Casey Kotchman
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Casey John Kotchman (born February 22, 1983) is an American former
High school
Kotchman played baseball for Seminole High School in Seminole, Florida. In 2001, Baseball America ranked the team number one nationally, with Kotchman the top-ranked player nationally—the team went undefeated on the field in 31 games (with an official record of 21–10 due to forfeits) and won the state Class 5A championship.[2]
Professional career
Anaheim Angels / Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim
The Anaheim Angels selected Kotchman with the thirteenth overall pick in the 2001 MLB draft.
In
Kotchman missed 128 games in
In
Atlanta Braves
On July 29, 2008, Kotchman was traded to the Atlanta Braves along with minor league pitcher Stephen Marek for first baseman Mark Teixeira.[3] Kotchman started his tenure with the Braves by batting just .157 in his first 20 games but he ended the season with a .237 batting average.[4]
Kotchman was placed on the
On January 31, 2009, Kotchman avoided arbitration and agreed to a one-year, $2.885 million contract.[8] Kotchman mentioned at spring training in 2009 that playing for the Braves was always a dream of his.[9] Kotchman suffered a shin contusion after being hit by a pitch from Arizona Diamondbacks' pitcher Max Scherzer on May 31 and was expected to be out two to three days.[10] The injury did, however, force Kotchman on the 15-day disabled list and was activated on June 16.[11]
Boston Red Sox
On July 31, 2009, Kotchman was acquired by the Red Sox in a trade for first baseman Adam LaRoche.[12] In Kotchman's first game with the Red Sox, he hit a two-run home run off of Joba Chamberlain.[13] With the Red Sox, Kotchman hit .218 with three doubles, one home run, seven RBIs, and one stolen base in 29 games. This gave Kotchman a combined average of .268 with 23 doubles, seven home runs, 48 RBIs, and 39 walks in 126 games between Boston and Atlanta.[14]
Seattle Mariners
In early January
On June 3, 2010, Kotchman set the Major League Baseball individual streak record with 2,003 consecutive chances without an error. The previous record had been held by Kevin Youkilis of the Boston Red Sox, established between July 4, 2006, and June 6, 2008.[19] On August 21, 2010, the streak ended when Kotchman mishandled a hard groundball hit by Curtis Granderson of the New York Yankees. The error was his first since July 20, 2008, when he played for the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, a streak of 2,379 fielding chances.[20]
He batted .217 for the season.[21] On November 4, 2010, Kotchman refused an outright assignment to AAA by the Mariners, electing to become a free agent instead.[22][23]
Tampa Bay Rays
Kotchman signed a minor league contract with an invitation to 2011 spring training with the Tampa Bay Rays.[24] On March 26 the Rays assigned Kotchman to Durham.[25] Following the retirement of Manny Ramirez six games into the 2011 season, Kotchman's contract was selected from Durham and he was added to the Rays' active roster. On August 9, 2011, Kotchman hit a walk-off home run off Kansas City Royals reliever Blake Wood to give the Rays a 2-1 win.[26] Through 2019, he had the best career fielding percentage among major league first basemen (.998), ahead of Kevin Youkilis.[27]
Cleveland Indians
Kotchman signed a one-year contract with the
Miami Marlins
On February 15, 2013 he signed a minor league contract with the Miami Marlins.[29][30] He was released on August 26, 2013.[31]
Kansas City Royals
After sitting all of the 2014 season retired from baseball, Kotchman signed a minor league deal with the Kansas City Royals on March 6, 2015.[32] He played in 90 games for the Triple-A Omaha Storm Chasers, hitting .290/.374/.426 with 7 home runs and 44 RBI. He elected free agency following the season on November 6, 2015.[33]
Toronto Blue Jays
On November 23, 2015, Kotchman signed a minor league contract with the Toronto Blue Jays that included an invitation to spring training.[34] He became a free agent on November 7, 2016.
Personal life
He is the son of
References
- ^ "Error Records for First Basemen". Baseball Almanac. Retrieved June 23, 2021.
- ^ Diekemper, Lee (May 26, 2001). "Pile of victories". The Tampa Tribune. p. 1. Retrieved June 23, 2021 – via newspapers.com.
- ^ "Big deal: Angels acquire Teixeira from Braves". Retrieved March 27, 2011. [dead link]
- ^ Mark Bowman (September 18, 2008). "Kotchman getting into groove". Major League Baseball. atlanta.braves.mlb.com. Retrieved January 5, 2010.
- ^ Mark Bowman (August 20, 2008). "Kotchman placed on bereavement list". Major League Baseball. atlanta.braves.mlb.com. Retrieved January 5, 2010.
- ^ Mark Bowman (August 27, 2008). "Kotchman placed on restricted list". Major League Baseball. atlanta.braves.mlb.com. Retrieved January 5, 2010.
- ^ Alden Gonzalez (September 1, 2008). "Kotchman off restricted list Monday". Major League Baseball. atlanta.braves.mlb.com. Retrieved January 5, 2010.
