Garrett Richards
Garrett Thomas Richards (born May 27, 1988) is an American professional baseball pitcher who is currently a free agent. He has previously played in MLB for the Los Angeles Angels, San Diego Padres, Boston Red Sox and Texas Rangers. Amateur career Richards attended Edmond Memorial High School in Edmond, Oklahoma, where he was a four-year letterwinner. His best season was in 2005, where he pitched to a 8–5 win–loss record with a 2.97 earned run average (ERA) and 106 strikeouts. The team won regional championships in 2005 and 2006. Undrafted out of high school, Richards attended the University of Oklahoma and played college baseball for the Oklahoma Sooners. In 2007, his freshman year, he recorded nine saves, the fourth most in team history. That summer, he played with the Cotuit Kettleers of the Cape Cod Baseball League. In 2008, he made his first career collegiate start. He played the summer with the Mat-Su Miners of the Alaska Baseball League. As a full-time starter in 200 ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Pitcher
In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throws ("pitches") the baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of retiring a batter, who attempts to either make contact with the pitched ball or draw a walk. In the numbering system used to record defensive plays, the pitcher is assigned the number 1. The pitcher is often considered the most important player on the defensive side of the game, and as such is situated at the right end of the defensive spectrum. There are many different types of pitchers, such as the starting pitcher, relief pitcher, middle reliever, lefty specialist, setup man, and the closer. Traditionally, the pitcher also bats. Starting in 1973 with the American League(and later the National League) and spreading to further leagues throughout the 1980s and 1990s, the hitting duties of the pitcher have generally been given over to the position of designated hitter, a cause of some controversy. The Japanese Central Le ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Draft (sports)
A draft is a process used in some countries (especially in North America) and sports (especially in closed leagues) to allocate certain players to teams. In a draft, teams take turns selecting from a pool of eligible players. When a team selects a player, the team receives exclusive rights to sign that player to a contract, and no other team in the league may sign the player. The process is similar to round-robin item allocation. The best-known type of draft is the entry draft, which is used to allocate players who have recently become eligible to play in a league. Depending on the sport, the players may come from college, high school or junior teams, or teams in other countries. An entry draft is intended to prevent expensive bidding wars for young talent and to ensure that no team can sign contracts with all of the best young players and make the league uncompetitive. To encourage parity, teams that do poorly in the previous season usually get to choose first in the postseas ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Midwest League
The Midwest League is a Minor League Baseball league established in 1947 and based in the Midwestern United States. A Class A league for most of its history, the league was promoted to High-A as part of Major League Baseball's 2021 reorganization of the minor leagues. The Midwest League began as the Illinois State League (1947–1948) and then became the Mississippi–Ohio Valley League (1949–1955). In 1956, the Mississippi–Ohio Valley League was renamed the Midwest League. The circuit temporarily operated for the 2021 season as the High-A Central before reassuming its original moniker in 2022. The Lansing Lugnuts and Wisconsin Timber Rattlers franchises jointly have won the most Midwest League championships, with nine each. History The Midwest League directly evolved from two earlier leagues in the region. In 1947, the Class D Illinois State League (ISL) began operation with six Illinois teams: the Belleville Stags, Centralia Cubs, Marion Indians, Mattoon Indians, ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Cedar Rapids Kernels
The Cedar Rapids Kernels are Minor League Baseball team of the Midwest League and the High-A affiliate of the Minnesota Twins. They are located in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, and play their home games at Veterans Memorial Stadium. The Kernels are owned by Cedar Rapids Ball Club, Inc. (also known as Cedar Rapids Baseball Club, Inc.). Cedar Rapids baseball history Cedar Rapids first began play in 1890 and have played 110 seasons through 2015. The franchise has been a member of various leagues preceding the Midwest League. They have been a member of the Central Association (1949), Western League (1934–1937), Mississippi Valley League (1922–1932), Central Association (1913–1917), Illinois–Indiana–Iowa League (1901–1909, 1920–1921, 1938–1942, 1950–1961), Western Association (1896–1899), Eastern Iowa League (1895) and the Illinois–Iowa League (1890–1891). The team also had numerous nicknames prior to joining the Midwest League: Cedar Rapids Braves (1958–1962), Cedar ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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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 of the Owlz on the campus of Utah Valley University. They were previously known as the Provo Angels from 2001 to 2004. In conjunction with a contraction of Minor League Baseball in 2021, the Pioneer League, of which the Owlz had been members since 2001, was converted from an MLB-affiliated Rookie Advanced league to an independent baseball league and granted status as an MLB Partner League. Concurrent to this change, the Owlz relocated to Windsor, Colorado, and became the Northern Colorado Owlz. History Formerly known as the Provo Angels (2001–2004), the team originally played at the Larry H. Miller Field on the campus of Brigham Young University in northeastern Provo. After the 2004 season, the team changed ownership and moved from ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Signing Bonus
