| Justin Masterson | |
|---|---|
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| Cleveland Indians — No. 63 | |
| Starter/Relief pitcher | |
| Born: March 22, 1985 Kingston, Jamaica |
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| Bats: Right | Throws: Right |
| MLB debut | |
| April 24, 2008 for the Boston Red Sox | |
| Career statistics (through 2009 season) |
|
| Win-Loss | 10-15 |
| Earned run average | 3.97 |
| Strikeouts | 187 |
| Teams | |
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Justin Daniel Masterson (born March 22, 1985) is a right-handed relief pitcher in Major League Baseball for the Cleveland Indians. Masterson was drafted by the Boston Red Sox in the second round of the 2006 Major League Baseball Draft. Masterson was rated as the 64th-best prospect going into that year's draft by Baseball America.[1] Masterson stands 6'6", and weighs 250 pounds.
Masterson is the first Red Sox pitcher since 1912 to make his first four consecutive starts in Fenway Park and not lose any of them.[2]
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Early life
Masterson was born in Kingston, Jamaica, where his father served as dean of students at the Jamaica Theological Seminary.[3] A few years later, Masterson moved to Fort Wayne, Indiana. He attended Beavercreek High School at Beavercreek, Ohio where he first played baseball as a catcher, pitcher, and first baseman. His mother works as a teacher at Parkwood Elementary School in Beavercreek, Ohio.
Masterson attended Bethel College in Mishawaka, Indiana, where he played as a starting pitcher. While at Bethel, he hit 10 home runs during his sophomore year. He then attended San Diego State University. As a relief pitcher, Masterson pitched out of the bullpen in the Cape Cod Baseball League in 2005, saving 10 games for Wareham while posting a 1.15 ERA.
Pitching
Masterson pitches at a low three-quarter arm delivery with a sliding-type motion, which some compare to Dennis Eckersley's delivery. His pitching arsenal includes a fastball, sinker, slider, and a change-up. It has been claimed that his best pitch is his plus-sinker with a heavy drop.[4]
Masterson throws a variety of fastballs that vary in speed and break, with the speeds reaching between from the upper 80s to the mid 90s. The speed of his slider is in the low 80s, and his change-up ranges from 77 to 81 mph. He can vary his sinker at speeds of 84 to 94 mph, sometimes catching batters off balance.
Career
Masterson was signed to the minors by Dan Madsen, and has been a starter and reliever in his minor league career for the Lowell Spinners. In 2007, his second season, Masterson was promoted from the Class A Lancaster JetHawks to the Double-A Portland Sea Dogs. Masterson's twelve wins that season ranked second among all Red Sox minor leaguers.[5]
After joining the Sea Dogs, Masterson said, "I've had the confidence to be a great pitcher all along. I went to a smaller school and really proved that I had the ability to pitch, and whatever route I took to get me where I am I'm not worried about it."[6]
In 2006, Masterson was named to the Baseball America short season all-star team.[7][8][9] Masterson was converted to starting pitcher in early 2007, after a stint as a relief pitcher for Short Season Lowell in 2006.
The Red Sox invited Masterson to spring training during early 2008.[10] On April 24, 2008, he made his Major League debut against the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim in an emergency call-up start. He pitched six full innings and allowed one run. Masterson was immediately sent back to Portland following the game. On May 20, 2008, Masterson made his second appearance, pitching 6.1 innings, allowing three hits and one run with three walks and five strikeouts and picking up his first win in the Majors.
After five starts with the major-league club, it was announced that he would stay in the majors through Daisuke Matsuzaka's return from the disabled list due to Bartolo Colón's back injury.[11] On July 7, 2008 Masterson was sent back to the Pawtucket Red Sox, a move manager Terry Francona stated was made to transition Masterson from a starter to a relief pitcher.[12] Masterson was recalled on July 20 due to an injury to David Aardsma[13] In his first relief appearance, he was solid against the Seattle Mariners, shutting down the hitters and working 2 and 2/3 scoreless innings. The game took place at Seattle's Safeco Field.
On July 31, 2009, Masterson was traded along with minor league prospects Nick Hagadone and Bryan Price to the Cleveland Indians for Victor Martinez.[14]
2008 playoffs
Masterson picked up the first postseason win of his career in Game 5 of the 2008 American League Championship Series against the Tampa Bay Rays, pitching a scoreless ninth inning in the Red Sox' record-setting 8-7 victory.[15]
Personal life
Masterson was married on November 3, 2007 to Meryl Ham. [16]
During his tenure with the Boston Red Sox, Masterson's entrance song was Skillet's Rebirthing.
References
- ^ "Top 100 Prospects: No. 61-80". http://www.baseballamerica.com/today/prospects/rankings/top-100-prospects/2008/265659.html. Retrieved 2008-04-18.
- ^ "Fun in games for Masterson". Boston Globe. http://www.boston.com/sports/baseball/redsox/articles/2008/06/09/fun_in_games_for_masterson/. Retrieved 2008-06-09.
- ^ "Profile: #21 Justin Masterson". San Diego State University. http://goaztecs.cstv.com/sports/m-basebl/mtt/masterson_justin00.html. Retrieved 2008-04-17.
- ^ Justin Masterson | SoxProspects.com
- ^ "MLB Second place among all Red Sox minors.". mlb.mlb.com. http://mlb.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20080306&content_id=2408395&vkey=spt2008news&fext=.jsp&c_id=bos MLB. Retrieved 2008-06-01.
- ^ The Daily Aztec
- ^ "BaseballAmerica.com: Minors: 2006 Minor League All-Stars". http://www.baseballamerica.com/today/minors/features/262512.html. Retrieved 2008-04-14.
- ^ "Justin Masterson Statistics — The Baseball Cube". http://www.thebaseballcube.com/players/M/Justin-Masterson.shtml. Retrieved 2008-04-14.
- ^ "Minor League Baseball: Stats: Player". http://www.minorleaguebaseball.com/milb/stats/stats.jsp?n=Justin%20Masterson&pos=P&sid=milb&t=p_pbp&pid=475416. Retrieved 2008-04-14.
- ^ Red Sox Team Transactions February 2008
- ^ Ian Browne (2008-06-18). "Masterson keeps 'living the dream'". MLB.com. http://mlb.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20080617&content_id=2947358&vkey=news_bos&fext=.jsp&c_id=bos. Retrieved 2008-06-20.
- ^ Rob Bradford (2008-07-08). "Justin Masterson off to become reliever". Boston Herald. http://www.bostonherald.com/sports/baseball/red_sox/view/2008_07_08_Masterson_off_to_become_reliever/srvc=redsox&position=5. Retrieved 2008-07-08.
- ^ "Justin Masterson: Back in Boston". rotowire.com. 2008-07-20. http://sports.yahoo.com/mlb/news;_ylt=ApeZ.iBsYvUgcevRmDgWueaFCLcF?slug=rotowire-ustinastersonackinos&prov=rotowire&type=fantasy. Retrieved 2008-07-23.
- ^ [1]
- ^ A miracle comeback: Red Sox 8, Rays 7
- ^ Justin Masterson - Red Sox pitching prospect - Royal Rooters
External links
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Justin Masterson |
- Career statistics and player information from MLB, or ESPN, or Baseball-Reference, or Fangraphs, or The Baseball Cube, or Baseball-Reference (Minors)
- Justin Masterson
- Justin Masterson Q&A
- Baseball America statistics
- Portland Sea Dogs About Justin Masterson
Articles
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