERA), with 1.99, and strikeouts, with 90. In 1997, he was one of three inductees into the first class of the St. Joseph's Baseball Hall of Fame. In 2018, he became the only Saint Joseph's baseball player to have his jersey number, number 10, retired.

Professional career

Chicago Cubs (1986–1988)

The Chicago Cubs selected Moyer in the sixth round of the 1984 amateur draft. Moyer was selected a New York–Penn League All-Star in 1984. He made his major league debut with the Cubs on June 16, 1986, against Steve Carlton and the Philadelphia Phillies, and earned his first win. On August 16, he threw his first shutout against the Montreal Expos. He was also the starting pitcher for the Cubs on the day that Greg Maddux made his major league debut.

In 1987, Moyer ranked tenth in the National League in strikeouts with 147, while winning 12 games and losing 15. He also lost 15 games in 1988 against only nine wins. Despite his poor record, Moyer lowered his ERA to 3.48 (it had been 5.10 in 1987), and while he struck out fewer batters than he had in the previous year, he decreased his walk rate significantly, giving only 55 batters a base on balls as opposed to 97 in the previous year.

Texas Rangers (1989–1990)

Following his then-best season in 1988, the Cubs traded Moyer, Rafael Palmeiro, and Drew Hall to the Texas Rangers for Mitch Williams, Paul Kilgus, Curtis Wilkerson, Steve Wilson, Luis Benitez, and Pablo Delgado.

Moyer was on the disabled list with a sore left shoulder for much of a disappointing 1989 season. In 1990, Moyer spent time in the bullpen before regaining a spot in the starting rotation.

St. Louis Cardinals (1991)

Moyer was released as a free agent after the 1990 season and was signed by the St. Louis Cardinals. He made seven starts for the Cardinals in 1991 before being sent to the minor leagues on May 24. He was released on October 14.

Chicago Cubs/Detroit Tigers (1992)

In 1992, Moyer attended spring training with the Chicago Cubs, but was released and spent the rest of the season in the minor league system of the Detroit Tigers.

Baltimore Orioles (1993–1995)

On December 18, 1992, Moyer signed with the Baltimore Orioles.

Moyer began the 1993 season in the Oriole minor leagues before being called up on May 30. He tied his career-high total in wins with 12 and set a new career-low ERA of 3.43. The strike-shortened 1994 season saw his ERA rise to 4.77, but he was third on the Orioles' staff in innings pitched. In 1995, Moyer again found himself in the Baltimore bullpen, but worked his way back into the starting rotation.

Boston Red Sox (1996)

Moyer was signed by the Boston Red Sox on January 2, 1996. Moyer appeared in 23 games for Boston, making 10 starts.

Seattle Mariners (1996–2006)

1996–1999

In the middle of the 1996 season, Moyer was traded by the Red Sox to the Seattle Mariners on July 30, for outfielder Darren Bragg. In Seattle, he started 11 games and went 6–2. Moyer's record of 13–3 across both teams led the majors in winning percentage at .813.

In 1997, Moyer was fifth in the American League with 17 wins. His 17–5 record gave him the second-highest winning percentage (.773) in the league. In the Division Series, Moyer made his first postseason start against his former club Baltimore, but was forced out with a strained elbow in the fifth inning. Moyer took the loss in Game 2 and the Orioles won the series in four games.

In 1998, Moyer went 15–9 with a 3.53 ERA. He accumulated 158 strikeouts, the highest total of his career. Moyer was fourth in the American League in innings pitched with 234.1. He registered his 100th career win against the Cleveland Indians on August 27, as well as his 1000th career strikeout with a sixth inning strikeout of David Bell. Moyer was named Seattle's Pitcher of the Year by the Seattle chapter of the BBWAA.

Moyer walked two or fewer batters in 29 of his 32 starts. He ranked third in the American League with 1.6 walks per nine innings, and his ERA was the seventh-best in the league. Moyer's three shutouts were tied for fourth in the majors, and he was fifth in the American League in wins above replacement (WAR) for pitchers, per Baseball Reference.

In 1999, Moyer went 14–8 with a 3.87 ERA and was voted to ''The Sporting News'' AL All-Star team. He again won the Seattle Pitcher of the Year award.

Moyer matched his career-best seven-game winning streak from May 11 to July 7. He started the Inaugural Game at Safeco Field on July 15 against the San Diego Padres, throwing a called strike to San Diego's Quilvio Veras for the first pitch and getting a no-decision in Seattle's 3–2 loss after leaving with a 2–1 lead after eight innings. Moyer defeated Baltimore for the ninth straight time on July 31; he did not lose to the Orioles in the 1990s. Moyer's only loss at Safeco came on August 5 against the New York Yankees. He recorded three complete games in the final month of the season, tossing back-to-back complete games on September 14 and 19. His 2.30 ERA after the All-Star break was the second-lowest among AL starters, behind only Pedro Martínez with his 2.01 ERA. Moyer pitched four complete games for the second straight season, tying his career best. Moyer accumulated 6.5 wins above replacement, third among American League pitchers. He was also sixth in the league in ERA and third in innings pitched.

2000–2001

In 2000, Moyer rebounded from an early shoulder injury to tally 13 wins, giving him at least 13 in each of his past five seasons. He made his first Opening Day start for Seattle, but lost to the Boston Red Sox 2–0 on April 4. His shoulder problems led his ERA to balloon to 5.49.

