Kerry Lee Wood (born June
16, 1977) is an American
Major League Baseball closer for the Cleveland Indians. Wood recorded
over 200 strikeouts in each of four seasons between 1998 and 2003,
with a high of 266 in .
In recent years, he has had three serious arm injuries, and only
started a total of 14 major league games from Opening Day 2005
through the middle of 2006. Wood returned to the Cubs during the
2007 season as a
relief pitcher, and served as the team's
closer in 2008.
Early life
Wood became a high school phenom while attending MacArthur High
School in Irving, Texas, for his first three seasons of high school
baseball. He continued his domination of batters at
Grand Prairie High School in his
final season as a high school player.
Professional career
Chicago Cubs
1995-1998
The
Chicago Cubs drafted Wood as the
fourth overall selection in the 1995 Amateur Draft. He spent three
years playing in the
Minor Leagues. His
best season in the Minors came in 1996, when he posted a 10-2
record for the
Daytona Cubs. He also
played for the Triple-A
Iowa Cubs. In 1997
he led all minor league pitchers in walks, with 131.
[38242]
1998
A prospect in the minor leagues, Wood made his first appearance in
the
Major Leagues on
April 12, . In his fifth career start, on
May 6, 1998, he threw a one-hit, no walk,
20-strikeout shutout against the
Houston Astros, tying
Roger Clemens' record for strikeouts in a
9-inning game and breaking
Bill
Gullickson's single-game rookie record of 18 strikeouts in . To
date, Wood and
Bob Feller are the only
two pitchers to strike out their age in one game (at age 17, Feller
struck out 17 batters in one game in ). Wood allowed only two
baserunners: an infield single by
Ricky
Gutierrez, and a
hit by pitch of
Craig Biggio. The single, off shortstop
Jeff Blauser's glove, was close enough
that some fans lobbied to have it changed in scoring to an
error, which would have given Wood a
no-hitter. The game is considered by many
to be the most dominant pitching performance in the history of
baseball.
Wood finished the 1998 season with a 13–6 record, and despite
missing the last month of the season with elbow soreness easily won
the
National League Rookie of the Year award. He
pitched one game in the playoffs, losing against the
Atlanta Braves.
1999–2003
During
Spring Training of , Wood
underwent
Tommy John surgery to
repair damage to the
ulnar collateral ligament
in his right elbow. He missed the entire season to rehab from the
surgery.
Wood returned in and struggled to an 8–7 record, but the following
season, he returned to form. In , Wood began a string of three
straight seasons in which he began to once again show the promise
he displayed as the young phenom just a few years earlier. He went
12-6 with a 3.36 ERA. The following season ( ), Wood finished 12–11
with a 3.67 ERA, but perhaps more important was the fact he didn't
miss a start all year long, setting career highs with 213.6 innings
pitched and 33 starts. In both seasons, he struck out 217.
In , Wood continued to improve, setting career highs with 266
strikeouts, 14 wins (as part of a 14–11 record), a 3.20 ERA, and 2
shutouts. He threw the fastest fastball in the majors among
starters, averaging 95.4 miles per hour.
[38243] He also walked 100 batters and
surrendered 24 home runs, also career highs, but was selected as a
National League All-Star and helped lead the Cubs to the
playoffs.
Wood earned two wins in the Divisional Series against the
Atlanta Braves and was the starter in Game 3
of the
2003
National League Championship Series, which the Cubs won in
extra innings. However, the Cubs lost in seven games to the
eventual
World Series champion
Florida Marlins. In the decisive
Game
7, Wood hit the first
home run by a
pitcher in a
NLCS game since another
Cub,
Rick Sutcliffe, did so in
Game
1 in
1984. However, the
Marlins won the game 9-6. Wood was the losing pitcher and the Cubs
were eliminated.
2004–2006
Wood went just 8-9 during the 2004 season and was sidelined for
nearly two months with a
strained
triceps.
In , Wood continued to struggle. On
August
31, 2005, Wood underwent surgery and missed the remainder of
the season. During Spring Training in 2006, Wood suffered several
injuries which required an additional surgery (on his knee) and
time off shortly after that to recover from injuries sustained
falling out of a hot tub. On
May 18, , Wood
returned to the Cubs' pitching rotation when he started and lost a
home game against the
Washington
Nationals. In June, Wood returned to the
DL with a sore shoulder. The following month,
the Cubs announced that Wood had sustained a partially
torn rotator cuff which was likely to keep
him from pitching again for the rest of the year. At the end of the
2006 season, the Cubs exercised their option on Wood's
contract and bought out the remaining $13M.
