Seth McClung

Infobox MLB player


width = 150px
name=Seth McClung

position=relief pitcher
team=Milwaukee Brewers
number=73
bats=Left
throws=Right
birthdate=birth date and age|1981|2|7
debutdate=March 31
debutyear=2003
debutteam=Tampa Bay Devil Rays
statyear=May 22, 2008
stat1label=Win-Loss
stat1value=18-26
stat2label=ERA| stat2value=5.97
stat3label=Strikeouts
stat3value=207
teams=
*Tampa Bay Devil Rays (by|2003, by|2005-by|2006)
*Milwaukee Brewers (by|2007-present)

Michael Seth McClung (born February 7, 1981 in Lewisburg, West Virginia) is a relief pitcher for the Milwaukee Brewers. In his career, he has pitched as a starting pitcher and as a relief pitcher. He comes from a family heavily involved in sports. His father, Mike, was an all-state high school football player. His brother, Marcus, is a former football player at Virginia Tech and the Canadian Football League, his brother Shawn played extreme sports, and his younger brother Sam was a lineman at Tusculum College in Greeneville, Tennessee.

McClung began the 2006 season with the Rays as a starting pitcher, was sent later that year to the minor leagues and was converted to be a closer.

He started the 2007 season in "AAA" Durham Bulls of the International League, before being traded to the Brewers.

In the late 2008 season, after impressive relief outings for the Brewers against the Chicago Cubs, his nickname 'Big Red' began to stick on account of his stature and pitching command and velocity.

Baseball career

1999

Drafted in the 5th round of the 1999 MLB Draft.

2000

Did not allow a home run in 74.1 innings pitched at Hudson Valley and Charleston combined. He pitched to a 2.41 ERA combined with the two clubs and in his 14 starts on the season he allowed 2 ER or less in 11 of them. In 8 starts at Hudson Valley, only once did he allow as many as 3 ER in a game.

2001

Named the Charleston RiverDogs Pitcher of the Year, McClung tied for the organization lead with 165 strikeouts, was 3rd in ERA (2.79) and was one of 4 pitchers in the system to win 10+ games. He led the South Atlantic League in games started (28), and he did not allow an earned run in his last four starts (IP-27). McClung allowed a home run on Opening Day (April 5 vs. Delmarva (Orioles)) and it was the first home run he had allowed since August 14, 2000 vs. Bluefield (Orioles). Baseball Weekly named him the Rays' best pitching prospect. His fastball was voted the best in the league by the Sally League managers.

2002

Was a combined 8-9 with a 4.77 ERA in 27 games, 26 starts at Class A Bakersfield and Class AA Orlando. McClung struck out more batters than he allowed hits in 10 of his 26 starts. In his first 19 games, 18 starts, he was 7-4 with a 3.52 ERA (IP-107, ER-42) at Bakersfield and Orlando combined. He went 1-5 in his last 8 starts (all at Orlando) with a 7.77 ERA (IP-44, ER- 38). He was 0-4 in August with a 7.27 ERA. Of the 16 runs he allowed at Bakersfield, 10 of them came in one start. He allowed only 6 runs in his six other starts. Through his first 4 starts, he was 2nd in the California League with an 0.83 ERA, then surrendered 10 runs in 2.1 innings against Rancho Cucamonga (Angels) on April 29. At the time of his promotion to Orlando, he was leading the California League in strikeouts (48) and was 9th in ERA (2.92). He started Opening Day for Bakersfield and lost 3-0 to Visalia (Athletics) despite striking out 8 of the 15 batters he faced. He retired the first 12 batters he faced. McClung was ranked the 5th-best propect in the organization by Baseball America, 2nd-best pitching prospect behind Dewon Brazelton. He also rated by the publication as having the organization's best fastball and curveball.

