Joe Borowski (baseball)
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| Cleveland Indians — No. 47 | |
| Pitcher | |
| Bats: Right | Throws: Right |
| Major League Baseball debut | |
|---|---|
| July 9, 1995 for the Baltimore Orioles | |
| Selected MLB statistics (through 2006) |
|
| Wins-Losses | 17-26 |
| ERA | 3.87 |
| Innings pitched | 372 |
| Strikeouts | 305 |
| Saves | 80 |
| Former teams | |
|
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Joeseph Thomas Borowski is a right-handed relief pitcher with the Cleveland Indians. Borowski was signed as a free agent to a one-year contract with Cleveland on December 6, 2006. He previously played for the Baltimore Orioles ('95), the Atlanta Braves ('96-'96), the New York Yankees ('97-'98), the Chicago Cubs ('01-'05), the Tampa Bay Devil Rays ('05), and the Florida Marlins ('06).
[edit] High school career
Borowski was born May 4, 1971 in Bayonne, NJ, where he currently resides with his wife Tatum and his son Blaze. Borowski attended Marist High School in Bayonne, New Jersey and was a two-time All-State and an All-America selection in both football and baseball.
[edit] Major League Baseball Career
In 2000 Borowski pitched in the Mexican League and in the Northern League. He was the 32nd round draft pick of the Chicago White Sox in 1989, but decided to attend Rutgers University before turning pro.
Before his second year with the Chicago Cubs in 2002, Borowski had never appeared in more than 25 games, but when given a chance to appear frequently he did very well. In 2002 he went 4-4 with a 2.73 ERA in 73 games of relief. The next year he was converted to the closer role for the Cubs and was exceptional, going 2-2 with a 2.63 ERA and recording 33 saves in 37 opportunities, helping the Cubs reach the NLCS before being eliminated by the eventual World Series champion Florida Marlins. In 2004 Borowski suffered from a partial tear in his right rotator cuff which limited him to just 22 games, in which he struggled, going 2-4 with an 8.02 ERA and recording 9 saves in 11 opportunities. In 2005, Borowski broke his hand on a come-backer that went directly at him. He returned to the Cubs on May 20th. He did not have his old closer job back, though, as Ryan Dempster had emerged as the club's new closer. On June 29, 2005, Borowski was released by the Cubs.
Borowski was later in 2005 acquired by the Devil Rays, who use him as a set up man to closer Danys Báez. While with the Devil Rays, Borowski got very hot, pitching a franchise record 21 scoreless innings, and is seen by many as the catalyst for the Devil Rays 2nd half turnaround, as his inspired performance helped stabilize the Rays' otherwise shaky bullpen. However, in his last 14 appearances he gave up 15 runs, and was designated for assignment by the Devil Rays in early December, and then released.
During the 2006 season, Borowski pitched for the Florida Marlins and converted 36 out of 43 save opportunities. On December 6, 2006, Borowski signed a $4.25 million, one-year contract to pitch for the Cleveland Indians that includes a club option for 2008. Borowski is the most likely candidate to fill the vacant closer role for Cleveland.
When Borowski excels he has a fastball in the low 90s and is able to locate his pitches, especially his exceptional slider.
[edit] External links
- Baseball-Reference.com - career statistics and analysis
- MLB.com player info page
