Eddie Gaillard

Infobox MLB retired
name=Eddie Gaillard
position=Pitcher
bats=Right
throws=Right
debutdate=August 11
debutyear=by|1997
debutteam=Detroit Tigers
finaldate=October 3
finalyear=by|1999
finalteam=Tampa Bay Devil Rays
stat1label=Win-Loss
stat1value=2-0
stat2label=Earned run average
stat2value=4.66
stat3label=Strikeouts
stat3value=24
teams=
*Detroit Tigers (by|1997)
*Tampa Bay Devil Rays (1998–1999)
*Chunichi Dragons (2000–2003)
*Yokohama Baystars (2004–2005)
highlights=
*Drafted by the Detroit Tigers in the 13th round of the 1993 amateur draft.

Julian Edward "Eddie" Gaillard (born August 13 1970, Camden, New Jersey) was a pitcher in Major League Baseball.

He is unknown in the major leagues, but was highly successful in the Japanese Central League, making a total 120 saves during his six year stay. He is noted as one of the premier closers of the Chunichi Dragons.

Biography

Gaillard joined the Detroit Tigers in 1993 after graduating from Florida Southern College. He was promoted to the majors for the first time in 1997, and went to the Tampa Bay Devil Rays in 1998, and the Cincinnati Reds in 2000.

Gaillard joined the Chunichi Dragons in the Japanese Central League at the beginning of 2000. He took over the closing job that Korean pitcher Dong Yeol Sun had left open after retiring, and led the league with 35 saves, appearing in the all star game. However, he allowed the game-tying grand slam and walk-off home run back-to-back to Yomiuri Giants, a first place team that was one win away from winning the division. He led the league in saves again in 2002, posting a 1.52 ERA.

In April, 2003, he made his 100th save in only his 148th appearance, the fastest in the history of Japanese baseball. However, the Dragons began to use Akinori Otsuka as their closer, and he was put on waivers after complaining to the team about his lack of appearances. He was picked up by the Yokohama BayStars, but was demoted to relief duty after Kazuhiro Sasaki returned as the team's closer in 2004. He also sustained an injury to his pitching arm, and returned to the U.S. in June, 2004 for surgery. He signed a minor league contract with the Colorado Rockies in 2005, and with the Florida Marlins in 2006, but did not play in the majors.

Pitching style

Gaillard's main weapon was his fastball, which fell in the mid 90 mph range during his prime. He threw a slider, splitter, and changeup to compliment his fastball. He also had surprisingly good control, walking few batters in his appearances. He was one of the best closers in Japan in the early 2000s.

Trivia

* He ranks third among Chunichi Dragons players in saves, after Kaku Genji and Hitoki Iwase.
* His name was originally written as ゲイラード, in Japan, but was changed to ギャラード, in order to match the English pronunciation.

tatistics

Major Leagues
* 30 Games
* 2 Wins
* 0 Losses
* 4.66 ERA

Japanese Professional Leagues
* 194 Games
* 6 Wins
* 9 Losses
* 120 Saves
* 2.90 ERA

ee also

* Tampa Bay Devil Rays all-time roster

External links

*baseballstats |mlb= |espn= |br=g/gailled01 |fangraphs=1004431 |cube=G/eddie-gaillard