Kenneth Luke Prokopec (born 23 February 1978) is an Australian-born, right-handed pitcher who played in Major League Baseball for the Los Angeles Dodgers and Toronto Blue Jays. While with the Dodgers in 2000 and 2001, the tandem of Prokopec and fellow Australian Jeff Williams gained considerable popularity in the Los Angeles area. However, the attention was short lived, as both moved on to other franchises. Prokopec was traded to Toronto on 13 December 2001 with

Chad Ricketts Chad (; ar, تشاد , ; french: Tchad, ), officially the Republic of Chad, '; ) is a landlocked country at the crossroads of North and Central Africa. It is bordered by Libya to the north, Sudan to the east, the Central African Republic ...

in exchange for César Izturis and Paul Quantrill. Prokopec's 2002 tenure with the Toronto Blue Jays was unsuccessful, as he went 2-9 and sustained a labral tear injury late in the season. In short order, the Blue Jays granted Prokopec free agency in October 2002. The Los Angeles Dodgers then signed him that November, but kept him off their 40-man roster, and the

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 ...

subsequently claimed Prokopec from Los Angeles in the Rule 5 Draft in December. However, Prokopec would never throw another pitch (in either the majors or the minors) for any organization—further labral problems occurred, forcing Prokopec's early retirement from professional baseball at the age of 24. Prokopec returned to Australia, and in 2013 was a baseball instructor for the Queensland Academy of Sport in Brisbane.

Pitching style

Prokopec threw an 88–96 MPH four-seam fastball, an 82–86 MPH slider, an 81–83 MPH changeup, and a 75–77 MPH

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 curve ...

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1978 births Australian expatriate baseball players in Canada Australian expatriate baseball players in the United States Living people Major League Baseball players from Australia Major League Baseball pitchers Los Angeles Dodgers players Toronto Blue Jays players Great Falls Dodgers players Savannah Sand Gnats players San Antonio Missions players San Bernardino Stampede players Las Vegas 51s players Syracuse SkyChiefs players Sportspeople from Adelaide Sportsmen from South Australia {{Australia-baseball-bio-stub