Scott Kazmir

Scott Edward Kazmir ( born January 24, 1984) is an American professional baseball pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Tampa Bay Devil Rays/Rays, Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, Cleveland Indians, Oakland Athletics, Houston Astros, and Los Angeles Dodgers. Kazmir was drafted in the first round (15th overall) of the 2002 Major League Baseball draft by the New York Mets and quickly moved through the organization's minor league system. Kazmir was one of the top pitching prospects in baseball when he was sent to the Tampa Bay Devil Rays at the 2004 trade deadline in a highly publicized and criticized deal. Kazmir made his major league debut with the Devil Rays on August 23, 2004, when he was only 20 years old. During his first four seasons with the club, winning at least 10 games in his every full season with the team. Kazmir was named to his first All Star team in 2006, led the American League with 239 strikeouts and 34 games started in 2007, and is still among Tampa Bay's all-time leaders in many pitching categories, including strikeouts, earned run average (ERA), wins, and games started. The Devil Rays became the Rays in 2008 and got off to the best start in franchise history. Kazmir named American League Pitcher of the Month in May and appeared in his second All-Star game in July. However, a series of nagging injuries led to inconsistency in his pitching motion and gradually reduced his effectiveness over the second half of the season and in the playoffs, even as the Rays made it to their first World Series. Kazmir continued to struggle with injuries and ineffectiveness early in the 2009 season and spent some time on the disabled list. He had several better starts in July and August, at which point the Rays traded him to the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim for several minor league prospects. The Angels released him in June 2011. Kazmir spent over a year trying to recover his pitching touch, working with personal coaches and trainers and pitching for short stints with independent minor league and winter league teams. In December 2012, he signed a minor league deal with the Cleveland Indians and received an invitation to spring training. Solid performances in spring training earned him a spot in the Indians' starting rotation for 2013, and he pitched well enough to come in third in the voting for American League Comeback Player of the Year. In December 2013, Kazmir signed a two-year contract with the Oakland Athletics and continued his resurgence by winning a career-high 15 games during the 2014 season and making his third All-Star appearance. Kazmir continued to pitch well for the A's in the first half of 2015, and with his contract expiring at the end of the season, he was traded to his hometown Houston Astros in July. In 2016, he signed a three-year, $48 million free agent contract with the Los Angeles Dodgers. A series of injuries kept him from pitching at all in the major leagues in 2017. Kazmir was traded to the Atlanta Braves after the 2017 season. However, ineffectiveness and lingering arm issues in spring training led the Braves to release Kazmir before the regular season.