Percival Garner III (born December 13, 1988) is an American former professional baseball pitcher who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Cleveland Indians in 2016.

Perci Garner
Relief pitcher
Born: (1988-12-13) December 13, 1988 (age 35)
Dover, Ohio, U.S.
Batted: Right
Threw: Right
MLB debut
August 31, 2016, for the Cleveland Indians
Last MLB appearance
September 27, 2016, for the Cleveland Indians
MLB statistics
Win–loss record0–0
Earned run average4.82
Strikeouts12
Teams

College career edit

Perci was a three-sport athlete while attending Dover High School in Dover, Ohio, where he played basketball, football, and baseball. He enrolled at Ball State University to play college football, but only saw two snaps at quarterback in his redshirt freshman season.[1] At the urging of football coach Stan Parrish, Perci tried out for the college baseball team.[2] Garner played two seasons for Ball State. As a redshirt freshman, Perci had a 4.95 ERA across 20 innings in 17 games.[3] The following year, Perci led the team in strikeouts (83) while compiling a 4.62 ERA and a 5-3 record as a starter, earning him First Team All-Mid-American Conference honors.[3]

Professional career edit

Philadelphia Phillies edit

Garner was drafted by the Philadelphia Phillies in the second round of the 2010 Major League Baseball Draft.[4] He spent 2010 and 2011 with the Williamsport Crosscutters, and played sparingly. In 2012, Garner was promoted to the Clearwater Threshers, where he had a 7-9 record and a 4.84 ERA in 26 starts. He followed that up with a 6-6 record and a 4.30 ERA in 22 starts for Clearwater, while also having shorts stints with the Reading Fightin Phils and the Lehigh Valley IronPigs. He then split time between Clearwater and Reading in 2014 before being released.

Cleveland Indians edit

Prior to the 2015 season he signed a minor league contract with the Cleveland Indians, who converted him from a starting pitcher to a relief pitcher.[5] During the 2015 season, Perci pitched solely for the Lynchburg Hillcats posting a record of 3-1 with a 2.93 ERA in 18 appearances. In 2016, Perci compiled a combined 7-1 record and 1.83 ERA in a total of 41 appearances with the Akron RubberDucks and the Columbus Clippers before making his major league debut in August.

Garner was called up to the major leagues by Cleveland for the first time on August 31, 2016, and made his debut that same day.[6][7] During his time with the Indians in 2016, he appeared in 8 games compiling a record of 0-0 and a 4.82 ERA.

The Indians designated Garner for assignment on July 31, 2017, in order to make room on their 40-man roster for Joe Smith. The Indians re-signed Garner to a minor league contract on August 10, 2017.[8] He elected free agency following the season on November 6.[9]

Baltimore Orioles edit

On November 30, 2017, Garner signed a minor league contract with the Baltimore Orioles organization.[10] He was released on June 6, 2018.

References edit

  1. ^ "Ball State 2008 Football Statistics". Ball State University. Retrieved 6 September 2016.
  2. ^ Cahill, Teddy. "BASEBALL: Rough start in football leads Garner to mound". Ball State Daily. Retrieved 6 September 2016.
  3. ^ a b "Perci Garner". Ball State University. Retrieved 6 September 2016.
  4. ^ Williams, Jeff (June 8, 2010). "Garner drafted by the Phillies". The Times-Reporter. New Philadelphia, Ohio: GateHouse Media. Retrieved August 31, 2016.
  5. ^ Metzger, Roger (April 18, 2015). "Perci Garner signs free agent contract with Indians' organization". The Times-Reporter. New Philadelphia, Ohio: GateHouse Media. Retrieved August 31, 2016.
  6. ^ Hoynes, Paul (August 31, 2016). "Cleveland Indians promote RHP Perci Garner; move Yan Gomes to 60-day disabled list". Cleveland.com. Cleveland: Advance Publications (Newhouse Newspapers). Retrieved August 31, 2016.
  7. ^ "Twins vs Indians 8/31/16". MLB.com. United States: Major League Baseball. August 31, 2016. Retrieved August 31, 2016.
  8. ^ "Indians' Perci Garner: Brought back on minors deal". CBSSports.com. August 10, 2017.
  9. ^ "Minor League Free Agents 2017". baseballamerica.com. Retrieved 2023-06-03.
  10. ^ Todd, Jeff (November 30, 2017). "Minor MLB Transactions: 11/30/17". mlbtraderumors.com. Retrieved November 30, 2017.

External links edit