Mitchell R. Talbot (born October 17, 1983) is an American former professional

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball sport played between two team sport, teams of nine players each, taking turns batting (baseball), batting and Fielding (baseball), fielding. The game occurs over the course of several Pitch ...

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. He played in

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(MLB) for the

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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 ...

, the

KBO League The KBO League () is a professional baseball league in South Korea. The league comprises ten teams. The KBO League was founded with six franchises in 1982 and is the most popular sports league in South Korea. The Kia Tigers are the most success ...

for the Samsung Lions and Hanwha Eagles and in the

Chinese Professional Baseball League The Chinese Professional Baseball League (CPBL; ) is the top-tier professional baseball league in Taiwan. The league was established in 1989 and played the first season in 1990. CPBL eventually absorbed the competing Taiwan Major League in 20 ...

(CPBL) for the Lamigo Monkeys.

Amateur career

The youngest of six siblings, Talbot graduated from Canyon View High School in Cedar City,

Utah Utah is a landlocked state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It is one of the Four Corners states, sharing a border with Arizona, Colorado, and New Mexico. It also borders Wyoming to the northea ...

and was a member of the ''

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s All-State second team during his senior season. Talbot committed to play

college baseball College baseball is baseball that is played by Student athlete, student-athletes at institutions of higher education. In the United States, college baseball is sanctioned mainly by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA); in Japan, ...

for the Dixie State.

Professional career career

Houston Astros

Talbot was drafted by the

Houston Astros The Houston Astros are an American professional baseball team based in Houston. The Astros compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League West, West Division. They are one of two major leag ...

in the second round (70th overall) in the 2002 Major League Baseball draft out of high school. He did not sign immediately and as a result did not begin his professional career until . In , Talbot was rated to have the best changeup in the Astros' organization by

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. He pitched for Single-A Salem and went 8-11 with a 4.34 ERA. Talbot was the

Carolina League The Carolina League is a Minor League Baseball league which has operated along the Atlantic Coast of the United States since 1945. Having been classified at various levels throughout its existence, it operated at Class A-Advanced from 1990 unti ...

Pitcher of the Week for the week of July 25 to 31.

Tampa Bay Devil Rays

On July 12, , during the All-Star break, Talbot and

shortstop Shortstop, abbreviated SS, is the baseball positions, baseball or softball fielding position between second base, second and third base, which is considered to be among the Defensive spectrum, most demanding defensive positions. Historically, the ...

Ben Zobrist were traded to the Tampa Bay Devil Rays for

outfielder An outfielder is a person playing in one of the three defensive positions in baseball or softball, farthest from the batter. These defenders are the left fielder, the center fielder, and the right fielder. As an outfielder, their duty is to catch ...

Aubrey Huff. Pitching for two Double-A teams ( Corpus Christi and Montgomery), Talbot went a combined 10–7 with a 2.76 ERA. Talbot earned the Devil Rays Minor League pitcher of August after he went 2–1 with a 1.96 ERA and led all of Double-A baseball with 47

strikeout 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 ...

s. He played for the Montgomery Biscuits during their 2006 league championship season and was named minorleaguebasell.com's best Double-A playoff performer. In , Talbot began the year for the Triple-A Durham Bulls. Talbot was called up to the majors on July 1, . Talbot made his major league debut on September 15, in relief of Scott Kazmir, and pitched 3 innings, giving up 4 earned runs and striking out two batters while walking three

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) American League East, East Division. Founded in as one of the Ameri ...

. Talbot made his first major league start against the

Baltimore Orioles The Baltimore Orioles (also known as the O's) 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) East Division. As one of the America ...

on September 23, during the second game of a double header and did not earn a decision. He allowed three earned runs on six hits while walking three and striking out two over 4 innings. Talbot returned to the minors in 2009, pitching mostly for Durham. He pitched in only 14 games, missing time due to an elbow injury.

Cleveland Indians

On December 21, 2009, Talbot was traded to the

as a

player to be named later In Major League Baseball, a player to be named later (PTBNL) is an unnamed player involved in exchange or "trade" of players between teams. The terms of a trade are not finalized until a later date, most often following the conclusion of the seaso ...

in the Kelly Shoppach trade. In 2010, he was a regular in Cleveland's starting rotation, going 10–13 with a 4.41 ERA in 28 starts. That would be his peak in the majors, as he went 2–6 with a 6.64 ERA in 12 starts in 2012, his last year in the majors. Talbot was designated for assignment on July 31, 2011, to make room on the 40-man roster for Ubaldo Jiménez. He accepted his assignment and was sent to the Triple-A

Columbus Clippers The Columbus Clippers are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League (IL) and the Triple-A (baseball), Triple-A affiliate of the Cleveland Guardians. They are located in Columbus, Ohio, and are named for speedy Merchant ship, merch ...

on August 5, 2011. Talbot returned to the Indians' roster again on September 24 and made his final MLB start that day. He was outrighted to Triple-A again on October 18 and became a free agent.

