Jason Marquis

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Jason Marquis
Chicago Cubs — No. 21
Starting Pitcher
Bats: Left Throws: Right
Major League Baseball debut
June 6, 2000 for the Atlanta Braves
Selected MLB statistics
(through October 2, 2006)
Record     56-52
ERA     4.55
Strikeouts     552
Former teams

Jason Scott Marquis (born August 21, 1978, in Manhasset, New York), is an American Major League Baseball pitcher for the Chicago Cubs. Marquis pronounces his name with the French pronunciation of "Mar-KEE."

Marquis is one of only 5 ballplayers who pitched in the NL in 2006 who won at least 13 games in each year from 2004-06, the others being Carlos Zambrano, Greg Maddux, Chris Carpenter, and Roy Oswalt.

Through 2006, in games that were late and close Marquis held batters to a .217 batting average.[1]

Contents

[edit] Early life

Marquis, who is Jewish,[1] grew up, other than two years in Brooklyn, New York, in Staten Island, New York's Arden Heights neighborhood, where he played Little League Baseball on a team that made it to the Little League World Series in 1991. He is one of 25 Little League World Series players to have reached the major leagues.

Marquis pitched the Tottenville High School Pirates to two consecutive New York City Public Schools Athletic League titles in 1995 and 1996, at Shea Stadium and Yankee Stadium.[2] He also played basketball there and was a member of the National Honor Society.

The right-hander was drafted by the Atlanta Braves in the first round of the 1996 free agent draft after having graduated from high school. He was the 35th selection overall.

[edit] Minor league career

Marquis tied for most wins (14) in the South Atlantic League in 1997.

[edit] Major league career

[edit] Atlanta Braves (2000-03)

Marquis made it to the majors with the Braves in September 2000 at the age of 21, the 10th youngest player in the league. He appeared strictly in relief, finishing 7 games in his 15 appearances, and winning 1.

He became a starting pitcher in 2001, and held batters to a .145 batting average when runners were in scoring position, with 2 out. He was used exclusively as a starter in 2002, making 22 appearances.

In 2003, Marquis returned to the bullpen, making only 2 starts in 21 appearances. He was upset about being sent to the bullpen, and requested to be sent to the minors where he could be a starting pitcher, and observed by scouts from other organizations. On December 13, 2003, Marquis was traded to the St. Louis Cardinals along with relief pitcher Ray King and rookie prospect Adam Wainwright for outfielder J. D. Drew and catcher Eli Marrero.

[edit] St. Louis Cardinals (2004-06)

Marquis became a full-time starter in 2004 with the Cardinals, and posted a career-best 15-9 record, with a 3.71 earned run average and a career-high 138 strikeouts, for the National League champions. His 15 wins and .682 won-lost percentage were both 9th in the league. He held batters to a .198 batting average with runners in scoring position. He stole a base against the Chicago Cubs off teammate and former mentor Greg Maddux, who also stole a base in the same game. It marked the first time since 1950 that opposing pitchers stole a base in the same game.

Manager Tony La Russa tabbed Marquis to start Game 4 of the 2004 World Series. He turned in the best performance of any Cardinals starter in the series, pitching 6 innings and giving up 3 runs. He was bested, however, by Boston pitcher Derek Lowe, who threw shutout ball for 7 innings to win the series for the Red Sox.

Marquis had an up and down season in 2005. Although he started the season strong, he slid into a personal 7-game losing streak. It ended on August 27, 2005, when Marquis pitched a 2-hit shutout at RFK Stadium in Washington, DC against the Washington Nationals, for his first career shutout. Overall Marquis posted a 13-14 record, with an 4.13 earned run average in 207 innings pitched. He appeared in 33 games, starting 32, and completing 3 (6th in the NL). He gave up the second lowest percentage of line drives in the NL (17.3%).[3]

Uncharacteristically for a pitcher, Marquis is a very good hitter. He constantly hits off the tee in batting cages. In 2005 he had 27 hits, posting a .310 batting average with 1 home run and 10 RBIs in 87 at-bats. He was the first pitcher to bat over .300 since Mike Hampton batted .344 in 2002 (minimum of 50 at-bats). For his excellent work at the plate, Marquis won the Silver Slugger Award. His hitting ability along with his athleticism makes him a valuable player, in that he is sometimes called on to pinch-hit or pinch-run.

For his career Marquis is 42-36 with a 4.15 ERA in 716 innings pitched. He has three complete games, 1 shutout, and 1 save in 161 games (104 starts).

In January 2006, Marquis and the Cardinals agreed to a 1-year contract, avoiding salary arbitration, for $5.15 million dollars. Marquis, however, followed by having the worst season of his career, and one of the worst in Cardinals history. Pitching in the starting rotation all year, Marquis finished with a 6.02 ERA, the 2nd-worst in baseball among players who qualified for the ERA title (Joel Piñeiro, of the Seattle Mariners, finished last with a 6.36). He led the majors in runs allowed (136), and led the NL in losses (16) and home runs allowed (35). He also had the two worst game scores in the NL, a game against the White Sox on June 21st in which he gave up 13 earned runs in 5 innings, and one against the Atlanta Braves 3 weeks later in which he gave up 12 earned runs in 5 innings. On the other hand, in games that were late and close, he held batters to a .188 batting average.[4]

Marquis was on the Cardinals roster for their 1st-round playoff matchup against the San Diego Padres, but did not make an appearance in the Series and was not included on the roster for the NLCS against the Mets, or for the 2006 World Series against Detroit, which the Cardinals won.

[edit] Chicago Cubs (2007-present)

In December 2006 Marquis signed a 3-year contract with the Chicago Cubs worth $21 million.[5]

[edit] Fielding

Marquis has exhibited a better range factor at pitcher than the league average every year of his career, through 2006.[6]

[edit] Batting

One of the best hitting pitchers in the game, in 310 at bats through 2006 Marquis had a .223 lifetime batting average, with 19 doubles, 2 triples, 2 home runs, 33 runs scored, 26 RBIs, and 15 sacrifice hits. He had a .359 career batting average, in 40 plate appearances, with 2 outs and runners in scoring position. In 24 plate appearances as a pinch hitter, he had a .286 batting average.

[edit] Miscellaneous

  • With the Cubs, he wears #21, the same number as former Cubs slugger Sammy Sosa.

[edit] Links

  1. ^ http://reds.enquirer.com/2004/08/30/red2a.html
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