2007–2008
With his long history of injuries and inability to stay in the
starting rotation, Wood accepted the Cubs offer to return as a
relief pitcher . Wood attempted to sustain a regular throwing
schedule and appearances during Spring Training games. However,
Wood was placed on the 15 day DL with soreness in his elbow and was
then moved to the 60 day DL. He began playing catch on May 21. In
his first rehab assignment in Cubs Rookie Ball, he struck out all
three batters he faced. On
July 24, he
pitched 1 inning with the Single-A
Peoria
Chiefs, throwing 9 pitches. He made back-to-back appearances on
July 26 and
July 27,
throwing his fastball between 92-94 mph with no discomfort.
The Cubs activated Wood from the 60-Day Disabled List on August 3,
causing many to believe that he would make his actual return on
that day. In the seventh inning, however,
Lou Piniella opted to send
Bob Howry to the mound, and most fans, eager to
see Kerry back on the hill, mistakenly gave Howry a standing
ovation, only to realize moments later it was actually not Wood.
Piniella later stated he wanted Wood to receive a "softer landing",
or in other words, make his return in a game where the Cubs have a
comfortable lead over their opponents. Wood made his return on
August 5, with the Cubs trailing the
New
York Mets by four runs. He pitched a single inning, during
which he allowed one hit, and struck out another batter. Piniella
praised Wood's performance, stating "He threw the ball real good",
and "His breaking ball had some bite to it, and he threw it up
there about 93-94, about what we expected". Since then, he has
remained healthy appearing in 22 games and posting a 1-1 record
with a solid 3.33
ERA.
He was generally limited to one inning per outing and has not
appeared in games on back to back days, though he did pitch in both
halves of a double header on
September
15. Wood was a major contributor to the Cub's NL Central
Division Championship down the stretch in late September, earning a
win and 8 holds. Wood filed for free-agency on November 11, 2007,
though he suggested that he wanted to remain in pinstripes for the
2008 season. Despite multi-year offers from other teams, Wood
agreed to a one year, $4.2 million deal with the Cubs.
Wood, along with
Bob Howry and
Carlos Marmol, competed for the role as the
Cubs' closer after
Ryan Dempster was
moved to the starting rotation. After posting a 2.84
ERA in the spring, Wood won the job. He
recorded his first career save April 3, 2008 with a win over the
Brewers.
[38244][38245] Wood has since recorded 34 saves in 39
opportunities, 82 strike-outs and a 1.12
WHIP.
He was selected to the
2008 MLB
All-Star Game as a relief pitcher on July 6, 2008 along with
six other teammates.
Wood was placed on the 15-day DL on July 24, 2008 with a blister on
his right index finger. He returned to throw a scoreless inning
against the
Houston Astros on
August 5,
2008.
On
November 13, 2008, after acquiring
closer
Kevin Gregg from the
Florida Marlins, Cubs general manager
Jim Hendry announced that the
organization does not plan on resigning Wood. He had previously
requested a multi-year contract with the team, but was deferred due
to financial reasons. Wood stated he wished to remain with the
Cubs, but also wanted to continue playing baseball.
Cleveland Indians
On
December 13, 2008, Wood signed a
two-year contract with the
Cleveland
Indians.
Cubs fans
showed their appreciation for him by giving him a standing ovation
when the Cleveland Indians played at Wrigley Field
on June 19.
MLB records
- Fastest to reach 1000 strikeouts in MLB history (in
appearances): 134 games
- Fastest to reach 1000 strikeouts in MLB history (in innings
pitched): 853 IP
- Strikeouts in a 9-inning game: 20 on May 6,
1998 (tied record with Roger Clemens
and Randy Johnson)
Personal life
Wood is
married to the former Sarah Pates of Waukegan, Illinois
. The couple has one son, Justin Dean, who
was born in 2006.
Until 2008, the family resided in Old
Town
neighborhood of Chicago.
While playing for the Cubs, The Woods hosted a celebrity bowling
tournament called
Kerry Wood's Strike Zone, which also
featured a
silent auction that raised
over two million dollars.
See also
References
External links
Wikis
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