Michael James Wuertz (born December 15, 1978) is an American former professional

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding ...

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 ...

. 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 (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 ...

and

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 ...

. He was known for his

slider Slider or Sliders may refer to: Arts * K.K. Slider, a fictional character within the ''Animal Crossing'' franchise * ''The Slider'', a 1972 album by T. Rex * ''Sliders'' (TV series), an American science fiction and fantasy television series * S ...

, which generated the most misses per swing in 2009. He is currently the pitching coach for the

Los Angeles Angels The Los Angeles Angels are an American professional baseball team based in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. The Angels compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West division. Since 1966, the team ha ...

minor league affiliates.

Baseball career

Chicago Cubs

Wuertz was drafted by the

in the 11th round of the

1997 Major League Baseball Draft The 1997 First-Year Player Draft, Major League Baseball's annual amateur draft of high school and college baseball players, was held on June 2 and 3, 1997. A total of 1607 players were drafted over the course of 92 rounds. First round selections ...

. He made his major league debut on April 5, 2004, against 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 ...

, throwing a perfect inning with two strikeouts. He ended the season with a record of 1-0 in 31 appearances. The following season, Wuertz opened the season in the Cubs bullpen and set a Cubs rookie record for games pitched with 75. In 2006, Wuertz spent part of the season on the disabled list, limited to 41 appearances. In 2007, Wuertz went 2-3 with an ERA of 3.48 in 73 appearances. In 2008, his last season with the Cubs, he was limited to 45 games due to injury.

Oakland Athletics

On February 2, 2009, Wuertz was traded to the Oakland Athletics for minor leaguers Richie Robnett and

Justin Sellers Justin Ryan Sellers (born February 1, 1986) is an American former professional baseball infielder. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Los Angeles Dodgers and Cleveland Indians. Primarily a shortstop, Sellers also played secon ...

. In his first season with Oakland, he had the best season of his career, going 6-1 with 102 strikeouts in innings. The following two seasons he was not able to replicate his success due to injury and inconsistency. He was released on October 25, 2011, after three seasons in Oakland.

Cincinnati Reds

Wuertz was signed by the Cincinnati Reds to a minor league deal on May 2, 2012. He was released on July 5.

Miami Marlins

Wuertz was signed by the

Miami Marlins The Miami Marlins are an American professional baseball team based in Miami. The Marlins compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) East division. The club's home ballpark is LoanDepot Park. The fra ...

to a minor league deal on January 15, 2013. He was released on March 8.

Coaching career

In January 2016, he was named the pitching coach for the

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 ...

, the

Class-A affiliate in the California League. In February 2018, he was named the pitching coach for the

Orem Owlz The Orem Owlz were a Minor League Baseball team located in Orem, Utah, United States, from 2001 to 2020. The team competed in the Pioneer League as a Rookie League affiliate of the Los Angeles Angels. The Owlz played their home games at Home o ...

, a

Rookie League affiliate in the Pioneer League. In 2021, he was named the pitching coach for the Rocket City Trash Pandas, the Double-A affiliate of the Los Angeles Angels.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Wuertz, Michael 1978 births Living people People from Austin, Minnesota Baseball coaches from Minnesota Baseball players from Minnesota Major League Baseball pitchers Chicago Cubs players Oakland Athletics players Williamsport Cubs players Lansing Lugnuts players Daytona Cubs players West Tennessee Diamond Jaxx players Iowa Cubs players Stockton Ports players Sacramento River Cats players York Revolution players Minor league baseball coaches