Casey Fossum

Infobox MLB player
name = Casey Fossum


width = 300
position = Pitcher
team = Detroit Tigers
number = 49
bats = Left
throws = Left
birthdate = birth date and age|1978|1|6
birthplace = city-state|Cherry Hill|New Jersey
debutdate = July 29
debutyear = 2001
debutteam = Boston Red Sox
statyear = August 17, 2008
stat1label = Win–Loss
stat1value = 39–53
stat2label = Earned run average
stat2value = 5.48
stat3label = Strikeouts
stat3value = 596
teams =
* Boston Red Sox (by|2001–by|2003)
* Arizona Diamondbacks (by|2004)
* Tampa Bay Devil Rays (by|2005–by|2007)
* Detroit Tigers (by|2008–present)

Casey Paul Fossum (born January 6, 1978 in Cherry Hill, New Jersey) is a pitcher in Major League Baseball for the Detroit Tigers. Previously, Fossum played for the Boston Red Sox (by|2001–by|2003), Arizona Diamondbacks (by|2004), and Tampa Bay Devil Rays (by|2005–by|2007). He bats and throws left-handed.

Fossum attended Midway High School in Waco, Texas. He then attended Texas A&M University, leading the Aggies to the 1999 College World Series in Omaha, Nebraska. He earned All-Big 12 honors in both by|1998 and by|1999, highlighted by a 12–7 record and 3.64 earned run average (ERA) during his junior campaign, establishing a single-season school mark with 162 strikeouts. Fossum also won the C. E. "Pat" Olsen Outstanding Pitcher Award in 1999 and was a second team All-American in 1998. Selected by the Boston Red Sox in the 1999 June draft as the third pick in the first round (48th overall), Fossum started his major league career in 2001.

During three years with Boston, Fossum moved between the bullpen and the rotation, compiling 14 victories with two saves in 75 games. After a recurrence of tendinitis in his pitching shoulder, he underwent surgery in September 2003. Two months later, he was sent to the Arizona Diamondbacks in the same trade that brought Curt Schilling to the Red Sox.

In 2004, and for the first time in his career, Fossum was used exclusively as a starter, finishing third on the Diamondbacks staff in starts (27), innings pitched (142) and strikeouts (117), despite missing the first 5 1/2 weeks to recover from surgery.

Fossum was traded to the Tampa Bay Devil Rays for outfielder José Cruz, Jr. before the 2005 season.

On August 10, 2007, the Devil Rays released Fossum. He signed a minor league contract with the San Diego Padres on August 22, 2007. On January 24, 2008, Fossum signed a minor-league contract with an invitation to spring training with the Pittsburgh Pirates. At the end of spring training, he declined his assignment to the minor leagues and elected to become a free agent.

On April 9, 2008, Fossum signed a minor league contract with the Detroit Tigers. On June 3, his contract was purchased by the Tigers, after the DFA of right-handed pitcher Francisco Cruceta, and he was added to the active roster.

couting

Fossum throws three different overhand curveballs. The first curveball is a tight-rotating 1–7 curveball that has a velocity in the low to mid 70s, but a pitch that Fossum struggles to throw effectively over the plate for strikes and at times remains too flat. The second curveball is also a 1–7 pitch, has a moderate break while clocking in between 65–70 mph, and can effectively throw for strikes. The third curveball is a 12–6 curveball with an enormous break, making it nearly unhittable. While the pitch has been a very effective pitch for him to use, often landing for strikes or causing popouts, he regulates the pitch as a change-of-pace pitch to prevent batters from becoming used to it. Fossum dubbed this pitch the "Fossum Flip", and it is essentially a form of the Eephus pitch [Chastain, Bill. [http://tampabay.devilrays.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/news/article.jsp?ymd=20050731&content_id=1151996&vkey=news_tb&fext=.jsp&c_id=tb Fossom introduces new quirk] . Retrieved October 19, 2006.] . He also has a decent fastball in the 88–92 mph range and a changeup that while effective, does not drop as well as most other pitchers. Fossum is also a good fielder and has an above-average pickoff move.

Fossum's biggest knock is his stamina. Weighing in at 160lbs, Fossum has a somewhat violent throwing style and has been injured a few times in his career. In 2004, he missed the first five weeks of the season with a sore elbow, and near the end of the 2005 season his effectiveness was reduced to what he and Lou Piniella attributed to lower back pain. Fossum is also very bad at holding runners on base. In 2004, baserunners managed to steal 15 bases out of 23 attempts, and in 2005, only 4 basestealers out of 14 attempts were caught.

References

External links

*baseballstats |mlb=407154 |espn=4823 |br=f/fossuca01 |fangraphs=188 |cube=F/casey-fossum