| Chris Capuano | |
|---|---|
 |
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| Los Angeles Dodgers – No. 35 | |
| Starting pitcher | |
| Born: August 19, 1978 West Springfield, Massachusetts |
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| Bats: Left | Throws: Left |
| MLB debut | |
| May 4, 2003 for the Arizona Diamondbacks | |
| Career statistics (through May 12, 2013) |
|
| Win–loss record | 70–78 |
| Earned run average | 4.31 |
| Strikeouts | 982 |
| Teams | |
|
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| Career highlights and awards | |
Christopher "Chris" Frank Capuano (born August 19, 1978 in West Springfield, Massachusetts) is an American professional baseball player with the Los Angeles Dodgers.
Contents |
Early life [edit]
Capuano graduated from St. Thomas School in West Springfield Massachusetts. Four years later, Capuano was the valedictorian of his class at Cathedral High School in Springfield, Massachusetts and went on to earn a degree in Economics at Duke University, where he earned membership in Phi Beta Kappa. He was also a brother of the Xi Chapter of Alpha Tau Omega fraternity.
Professional career [edit]
Arizona Diamondbacks [edit]
Capuano was drafted by the Arizona Diamondbacks in the 8th round of the 1999 amateur draft (238th overall). He played with South Bend Silver Hawks in 2000 and the El Paso Diablos in 2001. He began 2002 with the Tucson Sidewinders in AAA and was 4–1 with a 2.72 ERA when, on May 17, he had Tommy John surgery and missed the rest of the season.
He made his MLB debut with the Diamondbacks on May 4, 2003 against the Atlanta Braves, picking up the loss in a two-inning appearance in extra innings. He made his first start on May 17 against the Pittsburgh Pirates, but only lasted 4 and 2⁄3 innings while allowing seven earned runs to take the loss. He was optioned back to the minors after that start and called back up for a spot start on July 9 against the San Diego Padres, where he worked seven innings, allowed only one unearned run and picked up his first victory. He returned to the minors after the appearance, where he made 23 starts for Tucson, with a 9–5 record and 3.34 ERA, earning him Pacific Coast League All-Star honors. He returned to the Diamondbacks when rosters expanded in September and overall appeared in 9 games for them, with 5 starts, and was 2–4 with a 4.64 ERA.
Milwaukee Brewers [edit]
On December 1, 2003, Capuano was traded to the Milwaukee Brewers (along with Craig Counsell, Lyle Overbay, Junior Spivey, Jorge De La Rosa and Chad Moeller) for Shane Nance, Richie Sexson and minor leaguer Noochie Varner. He made 17 starts for the Brewers in 2004 and was 6–8 with a 4.99 ERA.
His 2005 season with the Brewers proved to be a break-out year as he posted 18 wins, the highest total for a Brewer since Ted Higuera in 1987. He also led the National League in quality starts during the 2005 season. In 2006, Capuano continued his excellent pitching by taking over as the team's new ace with Ben Sheets injured and was named to the 2006 Major League Baseball All-Star Game as a replacement for Tom Glavine. Capuano, however, ended up with only 11 wins in 2006.
Capuano started the 2007 season 5–0 and then the Milwaukee Brewers lost the next 22 games Capuano pitched in from May 12 to September 28. In June he hit his first major league homerun against the Florida Marlins.
Before the start of the 2008 season, he underwent Tommy John surgery for the second time in his career and missed the entire season.
The Brewers non-tendered Capuano following the 2008 season, making him a free agent but re-signed him to a minor league deal shortly after.[1] Before the start of the 2009 season Capuano had hoped to start live game pitching in mid May,[2] but was limited to a handful of games in the Brewers rookie leagues. After becoming a free agent at the end of the season, Capuano was re-signed to a minor league contract with the Brewers on November 23, 2009.[3]
Capuano was invited to the Milwaukee Brewers' spring training for the 2010 season, but early on he complained of arm soreness and was placed in extended spring training. He would start the regular season with the Single A, Brevard County Manatees of the Florida State League.[4] Capuano would only need 3 appearances with the Manatees before being promoted to the Triple A Nashville Sounds. In those 3 appearances, Capuano registered a 2–0 record with a 1.23 ERA and 17 strikeouts in 14.2 innings pitched. On May 28, 2010, Capuano made his final start for the Sounds, and was pulled after four innings. After the game, it was announced the Brewers had purchased his minor league contract and he was recalled to the majors.
Capuano started the Brewers' June 3, 2010 game against the Florida Marlins in Miami, giving up three runs on seven hits in 3.2 innings while striking out four and walking one. He was charged with the loss in the 3–2 Marlins win. On July 3, 2010, he finally appeared in a Brewers victory against the St. Louis Cardinals in St. Louis. This snapped the streak of 26 straight losses he had appeared in between 2007 and 2010.
New York Mets [edit]
Capuano signed with the New York Mets before the 2011 season.[5] On August 26, pitching against the Atlanta Braves, he threw his first complete game shutout since 2005, setting a career high in strikeouts in a game with 13. He made 31 starts for the Mets in 2011, his most since 2006, and also appeared in relief twice. He was 11–12 with a 4.55 ERA during the season.
Los Angeles Dodgers [edit]
On December 2, 2011, Capuano signed a two-year deal worth $10 million dollars with the Los Angeles Dodgers. He started the 2012 season strong, with a 9-4 record and 2.91 in his first 18 starts but went only 3-8 with a 4.76 in his last 15 starts. Overall, he was 12-12 with a 3.72 in 33 starts.
Capuano began the 2013 season in the bullpen due to the Dodgers having too many starting pitchers. He got a chance to start on April 16 due to an injury to Zack Greinke but suffered his own injury, a strained left calf, in the game and only lasted three innings.[6]
International career [edit]
| Medal record | ||
|---|---|---|
| Men’s baseball | ||
Competitor for  United States |
||
| Baseball World Cup | ||
| Silver | 2001 Taipei | National team |
Capuano played on Team USA in the 2001 World Cup of Baseball and helped the team earn a silver medal.
Pitching style [edit]
Capuano is a finesse pitcher who relies on his deceptive delivery. He also possesses an excellent pickoff move; in 2005 he led the major leagues in pickoffs with 12 (but also tied Brett Myers for balks with 4). Capuano throws his fastball in the mid to upper 80s, and will sometimes hit 90 mph in the early stages of a game also uses a slider and a good changeup.
Personal [edit]
Capuano, along with teammates J. J. Hardy, Bill Hall, and Jeff Suppan, appeared in an episode of The Young and the Restless on June 20, 2007.[7] He is married to Sarah Clifford,[8] whom he met at Duke. She was a contender for the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens, for the modern pentathlon.[9]
References [edit]
- ^ Brewers do not tender offer to Capuano - mlb.com
- ^ Rehab road slow for Capuano mlb.com
- ^ "Brewers sign Capuano, Halama" - mlb.com
- ^ "Peterson has healthy outlook on building pitching staff" - Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
- ^ http://sports.espn.go.com/new-york/mlb/news/story?id=5985802
- ^ Simon, Andrew (2013-04-17). "Dodgers place Capuano on DL, recall Federowicz". dodgers.com.
- ^ "The Young and the Restless" - ESPN.com
- ^ Return to the mound - Helena Independent Record
- ^ Sarah Clifford - Pentathlon Jan 2003 - Central Mass Striders
External links [edit]
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- Career statistics and player information from MLB, or ESPN, or Baseball-Reference, or Fangraphs, or The Baseball Cube, or Baseball-Reference (Minors)
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