Athletes - Mike Mussina

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	Athletes - Mike Mussina

Michael Cole "Mike" Mussina (born December 8, 1968 in Williamsport, Pennsylvania) is a major league starting pitcher for the New York Yankees.

Mussina, nicknamed "Moose," graduated from Stanford University in December, 1990, earning a degree in economics in just 3 1/2 years. He was drafted by the Baltimore Orioles in the 1st round (20th pick overall) of the 1990 amateur draft and in 1992, his first full season with the Orioles, went 18-5 with a 2.54 ERA. Mussina continued to post good numbers in Baltimore, featuring two back-to-back 19-win seasons in 1995 and 1996. Mussina helped the Orioles to the playoffs in 1996, where they eventually lost in the ALCS to the Yankees and again in 1997, where they lost in the ALCS to the Cleveland Indians. In Game 3 of that series against Cleveland, Mussina set the ALCS record for strikeouts in a single game when he struck out fifteen Indians. (The record was later tied by the New York Yankees' Roger Clemens in Game 4 of the 2000 ALCS against the Seattle Mariners.)

Following the 2000 season, Mussina opted to become a free agent, and, on November 30, signed a contract with the New York Yankees. The contract netted him over US$10 million in salary each year. Mussina posted 17-11, 18-10, and 17-8 records in his first three seasons with the Yankees.

In 2004, after high-profile defections by Roger Clemens, Andy Pettitte and David Wells, Mussina became the unquestionable "ace" of the Yankee pitching rotation. Mussina was plagued by a series of injuries, and wasn't the pitcher he was in 2003 or before. He finished the 2004 season, 12-9 with a 4.59 ERA with a great late-season performance. In 2005, Mussina wasn't the Yankees' ace anymore. He still was inconsistent throughout the season and finished 13-8 with a 4.41 ERA.

Brushes With Perfection

Mussina is perhaps most infamously known for his collection of near-perfect outings:

On May 30, 1997, he retired the first 25 Cleveland Indians he faced before surrendering a single to Sandy Alomar Jr. with one out in the ninth; Mussina struck-out the last two batters for a one-hit 3-0 shut-out.
On August 4, 1998, he retired the first 23 Detroit Tigers he faced before surrendering a double to Frank Catalanotto
with two outs in the eighth; Mussina gave up another hit in the eventual 4-0 shut-out.
On September 2, 2001, he had his most heart-breaking brush with perfection when he retired the first 26 Boston Red Sox he faced; he then ran pinch-hitter Carl Everett
(batting for Joe Oliver) to a 1-and-2 count before Everett slapped a double to left-center. Mussina retired leadoff man Trot Nixon
on a grounder, striking out 13 batters in a one-hit 1-0 shut-out.
On April 14, 2002, he retired the first 16 Red Sox he faced before surrendering a single to Doug Mirabelli
with one out in the sixth; Mussina was replaced by reliever Ramiro Mendoza
, and the Yankees finished off the 6-2 win.
On October 12, 2004, he retired the first 19 Red Sox he faced in Game 1 of the American League Championship Series before surrendering a double to Mark Bellhorn
with one out in the seventh; Mussina was replaced by Tanyon Sturtze
, and the Yankees finished off the 10-7 win.

Salary

During the 2005 season, Mike Mussina is the 5th highest paid player at $19,600,000.00.

[ Visit the complete Wikipedia entry for Mike Mussina ]

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Athletes - Mike Mussina

Brushes With Perfection

Salary

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