Matt Purke

Matthew Taylor Purke (born July 17, 1990) is an American professional baseball pitcher in the Washington Nationals organization.

Amateur career

Purke attended Klein High School in Klein, Texas. Het was considered one of the best high school pitchers in baseball. His junior year was his best as he had a 12-1 win–loss record with a 0.37 earned run average (ERA). In his senior season he went 4-2 with a 1.18 ERA. He also carried a 4.5 GPA. He came out as a flamethrower throwing an average of 92 miles per hour (148 km/h).

The Texas Rangers selected Purke in the first round, with the 14th overall selection, of the 2009 Major League Baseball Draft.^[1] He did not sign, and instead enrolled at Texas Christian University (TCU), where he played college baseball for the TCU Horned Frogs. While there, he earned 2nd Team All American as a Freshman, and was named the Freshman of the year while going 16-0 with a 3.02 ERA. His sophomore year he went 5-1 with a 1.71 ERA in 11 starts.^[2]

Professional career

Purke was drafted by the Washington Nationals in the third round of the 2011 Major League Baseball Draft. He was added to the 40 man roster in 2012 and made 3 starts for Class A Hagerstown Suns. He was injured right after and missed the rest of the season. He began 2013 with Hagerstown.^[3] He signed a major league deal on August 15, 2011.^[4]

In 2012, Purke had shoulder debridement surgery. Pitching for the Harrisburg Senators of the Class AA Eastern League in 2014, Purke struggled with a 1-6 record and an 8.04 ERA. Purke underwent Tommy John surgery.^[5] In November 2014, the Nationals released Purke,^[6] and then re-signed him to a minor league contract with an invitation to spring training.^[7]

References

External links

• Career statistics and player information from The Baseball Cube, or Baseball-Reference (Minors)
• TCU Horned Frogs bio