Information AboutErik Bedard |
Érik Joseph Bédard (, 1979 in the Ottawa suburb of Navan , Ontario , Canada ) is a Major League Baseball Starting Pitcher for the Baltimore Orioles . EARLY YEARS A Franco-Ontarian , Bédard did not play baseball at a competitive level until he walked onto the Norwalk Community College team in Norwalk, Connecticut , and did not learn English until he was in college.http://baltimore.orioles.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20070730&content_id=2118847&vkey=news_bal&fext=.jsp&c_id=bal Although 5'4" tall and 120 pounds as a senior in high school, he grew seven inches and gained 30 pounds before starting college. While in college, he added 10 miles per hour to his fastball and became a junior college All-American.http://baltimore.orioles.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20070730&content_id=2118847&vkey=news_bal&fext=.jsp&c_id=bal PROFESSIONAL CAREER As a left-handed starter for the Orioles, Bédard is in his third season with the Major League ballclub. After posting dominating numbers when he was at the Double A level, he quickly gained recognition as one of the best pitching prospects in baseball, gaining comparison to lefty Cy Young Award winner Johan Santana . However, an elbow ligament injury forced him to the operating table, and set his development back 18 months. After spending most of 2003 in rehab, he received an invitation to the big-league spring training camp the next year. He made the most of his opportunity, beating out other pitchers for the fifth spot in the starting rotation. In 2004 he posted a 4.59 ERA in 137 1/3 innings of work. His Strikeout numbers were 7.93 K/9, and he had 71 BB allowed. Bédard was criticized for having a high pitch count (19.5 pitches/inning), forcing him to frequently make early exits from ballgames, and he was criticized for lacking a third type of pitch. Under the tutelage of pitching coach Ray Miller , who rejoined the Orioles in the middle of the 2004 season, Bédard refined his control of the Change-up (his third pitch) to go along with his 91-93 mph Fastball and Slurve . In the beginning of 2005 he posted a 2.08 ERA, but after a sprained knee sidelined him for two months, he posted a 5.44 ERA. 2007 On May 20, 2007, he recorded his first major league hit, a single up the middle in the 5th against the Washington Nationals . In his next at-bat, he looped an RBI single over shortstop, going 2-2 with a sacrifice in the game. On July 7, 2007, Bédard struck out 15 Texas Rangers , matching the Orioles franchise record set by Mike Mussina . In the same game, he faced the minimum number of batters, as the only two batters who reached base were later out on Double Play s. This also set the record for most strikeouts in a game by a Canadian. His performances were recognized by Major League Baseball, who named Bédard the American League Pitcher Of The Month for July 2007. Through his 26 August start, Bédard leads all major league pitchers in strikeouts with 221, while posting a 3.16 ERA and a 13-5 record on a sub-.500 ballclub. Opponents are batting .249 against him. Although playing for a losing team, Bédard's individual performance this season has put him among those shortlisted to contend for the 2007. The previous record was held by Mike Mussina , who had 218 in 1997 . The results of an MRI on 4 September confirmed that Bédard suffered a Strained Oblique in his previous start on 26 August. Because the Orioles are eliminated from playoff contention, manager Dave Trembley would not rule out shutting down Bédard for the remainder of the season. "MRI confirms Orioles left-hander Erik Bedard has strained oblique" canadianpress.google.com. 4 September 2007. SEE ALSO REFERENCES |
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