2003

Made the jump from Double-A to the big leagues and made 12 appearances (5 starts) before season-ending Tommy John surgery. He was originally placed on the 15-day DL on May 23 with a right elbow strain; transferred to the 60-day DL on June 6; then underwent the procedure on June 26 by Rays Medical Director Dr. James Andrews on June 26 in Birmingham, Alabama. At the time he was shelved was tied with Lance Carter for the team lead in wins and tied with Carter, Anaheim's Francisco Rodriguez and Toronto's Mark Hendrickson for most among AL rookies. His .241 opponents average ranked 4th best. He opened the season in the bullpen and made 7 appearances before joining the rotation in late April where he started 5 games before his injury. McClung pitched Opening Night (March 31) vs. Boston and picked up the 6-4 win (on Carl Crawford's walk-off HR) with 2.0 scoreless innings in relief (2-BB, 3-K), he struck out Kevin Millar, his first ML batter faced. He became the 4th Ray to earn a win in his ML debut (first reliever), joining Arrojo ('98), Mickey Callaway ('99) and Joe Kennedy ('01). Doug Waechter also won his debut later in the season, also in relief. He was 1-0, 4.30 in relief (14.2-IP, 9-H, 7-ER). McClung went 3-1, 6.00 as a starter (24-IP, 24-H, 16-ER) but 13 of those earned runs came in two starts. He allowed just one run in each of his other 3 starts. Two of his four wins came against Baltimore, in fact, he allowed just 2 runs and 9 hits versus the Orioles in 19.0 IP (0.95 ERA) while pitching to a 9.61 ERA (19.2-IP, 24-H, 21-ER) against everyone else. His first major league start he beat the Orioles and Omar Daal 2-1 at Tropicana Field on April 25, he worked 6.0 innings (3-H, 1-R/ER, 4-BB, 3-SO, 77 pitches). He, Mike Venafro, Travis Harper and Lance Carter combined on a 3-hitter; he took a 2-hit shutout into the 7th inning. At 22 years, 3 mo. became the 3rd-youngest pitcher to start a game in the Rays' brief history, behind Dan Wheeler (21, years, 7 mo.) and Joe Kennedy (22 years, 1 mo.), later in the season Chad Gaudin became the youngest at 20 years, 4 mo. Entering that start had pitched 6.2 scoreless innings of relief against the O's, allowing just 3 base runners. He also won at Camden Yards, 5-1, on May 16, he did walk a career-high 6 (6.1-IP, 4-H, 1-R/ER, 3-K). He established career highs in innings (7.0) and strikeouts (9) in a 3-1 win over Detroit May 10 at Tropicana Field - his last home appearance, the 9 strikeouts tied Geremi González for most on the staff in 2003. Major League Players/Roster. His first major league defeat was April 30 at Minnesota, 8-5 (1.1-IP, 6-H, 6-R/ER) - his 2nd start, he lasted just 29 pitches, 8 of his 11 batters faced reached, and he surrendered a 3-run HR to Torii Hunter. His last start was May 22 at Texas when he allowed 6 hits, 4 walks and 7 runs in 3.1 IP, he got a no decision, in a 10-8 Rangers win. He was shelved the next day. He pitched much better at Tropicana Field (3-0, 3.15) than on the road (1-1, 7.71). He held right-handers to just a stingy .205 mark (15/73). He entered the season as the 2nd-best pitching prospect in the organization by Baseball America; behind Dewon Brazelton, and also rated as having the organization's best fastball and curveball.

2004

Following his 30-day rehab assignment he was optioned to AAA Durham on August 3, he pitched out of the bullpen for the Bulls and appeared in 11 games over the season's final month, going 2-1 with a 3.29 ERA. He held opponents to a .208 average. His last 5 appearances were scoreless 6.0-IP, 2-H, 2-BB, 5-K. His combined totals on the year were: 3-2, 2.97 ERA, 17 G (6 starts), 36.1-IP, 25-H, 12-R, 12-ER, 15-BB, 30-SO, 3-HR.

2005

Returned to the major league roster after he spent most of 2004 rehabbing from 2003 Tommy John surgery. He began the season in the Rays' bullpen, but was twice optioned to AAA Durham in the first three months. He was 0-2 with an 11.09 ERA in 17 relief appearances when he was optioned a second time on June 3. He returned for good on June 26 and was put into the rotation for the rest of the season. As a starter, was 7-9 with a 5.66 ERA (IP-90.2, H-84, ER-57) in 17 starts. He held right-handers to a .197 (39-198) average, 2nd best in the AL behind Baltimore's Daniel Cabrera (.174). He also had 4 starts when he couldn't complete 3 innings, including 3 times in his last 6 starts. He was 3-0 in 3 starts against Cleveland (ERA-1.77, IP-20.1, H-15, ER-4) holding them to a .205 average. All 3 wins came in the last 7 weeks of the season. Only three others beat the Indians 3 times in 2005 and all were from the Central Division: Detroit's Mike Maroth, Chicago's Jon Garland and Minnesota's Jesse Crain. He was 0-3 vs. Boston in 5 games, 3 starts (11.32, IP-10.1, H-13, ER-13) including a 9-5 loss on September 15 in which he allowed four home runs. He was 0-3 in his first 4 starts (4.15) before he won 7-5 vs. Baltimore on July 22 (IP-5, H-5, R-4, ER-4, BB-4, SO-7), it was his first win since May 16, 2003. On August 29 at Boston, he was bidding for his club record 5th win of the month, but pitched just one inning (18 pitches) and allowed solo home runs to Johnny Damon and David Ortiz before a one hour and 43 minute rain delay stopped play at Fenway Park, he didn't return after the delay and took the loss. He wound up with a 4-2 record for the month despite a 6.35 ERA. He became just the 3rd Ray to win four games in August, joining Jim Mecir in 1998 Wilson Alvarez in 1999.

