Michael John Burns (born July 14, 1978) is an American former professional

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding t ...

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 ...

who 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), ...

for the Houston Astros, the

Boston Red Sox The Boston Red Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Boston. The Red Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. Founded in as one of the American League's eigh ...

, the Cincinnati Reds and the Milwaukee Brewers. He is on the coaching staff of the Easton Blackdogs at Caira Baseball Academy.

Early life

Burns was born in

Westminster, California Westminster is a city in northern Orange County, California, known for its many Vietnamese refugees who immigrated to the city during the 1980s. They settled largely in Little Saigon, and the city is known as the "capital" of overseas Vietnam ...

and graduated from Diamond Bar High School in 1996. Burns attended

California State University, Los Angeles California State University, Los Angeles (Cal State LA) is a public university in Los Angeles, California. It is part of the 23-campus California State University (CSU) system. Cal State LA offers 142 bachelor's degrees, 122 master's degrees, ...

. He has a degree in criminal justice.

Professional career

A 2000 draft pick by the Houston Astros, In 2000, Burns's rookie season was with the Martinsville Astros posting a 2–7 record with a 4.52 ERA. In 2001, Burns was on the

Michigan Battle Cats The Michigan Battle Cats were a Minor League Baseball team which began playing in the Midwest League in 1995 and called C.O. Brown Stadium in Battle Creek, Michigan, home. The franchise had previously been located in Madison, Wisconsin, in 1994 ...

and had a 7–7 record with a 3.95 ERA. In 2002, Burns posted a 2.49 ERA with the Battle Cats. In 2003, he was promoted to the Round Rock Express, but had a disappointing season due to a 2–13 record and a 6.13 ERA. In 2004, he improved with an 11–3 record and a 2.67 ERA. In 2005, he was promoted to Triple-A Round Rock Express and posted a 2–1 record and a 2.11 ERA. Burns made his major league debut in later 2005. He spent part of 2006 with the Cincinnati Reds with an 8.78 ERA until he was traded on August 28. Burns was called up from the Triple-A

Pawtucket Red Sox The Pawtucket Red Sox, known colloquially as the PawSox, were a professional minor league baseball club based in Pawtucket, Rhode Island. From 1973 to 2020, the team was a member of the International League and served as the Triple-A affiliate ...

to the major league team the following day. He signed with the Pittsburgh Pirates for the 2008 season but was released during spring training. He then signed with the Chicago Cubs, becoming a free agent at the end of the season. In January 2009, he signed a minor league contract with the Brewers; on June 2, he was called up to the major leagues following the release of

Jorge Julio Jorge Dandys Julio Tapia (born March 3, 1979) is a Venezuelan former professional baseball relief pitcher. He previously played for the Baltimore Orioles from 2001 to 2005, New York Mets and Arizona Diamondbacks in 2006, and the Florida Marlins ...

and made his first major league start on June 25, 2009, against the Minnesota Twins earning a loss. On October 13, 2009, Burns was optioned to Triple-A Nashville, removing him from the Brewers 40-man roster. He was released on March 31, 2010. In 2011, Mike Burns signed with Olmecas de Tabasco and had a 1–1 record with an 8.68 ERA. On February 11, 2013, Burns signed with the

Wichita Wingnuts The Wichita Wingnuts were an independent baseball team based in Wichita, Kansas, in the United States. The Wingnuts were members of the South Division of the American Association of Professional Baseball. An expansion franchise in the 2008 seas ...

of the

American Association of Independent Professional Baseball The American Association of Professional Baseball is an independent professional baseball league founded in 2005. It operates in the central United States and Canada, mostly in cities not served by Major League Baseball teams or their minor lea ...

as their bullpen coach. Signed with the

Lincoln Saltdogs The Lincoln Saltdogs are a professional baseball team based in Lincoln, Nebraska, in the United States. The Saltdogs are in the American Association of Professional Baseball, an official Partner League of Major League Baseball. Since the 2001 sea ...

on June 9, 2013, as a pitcher. Mike Burns is a pitching coach for the

UC Riverside Highlanders baseball The UC Riverside baseball team is the varsity intercollegiate baseball team of the University of California, Riverside, located in Riverside, California, United States. The program has been a member of the NCAA Division I Big West Conference sin ...

as of January 2022.

References

External links

Baseball Almanac
{{DEFAULTSORT:Burns, Mike 1978 births Living people American expatriate baseball players in Canada American expatriate baseball players in Mexico Baseball coaches from California Baseball players from California Boston Red Sox players Cal State Los Angeles Golden Eagles baseball players Calgary Vipers players Cincinnati Reds players Houston Astros players Iowa Cubs players Lincoln Saltdogs players Louisville Bats players Major League Baseball pitchers Martinsville Astros players Mexican League baseball pitchers Michigan Battle Cats players Milwaukee Brewers players Minor league baseball coaches Nashville Sounds players Olmecas de Tabasco players Pawtucket Red Sox players People from Diamond Bar, California People from Westminster, California Round Rock Express players Sportspeople from Orange County, California