Joey Devine

Infobox MLB player


width = 250
name = Joey Devine
caption = Joey Devine pitches against the Chicago White Sox
team = Oakland Athletics
number = 33
position = Relief pitcher
birthdate = birth date and age|1983|9|19
birthplace = city-state|Junction City|Kansas
bats = Right
throws = Right
debutdate = August 20
debutyear = 2005
debutteam = Atlanta Braves
statyear = 2008 season
stat1label = Win-Loss
stat1value = 7-2
stat2label = Earned run average
stat2value = 2.48
stat3label = Strikeouts
stat3value = 69
teams =
*Atlanta Braves (by|2005-by|2007)
*Oakland Athletics (by|2008-present)

Joseph Devine (born September 19, 1983 in Junction City, Kansas) is a Major League Baseball relief pitcher for the Oakland Athletics.

Devine was the Braves' first selection (27th overall) in the first round of the 2005 Major League Baseball Draft out of North Carolina State University, where he had set the Wolfpack record for saves with 24. The selection was regarded as an unusual one for the Braves due to the fact that the organization has a history of selecting high school players with their early picks in order to have a greater hand in the players' development. After being drafted, Devine spent only two months in the minor leagues, pitching with the Single-A Advanced Myrtle Beach Pelicans and the Double-A Mississippi Braves before being called up to the major leagues on August 20.

Devine encountered early struggles once being called up to the major leagues, becoming the first pitcher in major league history to allow a grand slam in each of his first two games. Braves manager Bobby Cox showed faith in Devine, however, by including him on the postseason roster despite his pitching only five innings with the big-league club during the regular season. In the 18th inning of Game 4 of the 2005 National League Division Series, Devine gave up a walk-off home run to Houston Astros rookie Chris Burke to end the Braves' season.

In mlby|2006, Atlanta planned to have Devine start the season at Triple-A Richmond as the closer, but injuries to Horacio Ramírez and Blaine Boyer forced the Braves to call him up along with fellow reliever Ken Ray. Devine struggled once again, however, pitching a total of one inning in two games against the San Francisco Giants and giving up seven runs on five hits, five walks, and two wild pitches. Devine was optioned back to Richmond afterwards, with Peter Moylan serving as his replacement in Atlanta's bullpen. Devine was called up again in September and continued to pitch in Atlanta until the end of the regular season. "Baseball America" rated Devine as the Braves' ninth-best prospect entering mlby|2007. [cite web | title = "Top 10 Prospects: Atlanta Braves" | publisher = "Baseball America" | date = 2007-01-02 | url = http://www.baseballamerica.com/today/prospects/features/263052.html] Devine spent the majority of the 2007 season at Mississippi, though he was called up by Atlanta several times. On September 22, Devine earned his first major league victory against the Milwaukee Brewers. He finished the 2007 season 1-1 with a 1.08 ERA.

On January 14, mlby|2008, Devine was traded to the Oakland Athletics along with minor league pitcher Jamie Richmond for center fielder Mark Kotsay. Devine had a breakout season with the Athletics in mlby|2008; in 45 2/3 innings, Devine had a remarkable 0.59 ERA. His 0.59 ERA was the lowest in MLB history among pitchers with a minimum of 40 innings since ERA became an official statistic in mlby|1912; however, his record is not officially recognized because the MLB minimum is 50 innings. [cite web |url=http://www.gopack.com/ViewArticle.dbml?DB_OEM_ID=9200&ATCLID=1592310 |title=Devine Records MLB-low ERA of 0.59 |accessdate=2008-10-09 |author=Tim Peeler |authorlink=MLB.com |date=2008-9-29 |work=MLB.com]

tatistics

References

External links

* [http://www.baseballdigestdaily.com/bullpen/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=33&Itemid=26 Joey Devine Interview at Baseball Digest Daily]