2006

Had two tours with the Rays; the first as a starter and the second as a closer. In between, he was at AAA Durham, where he worked on a conversion to closer from June 20 to August 2. Despite spending six weeks at Durham, he finished the season 10th in the AL in walks allowed (68). His 5.94 walks per 9 innings was the 2nd highest among major league pitchers with 100 or more innings. Only Baltimore's Daniel Cabrera (6.32) was higher. He was also the 2nd highest in club history (min. 100 IP) behind Victor Zambrano's mark of 6.75 walks per 9 in 2004. He opened the season as the Rays' #2 starter. After 15 starts, he was 2-10 with a 6.81 ERA. He was leading the majors in losses and was 2nd in runs allowed (66) and walks (47). He was optioned to AAA Durham on June 20 where he began the change to the closer role. His best stretch of the season over 4 starts (2.30, IP-27.1, ER-7) and was 1-1 including a 4-1 win at home over Toronto on May 12 (IP-7, H-6, R-1, ER-1, BB-1, SO-6). Following that surge, he lost his next 6 starts (9.00, IP-31, ER-31) and was optioned to Durham. At Durham, he was the finishing pitcher in 12 of his 14 appearances and was 1-0 with 5 saves, he struck out 26 and walked only 2. He returned to the Rays on August 2 and served as the Rays' primary closer the rest of the season. In his first appearance he earned a win vs. Detroit on August 3, retiring all 4 batters he faced. Over a 21-game span after returning, he earned his first 6 saves and 2 wins and was unscored upon in 10 of 11 appearances. He earned his first 2 major league saves on back-to-back nights, August 21-22, saving 4-3 and 5-3 wins over Texas. The remainder of the season in 7 appearances: IP-6.2, H-8, R-6, ER-6, BB-9. He was on the mound for 3 of the Rays' 10 "walk-off" losses: he allowed a "walk-off" grand slam to Richie Sexson at Seattle on August 8; a "walk-off" single to Miguel Tejada at Baltimore on August 26 and walked in the game-winning run in the bottom of the 9th inning at Cleveland on September 29. He allowed 16.69 base runners per 9 IP, most among all major leaguers with 100 or more innings. It was also the most allowed in club history in one season (min 100 IP) and the 11th most in one season in the AL since 1969. He was 0-7 on the road with a 9.55 ERA (IP-43.1, ER-50) in 16 games, 8 starts. He was 6-5 with a 3.92 ERA (IP-59.2, ER-26) and a perfect 5-for-5 in save opportunities at home in 23 games, 7 starts. Opponents batted .262 at home and .335 on the road.

2007

Seth began playing at the AAA level with the Durham Bulls, and pitched well. He had 5 saves in 10 chances. He also lost 50 pounds and had been seen running after games. Seth went back to a windup, and has lowered his arm angle, according to one Atlanta scout. From time to time in the windup he will mess up the hitters timing with a pause in his delivery.

Seth was named "Player of the week" of the PCL for the week of 8-6-07 - 8-12-07.

On July 27, 2007, McClung was traded to the Milwaukee Brewers for pitcher Grant Balfour. After the trade, he was immediately optioned to Triple-A Nashville. On August 20, he was called up from Nashville to the Brewers to take the place of Carlos Villanueva who was optioned to Triple-A Nashville.

2008

McClung started the 2008 season for the Brewers in the bullpen. In late May, he swapped spots with then-starter Carlos Villanueva and was entered into the starting rotation, with Villanueva heading to the bullpen. On May 24th, 2008 McClung made his first major league start since 2006, defeating the Washington Nationals [ [http://www.sportsline.com/mlb/gamecenter/recap/MLB_20080524_MIL@WAS Brewers' McClung notches win in first start in nearly two years - MLB - CBSSports.com Live GameCenter ] ]

On June 3, 2008 McClung collected his first two major league hits off Randy Johnson.

On August 2, 2008 he McClung was moved back to the bullpen after a month-long platoon for Milwaukee's fifth spot in the starting rotation between him and Dave Bush resulted in Bush winning the spot in the rotation. McClung has expressed disappointment with his new role.

Personal life

McClung is from Lewisburg, West Virginia. His father, Mike, was an all-state high school footballer and his brother, Marcus, played football at Virginia Tech, then signed to play for the British Columbia Lions of the Canadian Football League, before a knee injury ended his playing career (McClung has worn #37 as a tribute to him), and his brother Shawn played extreme sports. His younger brother Sam was an offensive lineman (6-6, 310) at Tusculum College in Greeneville, Tennessee, and McClung is also the general manager of the West Virginia Rush Athletic Program (www.wvrush.com), which provides exceptional athletes in West Virginia and parts of Virginia the opportunity to compete at a high level. McClung is a volunteer assistant coach for the University of Tampa women's basketball team. He is very involved with the Ronceverte Volunteer Fire Department Christmas Stocking Giveaway in his native West Virginia, which hands out over 2,000 stockings a year, he reads to Bay Area and West Virginia elementary schools during his free time and the offseason, and he was the regular-season champion of the inaugural season of the Professional Baseball Gaming League (pbgl.ggl.com).

References

External links

* [http://tampabay.devilrays.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/team/player.jsp?player_id=425528 MLB.com: Seth McClung]
* [http://www.baseball-reference.com/m/mccluse01.shtml Baseball Reference]
* [http://www.devilrays.com Season by Season highlights]
* [http://www.devilrays.com Biography]