Athletes - Troy Percival

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	Athletes - Troy Percival

Troy Eugene Percival (born August 9, 1969 in Fontana, California) is a Major League Baseball closer who is under contract with the Detroit Tigers. Previously, he played with the California and Anaheim Angels (1995-2004), and was a key member of that franchise's 2002 World Series championship team.

Percival attended the University of California, Riverside and was drafted by the then California Angels in the 6th round of the 1990 amateur draft originally as a catcher. He batted .200 in his only season as a catcher and was converted to a pitcher when it was discovered that his return throws were actually faster than the pitches he was receiving. He made his major league debut as a reliever in 1995, and was mostly used as a setup man for Lee Smith. A year later, he was the regular closer for the Angels and had 36 saves with 100 strikeouts in 74 innings. He got a career-high 42 saves in 1998, and enjoyed his best season in 2002 with a 4-1 record, 40 saves, 68 strikeouts, and a 1.92 ERA.

A four-time All-Star, Percival has compiled a 29-38 record with a 2.99 ERA in 586.2 innings. His 316 saves put him at 12th on the all-time list in Major League Baseball. However, his strikeouts per nine innings have gone down considerably from when he was an elite closer. In 2001, his K/9 rate was 11.08. In 2002, 10.86. In 2003, 8.76. And last year, it dropped all the way to 5.98. His fastball, once clocked consistently at 96 -100 MPH, was down to about 92 - 93 MPH in 2004, due to a degenerative hip condition that first appeared in 2003, which forced him to alter his pitching delivery.

Percival's contract with the Angels expired in 2004 and he bacame free agent at the end of that season. Rather than bring Percival back, the Angels decided to turn their closer's job over to young phenom Francisco Rodríguez, motivated largely by Rodriguez's much lower price tag and concerns about Percival's age and health. The Angels offered to negotiate a reduced role (at a correspondingly reduced salary) for Percival as a setup man, but Percival decided to seek opportunities elsewhere that would allow him to remain a closer. Despite the difficulty of leaving the only Major League team he had ever played for, Percival claimed that he understood the Angels' business decision to give his job to Rodriguez, and that he bore the club no hard feelings for doing so.

Percival signed with Detroit as a free agent for the 2005 season. However, after a mediocre start to his career at Comerica Park, during which time he converted 8 saves from 11 opportunites and posted an ERA of 5.76, Percival suffered a serious injury to his right forearm in early July. The severity of the injury was such that not only was the rest of his season put in doubt, but so was his career.

After attempting to recuperate, Percival reported to spring training for the Tigers in 2006. However, on his first outing he again suffered significant pain and left the team. Although he has not made an official retirement announdcment, he has said he believes that he "most likely" will be unable to pitch again.

With that in mind, he has already begun to look ahead indicating he would like to get back into baseball in some capacity in 2007. He has said that he has been in contact with the Angels, and the team has indicated it will be receptive to his working in the organization.

Trivia

Percival is one of six pitchers in the Angels' 44-year history to strike out at least 100 batters in a season without starting a game (100 in 1996). The others are Mark Clear
(105, 1980), De Wayne Buice
(109, 1987), Bryan Harvey
(101, 1991) Scot Shields
(109, 2004) and Francisco Rodríguez (123, 2004).

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