Mike Hampton
history
| team = Free Agent
| number = --
| position = Starting pitcher
| birthdate =
| birthplace =
| bats = Right
| throws = Left
| debutdate = April 17
| debutyear = 1993
| debutteam = Seattle Mariners
| statyear = 2009 Season
| stat1label = Win-Loss
| stat1value = 148-115
| stat2label = Earned run average
| stat2value = 4.07
| stat3label = Strikeouts
| stat3value = 1,384
| teams =
- Seattle Mariners ()
- Houston Astros (-)
- New York Mets ()
- Colorado Rockies (-)
- Atlanta Braves (-, )
- Houston Astros ()
- 5x Silver Slugger Award winner (, , , , )
- 2x All-Star selection (1999, 2001)
- 1x Gold Glove Award ()
- Led NL in wins in
Early career
Mike Hampton was drafted by the Seattle Mariners in the 5th round of the draft. He first broke into the major leagues in , but had a disappointing start. After the season, he found himself traded to the Houston Astros, where he would become a star.
Hampton became a starter for Houston in , and kept his ERA under 4.00 for every season he was with the Astros. In , Hampton had his best year. He broke through with a 22–4 record, best in the National League, and a 2.90 ERA. He picked up his first of five Silver Slugger Awards and narrowly finished second in National League Cy Young Award voting to Randy Johnson.
Entering the final year of his contract, Hampton was dealt to the New York Mets in the wake of his big season. He went 15–10 with a 3.12 ERA and helped the Mets greatly in the postseason. With two wins and no earned runs in two starts, Hampton was named the MVP of the 2000 NLCS. Hampton received a loss in his only World Series appearance.
During this time, Hampton also established a reputation as a good hitting pitcher, as he batted .311 (23 for 74) in 1999. His best all-around offensive season came in 2001 with the Colorado Rockies, when he would hit .291 with 7 home runs. The next year he hit 3 home runs and batted .344. From 1999-2003, Hampton would go on to win 5 consecutive Silver Slugger Awards.
Colorado and Atlanta
The Colorado Rockies signed Hampton to an expensive, long-term contract on December 9, 2000. It was the largest contract in sports history at the time. The contract is currently the 25th largest in the history of sports. (Hampton once claimed that he had chosen to move to Colorado because of "the school system", a statement that is often derisively referenced by sportswriters.»Rockies' Hampton, the Education Pitcher, is Sticking to his Story) The Rockies hoped Hampton, who had been one of the best pitchers in the league over the past few seasons, would be able to succeed in the tough pitching conditions of Coors Field.
Hampton went a disappointing 14–13 with a 5.12 ERA in , his pitching clearly affected by Coors Field. Like his predecessor Darryl Kile, Hampton succumbed to control problems. The next season was even more of a disaster for the highly-paid Hampton, as he went 7–15 with his ERA climbing to 6.15. The only positive from Hampton's two Colorado years was his hitting (ten home runs and .300+ batting average over two seasons).
In November , Hampton and his contract were traded to the Florida Marlins, then to the Atlanta Braves. Braves' pitching coach Leo Mazzone set about trying to get Hampton's career back on track after the Coors Field debacle. Hampton won 14 games and got his ERA back down to 3.84 in . He overcame a slow start in by winning 10 of his last 11 decisions and helping to propel the Braves to another division championship.
Hampton did not contribute nearly as much in as he was limited heavily by injuries. He went 5–3 in twelve starts, but was lost for the rest of the season with an elbow injury on August 19, 2005. Hampton had Tommy John surgery on September 25, 2005 and missed the entire season rehabbing.
The Braves were hoping for Hampton to be ready to rejoin the rotation in time for the start of the season. The rehab was on schedule until Hampton tore his oblique muscle on March 7, 2007, which was to sideline him until at least May. »Hampton strains side muscle Soon after, the Braves signed Mark Redman to be a left-handed starting pitcher for them in case Hampton was not able to return to action soon. After Hampton threw a bullpen session on April 8, the Braves shut Hampton down due to recurring elbow pain and said that he would see Dr. David Altchek, who had performed his Tommy John surgery in 2005.»Hampton suffers setback The next day, it was announced after having another left elbow procedure, that Hampton would miss the entire 2007 season.»The Official Site of The Atlanta Braves: News: Atlanta Braves News
Hampton began a rehab assignment on November 22, 2007 for Navojoa of the Mexican Winter League. In the first inning, he attempted to make a play on a comebacker and left during warmups before the second inning, feeling discomfort in his hamstring. The rest of his rehab was left in doubt.»Hampton Strains Hamstring In Mexico
However, Hampton reported to "Camp Roger" on time in late January. He threw off the mound for Bobby Cox and Roger McDowell, both of whom were impressed with Hampton's steady progress. Hampton arrived a day before pitchers and catchers were due to report at Lake Buena Vista. He ran sprints and played catch with teammates, and continued to pitch off the mound, and threw to live batters: Mark Kotsay, Tim Hudson, and Corky Miller.