A signing bonus or sign-on bonus is a sum of money paid to a new employee (including a professional sports person) by a company as an incentive to join that company. They are often given as a way of making a compensation package more attractive to the employee (e.g., if the annual salary is lower than they desire). It also lowers the risk to the company as it is a one-time payment; for example, if the employee does not meet expectations, the company has not committed to a higher salary. Signing bonuses are often used in professional sports, and to recruit graduates into their first jobs. To encourage employees to stay at the organization, there are often clauses in the contract whereby if the employee quits before a specified period, they must return the signing bonus. In sports contracts, the full amount of signing bonuses is not always paid immediately, but spread out over time. In such cases, the main difference between a signing bonus and base salary is that the former is " ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Los Angeles Angels Of Anaheim
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 has played its home games at Angel Stadium in Anaheim, California. The franchise was founded in Los Angeles in 1961 by Gene Autry as one of MLB's first two expansion teams and the first to originate in California. Deriving its name from an earlier Los Angeles Angels franchise that played in the Pacific Coast League (PCL), the team was based in Los Angeles until moving to Anaheim in 1966. Due to the move, the franchise was known as the California Angels from 1965 to 1996 and the Anaheim Angels from 1997 to 2004. "Los Angeles" was added back to the name in 2005, but because of a lease agreement with Anaheim that required the city to also be in the name, the franchise was known as the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim until 2015. The current Lo ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Alaska Baseball League
The Alaska Baseball League (ABL) is an amateur collegiate summer baseball league. Players in the league must have attended one year of college and must have one year of NCAA eligibility remaining. The Midnight Sun Game, held at Growden Memorial Park in Fairbanks on the longest day of each year, is one of the highlights of the Alaska Baseball League season. In the past, the ABL has sent its top teams to compete at the National Baseball Congress (NBC) World Series, where the league's representatives have won multiple championships. Anchorage has won in 1969, 1971, 1986, 1991, and 2001, Fairbanks in 1972, 1973, 1974, 1976, 1980, and 2002, Kenai in 1977, 1993, and 1994, and Matsu in 1987 and 1997. League teams have also finished second in several years. Current teams *Anchorage Bucs – Mulcahy Stadium, Anchorage *Anchorage Glacier Pilots – Mulcahy Stadium, Anchorage * Chugiak-Eagle River Chinooks – Loretta French Park, Chugiak (Note: they were previously the Athletes in Act ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Mat-Su Miners
The Mat-Su Miners are a college summer baseball club in the Alaska Baseball League (ABL). The Miners are based in Palmer, Alaska, and their name refers to the Matanuska-Susitna Borough where Palmer is located. The team was founded in 1976 and play their home games at Hermon Brothers Field. The franchise began play as the fourth Alaska-based team of the ABL along with the Fairbanks Goldpanners, Anchorage Glacier Pilots and the Peninsula Oilers for the 1976 season. Originally called the Valley Green Giants, the team would finish the inaugural season in last place. By the 1980 season the franchise would change its name to the Mat-Su Miners which it has been known as ever since. The franchise has won two National Baseball Congress championships for the 1987 and 1997 seasons. [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Cape Cod Baseball League
The Cape Cod Baseball League (CCBL or Cape League) is a collegiate summer baseball wooden bat league located on Cape Cod in the U.S. state of Massachusetts. One of the nation's premier collegiate summer leagues, the league boasts over one thousand former players who have gone on to play in the major leagues. History Pre-modern era Origins As early as the 1860s, baseball teams representing various Cape Cod towns and villages were competing against one another. The earliest newspaper account is of an 1867 game in Sandwich between the hometown "Nichols Club" and the visiting Cummaquid team. Though not formalized as a league, the games provided entertainment for residents and summer visitors. In 1885, a Fourth of July baseball game was held matching teams from Barnstable and Sandwich. According to contemporary accounts, the 1885 contest may have been at least the twelfth such annual game. By the late 19th century, an annual championship baseball tournament was being held each ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Cotuit Kettleers
The Cotuit Kettleers are a collegiate summer baseball team based in the village of Cotuit, Massachusetts, which is in the southwest corner of the town of Barnstable. The team is a member of the Cape Cod Baseball League (CCBL) and plays in the league's West Division. The Kettleers play their home games at Lowell Park in Cotuit. The team has been owned and operated by the non-profit Cotuit Athletic Association since 1947. The Kettleers most recently won the CCBL championship in 2019 when they defeated the Harwich Mariners two games to none to win the best of three championship series. The title was the team's seventeenth overall, including two separate strings of four consecutive titles (1961–64 and 1972–75). Cotuit's record of fifteen titles in the modern era (1963–present) and seventeen overall is unmatched among CCBL franchises. The team has been led since 2004 by field manager Mike Roberts. History Pre-modern era Origins of baseball in Cotuit Baseball in the village ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |