Matthew Olson Guerrier (born August 2, 1978) is an American former

professional baseball Professional baseball is organized baseball in which players are selected for their talents and are paid to play for a specific team or club system. It is played in baseball league, leagues and associated farm teams throughout the world. Mod ...

relief pitcher In baseball and softball, a relief pitcher or reliever is a pitcher who enters the game after the starting pitcher is removed because of fatigue (medical), fatigue, ineffectiveness, injury, or ejection (sports), ejection, or for other strategic ...

. 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

Minnesota Twins The Minnesota Twins are an American professional baseball team based in Minneapolis. The Twins compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central Division. The team is named after the Twin Cities area w ...

Los Angeles Dodgers The Los Angeles Dodgers are an American professional baseball team based in Los Angeles. The Dodgers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Established in 1883 in the city of Brooklyn ...

and

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 located ...

Amateur career

A native of

Cleveland, Ohio Cleveland ( ), officially the City of Cleveland, is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County. Located in the northeastern part of the state, it is situated along the southern shore of Lake Erie, across the U.S. ...

, Guerrier attended

Shaker Heights High School Shaker Heights High School is a public high school located in Shaker Heights, Ohio, a suburb of Cleveland. The high school is the only public high school in the Shaker Heights City School District, which serves Shaker Heights and a small part of ...

. He was selected by the

Kansas City Royals The Kansas City Royals are an American professional baseball team based in Kansas City, Missouri. The Royals compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. The team was founded as an expans ...

in the 33rd round (979th overall) of the 1996 Major League Baseball draft, but did not sign, opting instead to play

college baseball College baseball is baseball that is played on the intercollegiate level at institutions of higher education. In comparison to football and basketball, college competition in the United States plays a smaller role in developing professional pl ...

Kent State University Kent State University (KSU) is a public research university in Kent, Ohio. The university also includes seven regional campuses in Northeast Ohio and additional facilities in the region and internationally. Regional campuses are located in As ...

. While at Kent State in 1997, he played

collegiate summer baseball Collegiate summer baseball leagues are amateur baseball leagues in the United States and Canada featuring players who have attended at least one year of college and have at least one year of athletic eligibility remaining. Generally, they operat ...

in the

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 thousan ...

for the Yarmouth-Dennis Red Sox.

Professional career

Chicago White Sox

Guerrier was drafted by the

Chicago White Sox The Chicago White Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The White Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. The team is owned by Jerry Reinsdorf, and p ...

in the 10th round (309th overall) of the

1999 MLB Draft The 1999 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, 1999. A total of 1474 players were drafted over the course of 50 rounds. First round selections ...

. He pitched in the White Sox minor league system through 2001, reaching Triple-A with the

Charlotte Knights The Charlotte Knights are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League and the Triple-A affiliate of the Chicago White Sox. They are located in Charlotte, North Carolina, and play their home games at Truist Field, which opened in 20 ...

Pittsburgh Pirates

On March 27, 2002, Guerrier was traded by the White Sox to the

Pittsburgh Pirates The Pittsburgh Pirates are an American professional baseball team based in Pittsburgh. The Pirates compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) Central division. Founded as part of the American Associati ...

for

Dámaso Marte Dámaso Marte Saviñón (born February 14, 1975) is a Dominican former professional baseball relief pitcher. He played for the Seattle Mariners (), Pittsburgh Pirates (, –), Chicago White Sox (–), and New York Yankees (–). Professional c ...

. He spent the next two seasons pitching in Triple-A for the

Nashville Sounds The Nashville Sounds are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League and the Triple-A (baseball), Triple-A affiliate of the Milwaukee Brewers. They are located in Nashville, Tennessee, Nashville, Tennessee, and are named for the ci ...

Minnesota Twins

On November 20, 2003, Guerrier was selected off waivers by the

. Guerrier made his Major League debut on June 17, 2004 against the

Montreal Expos The Montreal Expos (french: link=no, Les Expos de Montréal) were a Canadian professional baseball team based in Montreal, Quebec. The Expos were the first Major League Baseball (MLB) franchise located outside the United States. They played in t ...

as the starting pitcher. He worked four innings and allowed two earned runs while striking out three. For the season, he appeared in nine games (two starts), going 0–1 with a 5.68 ERA. Guerrier did not pick up his first win until September 23, 2006 against the

Baltimore Orioles The Baltimore Orioles are an American professional baseball team based in Baltimore. The Orioles compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League East, East division. As one of the American L ...

. In 2007, he became a mainstay of the Twins bullpen, finishing the season 2–4 with one save and a 2.35 ERA in 73 relief appearances. In 2008, the Twins lost primary

setup pitcher In baseball, a setup man (or set-up man, also sometimes referred to as a setup pitcher or setup reliever) is a relief pitcher who regularly pitches before the closer. They commonly pitch the eighth inning, with the closer pitching the ninth. As ...

Pat Neshek Patrick John Neshek (pronounced NEE-shehk; born September 4, 1980), is an American former professional baseball pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Minnesota Twins, San Diego Padres, Oakland Athletics, St. Louis Cardinals, ...

to injury early in the season and Guerrier took over part of that role for a short time. He pitched poorly in the second half, however, sporting an 8.88 ERA. Guerrier made 76 appearances in 2008, finishing 6–9 with one save and a 5.19 ERA innings. He improved greatly in 2009, posting a 5–1 record with one save and a 2.36 ERA in 79 relief appearances. He also led the American League with 33

holds A hold (abbreviated HLD, H or HD) is awarded to a relief pitcher who meets the following three conditions: :1. Enters the game in a save (baseball), save situation; that is, when all of the following three conditions apply: :: (a) He appears i ...

Los Angeles Dodgers

Guerrier agreed to a three-year deal with the

on December 16, 2010. He appeared in a team high 70 games for the Dodgers, the fifth straight season he pitched in at least 70 games. He finished the season 4–3 with a 4.07 ERA in innings worked and became the first pitcher in baseball history with exactly one save in six straight seasons. In 2012, Guerrier pitched in seven games in April and was then shut down with right elbow tendinitis. He was placed on the 60-day disabled list and did not rejoin the Dodgers until the last week of August, ending his string of five straight seasons with at least 70 games pitched. Due to the injury, he only appeared in 16 games for the Dodgers in 2012, going 0–2 with a 3.86 ERA. Guerrier pitched in 34 games with the Dodgers in 2013, posting a 2–3 record with a 4.80 ERA before he was designated for assignment on June 30.

Chicago Cubs

On July 1, 2013, Guerrier was traded to the

in exchange for

Carlos Mármol Carlos Agustín Mármol (born October 14, 1982) is a Dominican former professional baseball relief pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Chicago Cubs, Los Angeles Dodgers, and the Miami Marlins. Carlos owns Recta 49, a succe ...

. He appeared in 15 games for the Cubs, and was 2–1 with a 2.13 ERA in innings. He was shut down for the season in August after tearing the

flexor muscle Motion, the process of movement, is described using specific anatomical terms. Motion includes movement of organs, joints, limbs, and specific sections of the body. The terminology used describes this motion according to its direction relative ...

in his right forearm.

Second stint with Minnesota Twins

On January 29, 2014, Guerrier signed a minor league contract to rejoin the Minnesota Twins. The Twins released Guerrier on March 24, 2014, a week prior to the end of Spring Training. He was re-signed the next day. Guerrier was designated for assignment on July 23. At the time, he was 0–1 with a 3.86 ERA in 27 appearances. He elected free agency on July 29.

Pitching repertoire

Guerrier's most commonly thrown pitch is alternately called cutter thrown in the high 80s. He also has a four-seam and

two-seam fastball A two-seam fastball is a pitch in baseball and softball. It is a variant of the straight fastball. The pitch has the speed of a fastball and can also include late-breaking action caused by varying the pressure of the index and middle fingers on t ...

(low 90s), a

curveball In baseball and softball, the curveball is a type of pitch thrown with a characteristic grip and hand movement that imparts forward spin to the ball, causing it to dive as it approaches the plate. Varieties of curveball include the 12–6 curve ...

(78-80), and an occasional

changeup A changeup is a type of pitch in baseball and fastpitch softball. The changeup is a staple off-speed pitch often used in a pitcher's arsenal, usually thrown to look like a fastball but arriving much more slowly to the plate. Its reduced speed ...

to left-handed hitters.

References

External links

Matt Guerrier
at Baseball Almanac
Matt Guerrier
at Pura Pelota (Venezuelan Professional Baseball League) {{DEFAULTSORT:Guerrier, Matt 1978 births Living people Baseball players from Cleveland Birmingham Barons players Bristol White Sox players Charlotte Knights players Chicago Cubs players Kent State Golden Flashes baseball players Los Angeles Dodgers players Major League Baseball pitchers Minnesota Twins players Nashville Sounds players Navegantes del Magallanes players American expatriate baseball players in Venezuela New Britain Rock Cats players Sportspeople from Shaker Heights, Ohio Rancho Cucamonga Quakes players Rochester Red Wings players Winston-Salem Warthogs players Yarmouth–Dennis Red Sox players