- ^ Mark Bowman (January 31, 2008). "Kotchman, Braves avoid arbitration". Major League Baseball. mlb.mlb.com. Retrieved January 5, 2010.
- ^ Mark Bowman (February 20, 2009). "Kotchman all smiles in Braves camp". Major League Baseball. atlanta.braves.mlb.com. Archived from the original on February 24, 2009. Retrieved January 5, 2010.
- ^ Barry M. Bloom (May 31, 2009). "Kotchman could miss a few games". Major League Baseball. atlanta.braves.mlb.com. Retrieved January 5, 2010.
- ^ Mark Bowman (June 16, 2009). "Kotchman returns from disabled list". Major League Baseball. atlanta.braves.mlb.com. Retrieved January 5, 2010.
- ^ David O'Brien (July 31, 2009). "Braves trade Kotchman for LaRoche". The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. ajc.com. Retrieved January 7, 2010.
- ^ "Yanks chase floundering Smoltz in 4th to beat Red Sox for 1st time in 10 games". sports.espn.go.com. Associated Press. Retrieved January 7, 2010.
- ^ "Kotchman, Mariners agree to contract". Major League Baseball. ESPN. Associated Press. February 3, 2010. Retrieved February 4, 2010.
- ^ "Sources: Mariners eye Kotchman". ESPN. sports.espn.go.com. January 5, 2010. Retrieved January 5, 2010.
- ^ Amalie Benjamin (January 5, 2010). "Sox to send Kotchman to Mariners, receive Bill Hall". The Boston Globe. boston.com. Retrieved January 5, 2010.
- ^ Doug Miller (January 7, 2010). "Seattle acquires Kotchman, adds to makeover". Major League Baseball. boston.redsox.mlb.com. Archived from the original on January 11, 2010. Retrieved January 8, 2010.
- ^ Jim Street (February 3, 2010). "Mariners reach agreement with Kotchman". Major League Baseball. seattle.mariners.mlb.com. Retrieved February 3, 2010.
- ^ "Youk's late error halts streak". redsox.com. Archived from the original on June 8, 2008. Retrieved June 8, 2008.
- ^ "Kotchman's record errorless streak ends". mlb.com. Retrieved August 21, 2010.
- ^ "Casey Kotchman Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved March 27, 2011.
- ^ "Casey Kotchman now a free agent". KIRO-TV. November 4, 2010. Retrieved April 8, 2016. [permanent dead link]
- ^ Larue, Larry (November 4, 2010). "Casey Kotchman, good luck and adieu". The New Tribune. Archived from the original on April 19, 2016. Retrieved April 8, 2016.
- ^ "Rays sign Casey Kotchman to minor-league deal | St. Petersburg Times". Tampabay.com. January 28, 2011. Archived from the original on 2011-02-01. Retrieved March 27, 2011.
- ^ "Tampa Bay Rays send Seminole's Casey Kotchman to minors despite strong spring - St. Petersburg Times". Tampabay.com. Archived from the original on 2012-10-14. Retrieved March 27, 2011.
- ^ Alden Gonzalez (April 8, 2011). "Manny retires after notification of drug issue". RaysBaseball.com. Archived from the original on April 12, 2011. Retrieved April 8, 2011.
- ^ "Active Leaders & Records for Fielding % as 1B | Baseball-Reference.com".
- ^ Hoynes, Paul (March 17, 2012). "First baseman Casey Kotchman ready to play:Indians insider". The Plain Dealer. Retrieved May 3, 2012.
- ^ Frisaro, Joe (February 15, 2013). "Marlins ink Kotchman to Minor League deal". MLB.com. Retrieved April 8, 2016.
- ^ Capozzi, Joe (February 17, 2016). "Defense might help Miami Marlins' Casey Kotchman start at first base if Logan Morrison isn't ready". Palm Beach Post. Retrieved April 8, 2016.
- ^ Spencer, Clark (August 26, 2013). "Jose Fernandez NL Player of Week (Again); Marlins release 1B Casey Kotchman". Miami Herald. Retrieved April 8, 2016.
- ^ Gleeman, Aaron (March 6, 2015). "Casey Kotchman is making a comeback with the Royals". hardbaltalk.nbcsports.com. Retrieved March 7, 2015.
- ^ "Dusty Coleman heads list of Royals minor league free agents". royalsreview.com. 9 November 2015. Retrieved 2023-04-23.
- ^ Nicholson-Smith, Ben (November 23, 2015). "Blue Jays sign Kotchman, Mier, Adams to minor league deals". Sportsnet. Retrieved November 23, 2015.
- ^ a b c d Geoff Baker (January 7, 2010). "New Mariners first baseman Casey Kotchman has something to prove". The Seattle Times. seattletimes.nwsource.com. Archived from the original on January 11, 2010. Retrieved January 8, 2010.
External links
- Career statistics and player information from MLB, or ESPN, or Baseball Reference, or Fangraphs, or Baseball Reference (Minors), or Retrosheet