| Pat Hentgen | |||
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| Toronto Blue Jays | |||
| Pitcher | |||
| Born: November 13, 1968 Detroit, Michigan |
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| MLB debut | |||
| September 3, 1991, for the Toronto Blue Jays | |||
| Last MLB appearance | |||
| July 21, 2004, for the Toronto Blue Jays | |||
| MLB statistics | |||
| Win–loss record | 131–112 | ||
| Earned run average | 4.32 | ||
| Strikeouts | 1,290 | ||
| Teams | |||
| Career highlights and awards | |||
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Patrick George Hentgen (born November 13, 1968 in Detroit, Michigan) is a former Major League Baseball player. Hentgen was a right-handed starting pitcher in the major leagues and a Cy Young Award winner in 1996. Hentgen is currently working in the Toronto Blue Jays' organization.
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Career[edit]
Hentgen was offered a baseball scholarship to Western Michigan University, but signed with the Toronto Blue Jays instead after being drafted in the 5th round of the 1986 free agent draft. He made his debut in 1991 and played a large part in their World Series championship in 1993, winning 19 games in the regular season. His best year, however, came in 1996 when he went 20–10 with a 3.22 ERA and 177 strikeouts to win the American League Cy Young Award, barely beating New York Yankees pitcher Andy Pettitte. Hentgen was an American League All-Star in 1993, 1994, and 1997.
Hentgen was traded to the St. Louis Cardinals in 1999 and played for the Baltimore Orioles from 2001 to 2003. He had Tommy John surgery in 2001.
On November 18, 2003, Hentgen returned to the Blue Jays on a one-year free agent deal worth $2.2 million. However, he was unable to regain the consistency that had made him successful in the mid-90s, and on July 24, 2004, Hentgen announced his retirement from baseball. His last game was earlier in the week vs. the Yankees, where he surrendered Gary Sheffield's 400th career home run.
The right-hander left with his name all over the Blue Jays' team record book, ranking in the top five in wins (107), starts (238), innings pitched (1,636) and winning percentage (.557). Overall, the three-time All-Star spent 14 seasons in the majors, going 131–112 with 34 complete games, 1,290 strikeouts and a 4.32 ERA.
Pitching style[edit]
Hentgen was noted for his success in challenging hitters directly, mostly throwing his fastball for strikes to get ahead early in the count. This would set up his curveball or high fastball to strike out the batter.
Coaching career[edit]
Hentgen rejoined the Toronto Blue Jays under new manager John Farrell as their new bullpen coach for the 2011 season.[1] It was Hentgen's first coaching assignment. He stepped down in November 2011 due to family reasons, and was given the title of Special Assistant to the Organization.[2] On December 10, 2012, Hentgen was again appointed as the Blue Jays bullpen coach.[3]
On January 4, 2014, the Blue Jays announced that Bob Stanley would be replacing Hentgen as their bullpen coach. Hentgen will continue in the Blue Jays' organization in an as-yet unannounced position.[4]
Career statistics[edit]
| W | L | PCT | ERA | G | GS | CG | SHO | SV | IP | H | ER | R | HR | BB | SO | WP | HBP |
| 131 | 112 | .539 | 4.32 | 344 | 306 | 34 | 10 | 1 | 2075.1 | 2111 | 996 | 1076 | 269 | 775 | 1290 | 66 | 49 |
References[edit]
- ^ http://www.mlb.com/news/press_releases/press_release.jsp?ymd=20101108&content_id=16032060&vkey=pr_tor&fext=.jsp&c_id=tor&tcid-tor-tw-coaching-release-110810
- ^ https://twitter.com/#!/BlueJays
- ^ http://toronto.bluejays.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20121210&content_id=40594580&vkey=pr_tor&c_id=tor
- ^ "Coaching changes". Toronto Blue Jays. January 4, 2014. Retrieved January 4, 2014.
External links[edit]
- Career statistics and player information from ESPN, or Baseball-Reference, or The Baseball Cube
- ESPN Profile
- Archived Blue Jay Way Interview
| Preceded by Randy Johnson |
American League Cy Young Award 1996 |
Succeeded by Roger Clemens |
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