Jeffrey Charles D'Amico (born December 27, 1975) is an American former professional baseball

pitcher In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throws ("Pitch (baseball), pitches") the Baseball (ball), baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of out (baseball), retiring a batter (baseball), batter, ...

from to . D'Amico, sometimes nicknamed "Big Daddy" due to his six-foot nine stature, was a

starting pitcher In baseball (hardball or softball), a starting pitcher or starter is the first pitcher in the game for each team. A pitcher is credited with a game started if they throw the first pitch to the opponent's first batter of a game. Starting pit ...

who played for the

Milwaukee Brewers The Milwaukee Brewers are an American professional baseball team based in Milwaukee. The Brewers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League Central, Central Di ...

New York Mets The New York Mets are an American professional baseball team based in the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of Queens. The Mets compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National ...

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 (baseball), National League (NL) National League Central, Central ...

, and

Cleveland Indians The Cleveland Guardians are an American professional baseball team based in Cleveland. The Guardians compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League Central, Central Division. Since , the team ...

of the

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball league composed of 30 teams, divided equally between the National League (baseball), National League (NL) and the American League (AL), with 29 in the United States and 1 in Canada. MLB i ...

(MLB). His career record was 42 wins, 52 losses, 498

strikeouts In baseball or softball, a strikeout (or strike-out) occurs when a batter accumulates three strikes during a time at bat. It means the batter is out, unless the third strike is not caught by the catcher and the batter reaches first base safe ...

and a 4.61

earned run average In baseball statistics, earned run average (ERA) is the average of earned runs allowed by a pitcher per nine innings pitched (i.e. the traditional length of a game). It is determined by dividing the number of earned runs allowed by the number ...

(ERA).

Career

D'Amico was selected by the

in the first round of the 1993 Major League Baseball Draft. After three seasons in the minor leagues, he made his debut on June 28, 1996, and spent the next six years with the Brewers. After missing all of 1998 and most of 1999 due to shoulder surgery, D'Amico had a career year in 2000. That season, his ERA hovered around 2.00 for much of the season and he contended for the NL ERA title. Needing just a few innings to qualify for the title on his last start of the season, he surpassed the 162 innings minimum threshold, but in the process gave up enough runs to lose the title. D'Amico finished third, behind Kevin Brown and

Randy Johnson Randall David Johnson (born September 10, 1963), nicknamed, "the Big Unit," is an American former professional baseball pitcher who played 22 seasons in Major League Baseball (1988–2009) for six teams, primarily the Seattle Mariners and Arizo ...

. On April 12, 2001, D'Amico hit the first triple at

Miller Park American Family Field is a retractable roof stadium in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Located southwest of the intersection of Interstate 94 in Wisconsin, Interstate 94 and Brewers Boulevard, it is the ballpark of Major League Baseball's Milwaukee Brewe ...

after Houston's centerfielder Richard Hidalgo crashed into the wall trying to flag down the fly ball to center. D'Amico was never able to follow his 2000 success as he struggled with injuries for the Brewers in 2001, before ending his career with appearances on the Mets, Pirates, and Cleveland. He led the National League in losses during the 2003 season with the Pirates and was released by the Indians in June 2004 after posting a 7.63 ERA in 7 starts. Although a very weak hitter in his major league career, posting a .101 batting average (15-for-148) with 2 home runs and 5 RBI, he was a very good fielding pitcher. In 784 innings pitched over 139 games, he committed only one error in 116 total chances for a .991

fielding percentage In baseball statistics, fielding percentage, also known as fielding average, is a measure that reflects the percentage of times a baseball positions, defensive player properly handles a batted or thrown ball. It is calculated by the sum of putout ...

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:D'Amico, Jeff 1975 births Living people American expatriate baseball players in Canada Baseball players from St. Petersburg, Florida Beloit Snappers players Buffalo Bisons (minor league) players Cleveland Indians players Edmonton Trappers players El Paso Diablos players Huntsville Stars players Indianapolis Indians players Lake County Captains players Louisville RiverBats players Major League Baseball pitchers Milwaukee Brewers players New York Mets players Pittsburgh Pirates players