Brett Tomko
| Brett Tomko | |
|---|---|
| Los Angeles Dodgers – No. 35 | |
| Relief Pitcher | |
Bats: Right Throws: Right | |
| debut | |
| May 27, 1997, for the Cincinnati Reds | |
| Career statistics (through August 27, 2006) | |
| Win-Loss | 89-79 |
| Earned Run Average | 4.53 |
| Strikeouts | 994 |
| Teams | |
Brett Daniel Tomko (born April 7, 1973) is a pitcher for Major League Baseball's Los Angeles Dodgers, who previously played for the Cincinnati Reds, San Diego Padres, Seattle Mariners, St. Louis Cardinals and San Francisco Giants.
Tomko married Playboy Playmate Julia Schultz (February 1998) in November 2003.
High School Years
Tomko attended El Dorado High School (Placentia, CA) and was a letter winner in basketball and baseball.
College Years
Tomko attended Florida Southern College for one season in 1995, leading the team to the NCAA Division II National Championship. He went 15-2 with a 1.35 ERA and struck out 154 batters in 126.3 innings that season, with opponents hitting just .180 against him. He pitched two complete game shutouts in the Championship Series, including one in the final game, earning him the Tournament's "outstanding player" award. In addition, he won both the NCAA Division II Pitcher and Player of the Year Awards by the American Baseball Coaches Association. [1]
Draft & Minor League Years
Tomko had been drafted out of High School by the Los Angeles Dodgers in the 20th round of the 1994 draft but chose to attend college for a year. In 1995, he was drafted in the 2nd round by the Cincinnati Reds. He signed with the Red on June 28 1995.
He pitched for three years in the Reds Minor League System, making stops at Charleston in 1995, Chattanooga in 1996 (where he was named the Reds' top prospect by Baseball America [2] and Indianapolis in 1997 before getting called up to the Major Leagues during the 1997 season.
Major League Baseball
Tomko made his first major league appearance, and first major league start, against the Philadelphia Phillies on May 27 1997. He pitched 6 innings and gave up 2 runs while taking the loss in the Reds 2-1 defeat.
He got his first victory in his next start on June 6 against the New York Mets. He pitched 6 innings, gave up one run and struck out seven in the Reds 5-2 victory.
He remained in the Reds starting rotation for three season until he was traded on February 10 2000 to the Seattle Mariners, along with Antonio Pérez, Jake Meyer and Mike Cameron for Ken Griffey Jr.. Seattle used him primarily as a reliever and spot starter during the next two seasons. He also spent some time with Seattle's "AAA" team in Tacoma in both 2000 & 2001.
On December 11 2001 the Mariners traded Tomko (along with Ramon Vazquez, Tom Lampkin and cash to the San Diego Padres in exchange for Wascar Serrano, Alex Arias and Ben Davis. Returned to the starting rotation with San Diego, making 32 starts, his most since 1998 with the Reds.
He was traded again, almost exactly a year later (December 15 2002) to the St. Louis Cardinals for Mike Wodnicki and Luther Hackman. Tomko won 13 games in his only season in St. Louis.
He signed with the San Francisco Giants as a free agent prior to the 2004 season and pitched with them for two seasons. Tomko's tenure with the Giants effectively ended when the team declined to offer him salary arbitration before the 2006 season.
On December 21, 2005, he agreed to a two-year contract worth a reported $8.7 million with the arch-rival Los Angeles Dodgers. He has pitched both as a starter and a reliever during his two seasons in Los Angeles.
He is currently best known for his very hittable hanging curve ball.
