Joey Devine
From BR Bullpen
Joseph N. Devine
- Bats Right, Throws Right
- Height 5' 11", Weight 195 lb.
- School North Carolina State University
- Debut August 20, 2005
- Born September 19, 1983 in Junction City, KS USA
[edit] Biographical Information
Pitcher Joey Devine was selected by the Atlanta Braves in the first round of the 2005 amateur draft. He became the first member of that year's draft class to make his big league debut when he joined the Braves that August. However, he was hit hard in his first few major league appearances, posting an ERA of 12.60 in five games, and then he gave up a series-clinching extra-innings home run to Chris Burke of the Houston Astros in the NLCS. He made the Braves out of spring training in 2006, but his ERA was 9.95 in 10 games, sending him back to the minor leagues. He finally showed some of the spark that had been expected of him in 2007, when he gave up only one run in 8⅓ innings in a late-season call-up.
In 2008, he was traded by Atlanta in spring training with Jamie Richmond to the Oakland Athletics for Mark Kotsay. He pitched much better with his new team, becoming a mainstay of the A's bullpen in 2008 and finding tremendous success: in 45⅔ innings, he gave up a mere 23 hits and 3 earned runs, for a minuscule 0.59 ERA. He then suffered a major set-back early in 2009, when he had Tommy John surgery on April 22. This injury is expected to keep him out of the majors until mid-2010 at least.