On April 3, 2008, Hampton was scheduled to make his long-anticipated return to the Braves rotation in a game against the Pittsburgh Pirates. While warming up, however, Hampton strained his left pectoral muscle, and was placed on the 15-day disabled list.
On July 10, 2008, Hampton was scheduled to start for the Mississippi Braves, the Double-A affiliate of the Atlanta Braves, against the Jacksonville Suns.
On July 26, 2008, Hampton made his first major league start since August 2005 against the Philadelphia Phillies.
On August 5, 2008, following two mediocre starts in his return to the majors, Hampton earned his first victory in nearly three years against the San Francisco Giants. However, he was soon injured again, and finished the season with only 13 appearances. His final 2008 stats included a 3-4 record and a 4.85 ERA.
Return to Houston
On December 3, 2008, Hampton signed a 1-year contract worth $2 million with the Houston Astros.»Astros welcome back Hampton Hampton can earn another $2 million in performance based incentives.»Hampton returning to Astros
Hampton chose to wear uniform #11 in his return to Houston to honor his old friend, longtime Astro catcher Brad Ausmus. His #10 that he wore during his first stint with Houston is currently being worn by Miguel Tejada. His physical was clean, and experts believe he is once again healthy. He'll slot in as the number 2 pitcher behind Roy Oswalt. »New number honors old friend
On September 15, 2009, Hampton underwent full rotator cuff surgery to repair a tear and will miss the entire 2010 season.»Hampton to miss next season
- 2-time All-Star (1999, 2001)
- National League Championship Series MVP (2000)
- Led NL in winning percentage (.8462, 1999)
- Became the first pitcher ever to win the Gold Glove Award and Silver Slugger awards in the same season (2003). The Gold Glove also snapped then-Atlanta teammate Greg Maddux's streak of 13 consecutive Gold Gloves. Hampton was the only National League pitcher other than Maddux to win a Gold Glove during Maddux's career from and onward.
- Hampton holds the record for most Silver Slugger awards for a pitcher, with five.
Statistics
{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Year || Team || W || L || ERA || G || GS || CG || SHO || SV || IP || H || HR || BB || SO
|-
| 1993 || Seattle Mariners || 1 || 3 || 9.53 || 13 || 3 || 0 || 0 || 1 || 17.0 || 28 || 3 || 17 || 8
|-
| 1994 || Houston Astros || 2 || 1 || 3.70 || 44 || 0 || 0 || 0 || 0 || 41.1 || 46 || 4 || 16 || 24
|-
| 1995 || Houston Astros || 9 || 8 || 3.35 || 24 || 24 || 0 || 0 || 0 || 150.2 || 141 || 13 || 49 || 115
|-
| 1996 || Houston Astros || 10 || 10 || 3.59 || 27 || 27 || 2 || 1 || 0 || 160.1 || 175 || 12 || 49 || 101
|-
| 1997 || Houston Astros || 15 || 10 || 3.83 || 34 || 34 || 7 || 2 || 0 || 223.0 || 217 || 16 || 77 || 139
|-
| 1998 || Houston Astros || 11 || 7 || 3.36 || 32 || 32 || 1 || 1 || 0 || 211.2 || 227 || 18 || 81 || 137
|-
| 1999 || Houston Astros || 22 || 4 || 2.90 || 34 || 34 || 3 || 2 || 0 || 239.0 || 206 || 12 || 101 || 177
|-
| 2000 || New York Mets || 15 || 10 || 3.14 || 33 || 33 || 3 || 1 || 0 || 217.2 || 194 || 10 || 99 || 151
|-
| 2001 || Colorado Rockies || 14 || 13 || 5.41 || 32 || 32 || 2 || 1 || 0 || 203.0 || 236|| 31 || 85 || 122
|-
| 2002 || Colorado Rockies || 7 || 15 || 6.15 || 30 || 30 || 0 || 0 || 0 || 178.2 || 228 || 24 || 91 || 74
|-
| 2003 || Atlanta Braves || 14 || 8 || 3.84 || 31 || 31 || 1 || 0 || 0 || 190.0 || 186 || 14 || 78 || 110
|-
| 2004 || Atlanta Braves || 13 || 9 || 4.28 || 29 || 29 || 1 || 0 || 0 || 172.1|| 198 || 15 || 65 || 87
|-
| 2005 || Atlanta Braves || 5 || 3 || 3.50 || 12 || 12 || 1 || 0 || 0 || 69.1|| 74 || 5 || 18 || 27
|-
| 2008 || Atlanta Braves || 3 || 4 || 4.85 || 13 || 13 || 0 || 0 || 0 || 78.0|| 83 || 10 || 28 || 38
|-
| 2009 || Houston Astros || 7 || 10 || 5.30 || 21 || 21 || 0 || 0 || 0 || 112 || 128 || 13 || 46 || 74
|-
| Career || || 148 || 115 || 4.07 || 409 || 355 || 21 || 9 || 1 || 2264.0 || 2367 || 200 || 900 || 1384
|}
- List of Major League Baseball leaders in career wins
- List of Major League Baseball wins champions
- MLB all-time leaders in home runs by pitchers
, | after = Craig Counsell}}
| after = Greg Maddux}}