Samsung Lions

On December 1, 2011, Talbot signed with the Samsung Lions of the

. In 25 starts for Samsung, Talbot compiled a 14–3 record and 3.97 ERA with 68 strikeouts across innings pitched. He became a free agent following the 2012 season.

Miami Marlins

On January 23, 2013, Talbot signed a minor league contract with the

Miami Marlins The Miami Marlins are an American professional baseball team based in Miami. The Marlins compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League East, East Division. The ...

. He made three rehab assignments split between the rookie-level Gulf Coast League Marlins and Triple-A

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. Talbot was released by the Marlins organization on August 5.

New York Mets

On August 20, 2013, Talbot signed a minor league contract with the

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organization and was assigned to the Triple-A Las Vegas 51s. He became a free agent on November 4.

Long Island Ducks

On June 30, 2014, Talbot signed with the Long Island Ducks of the

Atlantic League of Professional Baseball The Atlantic League of Professional Baseball (ALPB) is a professional independent baseball league in the United States. It is an official MLB Partner League based in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern United States, and the headquarters are l ...

. In 9 games (7 starts) across 37 innings he went 3-2 with a 4.14 ERA and 26 strikeouts.

Lamigo Monkeys

On August 25, 2014, Talbot signed with the Lamigo Monkeys of the

. He became a free agent following the season.

Hanwa Eagles

On December 5, 2014, Talbot signed with the Hanwa Eagles of the KBO for the 2015 season. He became a free agent following the season.

Rieleros de Aguascalientes

On April 8, 2016, Talbot signed with the Rieleros de Aguascalientes of the

Mexican League The Mexican Baseball League (, or LMB, ) is a professional baseball league in Mexico. It is the oldest running professional sports league in the country. The league has 20 teams organized in two divisions, North and South. Teams play 114 games ...

. He never appeared in a game before returning to Taiwan.

Lamigo Monkeys (second stint)

On June 10, 2016, Talbot announced that he would return to Lamigo Monkeys. He became a free agent following the 2016 season.

Sugar Land Skeeters

On May 20, 2017, Talbot signed with the

Sugar Land Skeeters The Sugar Land Space Cowboys are a Minor League Baseball team of the Pacific Coast League (PCL) and the Triple-A (baseball), Triple-A affiliate of the Houston Astros Major League Baseball club. They are located in Sugar Land, Texas, part of the G ...

of the

In 2017 he appeared in 21 games (19 starts) across 110 innings he went 9-3 with a 3.03 ERA and 108 strikeouts. He re-signed with the team in early 2018 where in 5 starts 28 innings he went 3-1 with a 1.93 ERA and 19 strikeouts.

Cleveland Indians (second stint)

On May 23, 2018, Talbot's contract was purchased by Cleveland. In 18 games (17 starts) for the Triple-A

, he logged a 4–5 record and 2.52 ERA with 64 strikeouts across innings pitched. Talbot elected free agency following the season on November 2.

Sugar Land Skeeters (second stint)

On March 6, 2019, Talbot re-signed with the Sugar Land Skeeters. In 7 starts 34.1 innings he went 1-3 with a 3.93 ERA and 28 strikeouts.

Cleveland Indians (third stint)

On June 5, 2019, Cleveland again purchased Talbot contract from the Skeeters. He returned to Triple-A Columbus, where he logged a 3–3 record and 5.37 ERA with 37 strikeouts across 12 games (11 starts). Talbot elected free agency following the season on November 4.

References

External links

Career statistics and player information
from

Korea Baseball Organization The Korea Baseball Organization (KBO; ) is the Sport governing body, governing body for the professional leagues of baseball in South Korea. The KBO was founded in 1981 and has governed two leagues: the KBO League () and KBO Futures League ( (F ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Talbot, Mitch 1983 births American expatriate baseball players in South Korea American expatriate baseball players in Taiwan Baseball players from Utah Charlotte Stone Crabs players Cleveland Indians players Columbus Clippers players Corpus Christi Hooks players Durham Bulls players Estrellas Orientales players American expatriate baseball players in the Dominican Republic Gigantes del Cibao players Gulf Coast Marlins players Gulf Coast Rays players Hanwha Eagles players KBO League pitchers Lamigo Monkeys players Las Vegas 51s players Lexington Legends players Living people Long Island Ducks players Mahoning Valley Scrappers players Major League Baseball pitchers Martinsville Astros players Montgomery Biscuits players New Orleans Zephyrs players People from Cedar City, Utah Phoenix Desert Dogs players Salem Avalanche players Samsung Lions players Sugar Land Skeeters players Tampa Bay Rays players