Ryan Scott Wagner (born July 15, 1982) is an American former professional baseball relief pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for 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 ...

and the Washington Nationals. Wagner was an All-American closer for the University of Houston.

Early life

Wagner played college baseball with the

Houston Cougars The Houston Cougars are the athletic teams representing the University of Houston. Informally, the Houston Cougars have also been referred to as the Coogs, UH, or simply Houston. Houston's nickname was suggested by early physical education instr ...

in 2002 and 2003. In his second year there, Wagner set a school record by recording 15 saves and he had 148

strikeout In baseball or softball, a strikeout (or strike-out) occurs when a batter accumulates three strikes during a time at bat. It usually means that the batter is out. A strikeout is a statistic recorded for both pitchers and batters, and is deno ...

s in innings pitched. His ratio of 16.8 strikeouts per nine innings broke an NCAA Division I record that was almost 40 years old. He was named a First-Team All-American by several organizations. Shortly before the 2003 Major League Baseball draft, ''

Baseball America ''Baseball America'' is a sports enterprise that covers baseball at every level, including MLB, with a particular focus on up-and-coming players in the MiLB, college, high school, and international leagues. It is currently published in the form o ...

'' said that Wagner should be a mid-first-round draft choice, having passed a player named Brad Sullivan as the most in-demand pitcher on the University of Houston staff. The publication said that Wagner had "the most unhittable slider in the draft" as his primary pitch, but it noted that Wagner's delivery made some scouts worry about the risk of an arm injury. Wagner was selected in the first round (14th overall) by the Reds in the 2003 draft.

Career

When Wagner debuted with the Cincinnati Reds in 2003, he was the first player from that year's draft to make the major leagues. He appeared in 108 games over the next 2+ seasons. In , Wagner was back in the minors when the Reds included him in an 8-player trade that sent Austin Kearns and Felipe López to the Washington Nationals in exchange for

Gary Majewski Gary Wayne Majewski (; born February 26, 1980) is an American former professional baseball pitcher. He played for the Montreal Expos, Washington Nationals, Cincinnati Reds, and Houston Astros of Major League Baseball (MLB). Career Majewski gradua ...

, Royce Clayton,

Bill Bray William Paul Bray (born June 5, 1983) is an American former professional baseball pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Washington Nationals and Cincinnati Reds. Amateur career A native of Virginia Beach, Virginia, Bray atte ...

Brendan Harris Brendan Michael Harris (born August 26, 1980) is an American retired professional baseball infielder. He played in Major League Baseball for the Chicago Cubs, Montreal Expos/Washington Nationals, Cincinnati Reds, Tampa Bay Devil Rays, Minnesota T ...

, and

Daryl Thompson Daryl Marcelus Thompson (born November 2, 1985) is an American professional baseball pitcher and pitching coach for the Southern Maryland Blue Crabs of the Atlantic League of Professional Baseball. He played in Major League Baseball with the Cinc ...

. Wagner appeared in 14 games for Washington in before going on the

disabled list In Major League Baseball (MLB), the injured list (IL) is a method for teams to remove their injured players from the roster in order to summon healthy players. Before the 2019 season, it was known as the disabled list (DL). General guidelines ...

. He missed the remainder of the 2007 season after having surgery to repair a torn labrum in his right shoulder. Wagner, along with

Pete Orr Peterson Thomas "Pete" Orr (born June 8, 1979) is a Canadian former professional baseball infielder. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Atlanta Braves, Washington Nationals and Philadelphia Phillies. Amateur career High school Orr ...

and

Chad Cordero Chad Patrick Cordero (born March 18, 1982) is an American former professional baseball pitcher. Cordero played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Montreal Expos / Washington Nationals and Seattle Mariners. He currently serves as the bullpen co ...

, rejected his assignment to Triple-A, becoming a free agent on October 30, 2008. Shortly thereafter, Wagner re-signed with Washington. Wagner announced his retirement from baseball on May 18, 2009.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Wagner, Ryan 1982 births Living people People from Yoakum, Texas Baseball players from Texas Major League Baseball pitchers Cincinnati Reds players Washington Nationals players Houston Cougars baseball players All-American college baseball players Chattanooga Lookouts players Louisville Bats players New Orleans Zephyrs players Potomac Nationals players Columbus Clippers players Syracuse Chiefs players