Moyer lost five consecutive starts from August 4–24. He allowed a career-high and a club-record 11 earned runs in a 19–3 loss on August 9 against the Chicago White Sox. He allowed 11 runs (six earned) in a 14–4 loss on August 14 against the Detroit Tigers, joining the Houston Astros' José Lima as the first two pitchers since 1950 to allow 10 or more runs in consecutive starts. Moyer allowed a career-high seven walks in a no-decision on August 29 against the Yankees. The Mariners' 7–2 win on September 9 against the Minnesota Twins snapped a six-game losing streak. Moyer lasted just one and two-thirds innings in his final start, getting a no-decision on September 28 against the Texas Rangers. Moyer suffered a hairline fracture of the left kneecap while pitching a simulated game on October 7. Moyer finished the 2000 season with a 13–10 record and a 5.49 ERA. That knee injury suffered on the last pitch of a simulated game caused him to miss Seattle's trip to the American League Championship Series against the eventual World Series champion New York Yankees.

Moyer bounced back in the Mariners' 116-win 2001 season. He earned 20 wins, ranked tied for second in the American League, and his 3.43 ERA was sixth in the AL. He earned his 150th career win, against the Texas Rangers on September 24. He became only the second Mariner in history to win 20 games on October 5, with former teammate Randy Johnson being the other. Moyer went 3–0 with a 1.89 ERA in the postseason. He won Games 2 and 5 for the Mariners against the Cleveland Indians in the ALDS. Moyer also won Game 3 against the New York Yankees in the ALCS. However, this would be Seattle's only victory in the series, as New York defeated them in five games to advance to their fourth consecutive World Series.

2002–2003

In 2002, Moyer went 13–8 with a then career low 3.32 ERA. Although he pitched 20 more innings and had a lower ERA than in 2001, he won seven fewer games.

Moyer was fourth in the AL in innings with 230.2. He was tied for second in the league with 34 starts, fifth in opponents' batting average, holding opposing hitters to a .230 clip, and ninth in ERA with 3.32. He tossed a team-high 24 consecutive scoreless innings from June 16 to July 6. He averaged just two walks per nine innings pitched, tied for sixth-best in the AL. The Mariners were 20–14 in his starts. His four complete games tied his career high set in 1998 and 1999. He threw the seventh complete game shutout of his career, and his first of the season, on June 10 against the St. Louis Cardinals in a 10–0 win. Moyer's start on June 16 against San Diego began a streak of 24 consecutive shutout innings over four starts. He finished June 3–1 with a Major League best 1.01 ERA in five starts. In four of those starts, Moyer pitched at least seven innings without allowing a run. He collected his 1,500th career strikeout August 24 against the Cleveland Indians.

In 2003, Moyer won a career high 21 games, lost 7, and had a career low 3.27 ERA. He tied for second in the American League for wins and was sixth in ERA. His .750 winning percentage placed him fourth in the league and his 21 wins are a club record. He became the only Seattle pitcher to win 20 games more than once. Moyer was voted to his first and only All-Star Game in 2003. He was named the Seattle Pitcher of the Year for the third time and was also the recipient of the Roberto Clemente Award, given annually to a player whose success on the field is mirrored by his impact in community service. Moyer also won the Hutch Award, presented annually by the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center to an MLB player displaying "honor, courage and dedication to baseball, both on and off the field" and The Lou Gehrig Award, presented annually to the MLB player who both on and off the field best exemplifies the character of Lou Gehrig.

2004–2006

In 2004, Moyer went 7–13 and posted his first losing record since 1994. His ERA was 5.21 and he surrendered an MLB-leading 44 home runs. While the year started well for him, going 5–0 with a 1.59 ERA from May 20 to June 18, Moyer ended 2004 on a 10-game losing streak. He threw the slowest fastball of all AL starters, averaging 81.6 mph. He was awarded the Branch Rickey Award for his exceptional community service following the season.

During the 2005 season, Moyer passed Randy Johnson to become the winningest pitcher for the Mariners on May 30. On July 8, Moyer became the 25th southpaw to win 200 games in Major League Baseball. He finished with a 13–7 record, and for the second year in a row he threw the slowest fastball of all major league starters, averaging 81.7 mph.

On June 18, 2006, he became the 33rd man to start 500 major league games. In his 11 seasons with the Mariners, Moyer had a record of 145–87 with a 3.97 ERA in 324 games (323 starts). He is the franchise leader in starts and innings pitched. He held the franchise record for wins until Félix Hernández earned his 146th Mariner win on May 9, 2016.

Moyer is also one of the all-time leaders in 1–0 complete game losses. Moyer has lost eight games having surrendered only one run over nine innings. Before being traded in August 2006, he was the oldest active American League player.

Philadelphia Phillies (2006–2010)

2006–2007

On August 19, 2006, Moyer was traded to the Philadelphia Phillies for minor league pitchers Andrew Barb and Andrew Baldwin. In his first start with the Phillies, Moyer set a franchise record as the oldest pitcher to record a win. In eight starts with the Phillies in 2006, Moyer went 5–2 with a 4.03 ERA. After the season, Moyer signed a two-year extension worth $10.5 million with the Phillies on October 23.

On April 12, 2007, at age 44 Moyer struck out his 2000th batter against the Mets. On April 29, Moyer pitched a two-hitter through 7 innings as he recorded a win against the Florida Marlins. On July 21, at age 44, Moyer combined with David Wells to set the record for the oldest match up of lefty starters (88 years, 307 days) in major league history. Moyer won the game and Wells lost; the oldest over the youngest by 183 days.

On the final day of the season, with the Phillies and Mets tied at the top of the division with 88 wins, Moyer defeated the Washington Nationals, pitching 5 innings and surrendering five hits and no earned runs, while Tom Glavine, who at the time was also one of the oldest players in the major leagues, was crushed by the Marlins at Shea Stadium

HOME


Content is Copyleft
Website design, code, and AI is Copyrighted (c) 2014-2017 by Stephen Payne


Consider donating to Wikimedia



As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases