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Template:Infobox MLB player

Bartolo Colon

A photo of Bartolo Colon.

Bartolo Colón (born May 24, 1973 in Altamira, Dominican Republic) is a Major League Baseball starting pitcher who is currently a free agent. He won the American League Cy Young Award with the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim in 2005.

Biography[]

A prospect from the Dominican Republic, Colón was signed by the Cleveland Indians as a free agent in 1993[1] and made his major league debut at the Anaheim Angels on April 4, 1997, receiving a no decision[2].

Minor Leagues[]

In 1995, pitching for Kinston of the Class-A Carolina League, he finished second in wins with 13 and ERA with 1.96, and led the circuit with 152 strikeouts. He was named the league’s Pitcher of the Year, despite shutting down on August 1 with a bruised elbow.

Played AAA ball with the Buffalo Bisons and is the only player to ever throw a no hitter in Dunn Tire Park history.

Major Leagues[]

In his first season 1997, Colón went 4-7 with a 5.65 ERA. In his 1999 season, one year after helping his Indians to the 1998 American League Championship Series, Colón finished 18-5, pitching over 200 innings with 161 strikeouts and a 3.95 ERA.

In 2000, Colón eclipsed his strikeouts number by 51, ending with 212. He also posted a career-high 98 walks. 2002 was his best season to date, but it came in Cleveland and Montreal. Just prior to the 2002 trade deadline, Colón and Tim Drew were traded to the Montreal Expos in exchange for Lee Stevens, Brandon Phillips, and prospects Grady Sizemore and Cliff Lee. Colón finished 2002 with a combined 20-8 record and a 2.93 ERA, including 76 earned runs with 70 walks in 233.1 innings, three shutouts, and eight complete games. Bartolo Colon is the last major league pitcher to win 20 games in one season while splitting the season between both leagues. The previous pitcher to turn the trick was Rick Sutcliffe in {{1984]].

After that season, every team in the league attempted to acquire him, but only a few were willing to bid high enough to obtain him. Before the 2003 season, Colón was traded to the Chicago White Sox as part of a three-team deal, including the New York Yankees. He finished 2003 with a 15-13 record. A free agent after the season, he signed with the Anaheim Angels. Colón won 18 games with Anaheim in 2004.
During the 2005 season, he went 21-8 with a 3.48 ERA, and became the first Angels pitcher to win the Cy Young Award since Dean Chance in 1964.[3] Due to a partially torn rotator cuff that he received in a playoff game against the Yankees in 2005, Colón spent much of the 2006 season on the DL with soreness or inflammation in his right shoulder. In 10 starts, Colón went 1-5 with a 5.11 ERA.

On April 21, 2007, his first start of the 2007 season following his return from the DL, Colon pitched 7 innings, allowing one run on seven hits for his first win in 2007.

On February 25, 2008 Colón signed a minor league deal with the Boston Red Sox and was invited to spring training.[4] On May 21, Colón's contract was purchased by the Red Sox, and he was added to the active roster. Colón pitched his first major league game for the Red Sox on May 21, 2008 against the Kansas City Royals.

Highlights[]

  • Pitched no-hitter in 1997 as a member of the Triple-A Buffalo Bisons.
  • 2005 AL Cy Young Award winner.
  • On May 15, 2008, Colón threw a 1 hitter for the Red Sox' AAA minor league team, the Pawtucket Red Sox.
  • Two-time All-Star (1998, 2005).
  • Won his only start of the 1998 American League Championship Series, pitching a four-hit, one-run complete game.
  • Has pitched 31 complete games, ranking 16th among active players as of the end of 2006.[5]

See also[]

Notes[]

  1. "Colon's bio at mlb.com", mlb.com. Retrieved on 2007-03-20.
  2. "1997 news for Colon at mlb.com", mlb.com. Retrieved on 2007-03-20.
  3. "Colon wins American League Cy Young Award", ESPN.com, 2005-11-09. Retrieved on 2007-01-06.
  4. Red Sox sign former Cy winner Colon
  5. "active CG list", baseball-reference.com. Retrieved on 2007-03-20.

External links[]

Preceded by:
Hideki Irabu
Derek Lowe
Barry Zito
American League Pitcher of the Month
June 1998
May 2002
August 2005
Succeeded by:
David Cone
Mark Mulder
José Contreras
Preceded by:
Curt Schilling
American League Wins Champion
2005
Succeeded by:
Johan Santana & Chien-Ming Wang
Preceded by:
Johan Santana
American League Cy Young Award
2005
Succeeded by:
Johan Santana
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