User:Pladletuce

Shelby Rama

Shelby Rama (January 22, 1972 - March 15, 2009) was a 6'6" right-handed pitcher from Phoenix, Arizona. He played for the Philadelphia Phillies organization in the 1990's, and had a brief stint in the Tampa Bay Rays organization as well. He passed away due to liver disease in 2009.

Early career

Shelby attended Thunderbird High School from 1986-1990, pitching each year for the Thunderbird Chiefs. Not drafted by any Major League team or heavily recruited by Division I schools, he opted to attend Glendale Community College (Arizona) on an athletic scholarship. He pitched for two years at Glendale Community College, and the primary catcher was Paul Lo Duca, who eventually transferred to Arizona State University and later went on to play for the Los Angeles Dodgers, Florida Marlins, New York Mets, and Washington Nationals^[1].

In 1991, Shelby helped propel GCC into the National Junior College Athletic Association World Series, eventually won by Howard College (Texas)^[2]. That represented only the second time that GCC ever went to the NJCAA World Series.

After pitching for two years at GCC, he signed a free-agent contract with the Phillies organization in 1993.

Minor League career

His first season was with the Spartanburg Phillies in the South Atlantic League^[3]. He started 10 games and posted a 4-6 record with a 3.21 ERA in 70 innings pitched. He was promoted to the Clearwater Phillies mid-season, where he started another 7 games, posting a 3-2 record with a 4.26 ERA in 38 innings, including 2 complete games. He helped the Clearwater Phillies win their first Florida State League Championship in 1993^[4].

In 1994 he began his second season back in Spartanburg, where he was used primarily as a reliever, appearing in 30 games spanning 97 innings. He posted a 5-7 record with a 4.35 ERA, picked up his only career save that season, and also tossed his first complete game shutout, in one of his 10 starts.

Shelby lost his 1995 season due to an arm injury, but came back strong in 1996 with the Clearwater Phillies having his best season to date. He posted a 7-3 record with a nice 2.92 ERA over 83 innings, mostly in relief. He continued to suffer arm problems and his contract was not renewed with the Phillies organization after this season.

In 1997 he signed with the Tampa Bay Devil Rays organization, and appeared in one game for the St. Petersburg Devil Rays. During this one inning, he suffered a career ending injury to his elbow, and he would never play the game again.