Pedro Feliciano

Pedro Feliciano
New York Yankees – No. 31
Relief pitcher
Born: August 25, 1976 (1976-08-25) Río Piedras, Puerto Rico
Bats: Left	Throws: Left
MLB debut
September 4, 2002 for the New York Mets
Career statistics
Win-loss record	22–19
Earned run average	3.23
Strikeouts	341
Teams
New York Mets (2002–2004) Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks (2005) New York Mets (2006–2010)
Career highlights and awards
Led Majors with appearances in 2008 (86), 2009 (88), and 2010 (92)

Pedro Juan Feliciano Molina (born August 25, 1976 in Río Piedras, Puerto Rico) is a Major League Baseball left-handed pitcher for the New York Yankees.

Early life

Feliciano graduated from Jose S. Algeria High School in Dorado, Puerto Rico.

Professional career

Early career

In 1995 he was selected by the Los Angeles Dodgers in the 31st round of the amateur draft and began his professional career with the Great Falls Dodgers in the Pioneer League. His progress through the minor leagues was slow and marred by injuries.^{[citation needed]} After four years in the Rookie and Class A leagues, he suffered a shoulder injury in 1999 which prevented him from playing all season.^{[citation needed]} He returned in 2000, pitching at the AA level, with one inning for the AAA Albuquerque Dukes. In 2001, he struggled in AAA after pitching well in AA.^{[citation needed]} After six years of service in the minor leagues without promotion to the Majors, he became a free agent.

New York Mets

Feliciano signed with the Cincinnati Reds for the 2002 season, but was traded to the New York Mets in August along with Brady Clark for Shawn Estes. On September 4, 2002, Feliciano made his Major League debut pitching two scoreless innings of relief against the Florida Marlins. In the three years following, he had mixed success with the Mets, being recalled from and optioned to the AAA Norfolk Tides several times in 2003 and 2004. In 2005, he spent the season with the Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks of the Japanese Pacific League, but returned to the Mets as a left-handed specialist for the 2006 and 2007 seasons. In 2008 and 2009, he operated as a full-fledged member of the bullpen ensemble and the Mets' primary situational left-hander, often appearing in the seventh or eighth innings to pitch to one or two left-handed batters. In 2010, Feliciano has been also used as a set-up man.

In 2007, he recorded his first career big-league save against the Philadelphia Phillies.

In 2008, he led the majors in games pitched, with 86.[1] In 58 of those games, the greatest number in the majors, he recorded fewer than three outs.[2] He also led the majors in days pitched on zero days rest, with 36.[3]

Due to his large number of appearances, he has been nicknamed "Perpetual Pedro" by Mets broadcaster Gary Cohen.

In 2010, he passed Hall of Famer Tom Seaver in games pitched for the Mets with 459 and is now second all time to John Franco.

Pedro lead the majors in appearances in 2008, 2009, and 2010. He has had the most appearances from 2007–2010. His 344 relief appearances over those four years, is a Major League Baseball record.

New York Yankees

Feliciano signed a two-year contract worth $8 million with the New York Yankees. He has since been placed on the Disabled List because of soreness in his left shoulder. On April 25, orthopedist James Andrews recommended a six-week strengthening program for the pitcher. Pedro was shut down for the 2011 season. The Yankees front office said the reason behind Feliciano's injury was that the Mets overused him. The reason for Feliciano's trip to the disabled list was due to rotator cuff surgery. Because of it, he is expected to not make one pitch over his entire contract.

External links

• Career statistics and player information from MLB, or ESPN, or Baseball-Reference, or Fangraphs, or The Baseball Cube, or Baseball-Reference (Minors)