Chuck Ricci | |
---|---|
Pitcher | |
Born: Abington, Pennsylvania | November 20, 1968|
Batted: Right Threw: Right | |
MLB debut | |
September 8, 1995, for the Philadelphia Phillies | |
Last MLB appearance | |
October 1, 1995, for the Philadelphia Phillies | |
MLB statistics | |
Win–loss record | 1–0 |
Earned run average | 1.80 |
Strikeouts | 9 |
Teams | |
Charles Mark "Chuck" Ricci (born November 20, 1968) is an American former professional baseball player. During an 11-season professional career, Ricci appeared in Major League Baseball (MLB) during one year, pitching for the National League's Philadelphia Phillies in 1995. He was listed as standing 6 feet 2 inches (188 cm) and weighing 180 pounds (82 kg). [1]
Having played for eleven different minor league teams affiliated with five major league franchises ( Baltimore Orioles, Phillies, Boston Red Sox, Oakland Athletics, and Montreal Expos), Ricci also appeared as a member of the Cleveland Indians in the 1994 film Major League II; although he never played for the Indians, he worked for the franchise as a scout after retiring as a player.
Ricci graduated in 1987 from Shawnee High School in Medford, New Jersey. [1] [2] In the 1987 Major League Baseball draft, he was selected in the fourth round by the Baltimore Orioles, [3] the first player drafted by a Major League Baseball club in Shawnee's history. [4] Ricci was offered a full scholarship to the University of Hawaii, but chose to begin his professional career. [5]
The Orioles assigned Ricci to the rookie-league Bluefield Orioles in West Virginia, where he began his career by playing two seasons. [6] For the Appalachian League club, he collected a 5–5 win–loss record, averaging 6.50 earned runs per game in his 13 appearances (12 starts). His five victories were tied for the second-highest total on the team, and he allowed a team-high 11 home runs in his appearances. He struck out 40 batters in 62+1⁄3 innings pitched, walking 38. [7] The next season, Ricci amassed a 4–6 record and a 6.66 earned run average (ERA), the club's second-worst mark. He played in 14 games, all starts, and struck out 73 batters in a like number of innings, allowing 48 bases on balls. [8]
In 1989, Ricci was promoted to the A-level Waterloo Diamonds, an unaffiliated team at the time. He increased his number of appearances from the previous year more than twofold, starting 25 of his 29 games and completing 9 of those contests. [9] Ricci pitched a career-high 181+1⁄3 innings that season, [6] posting a 10–12 record; his loss total was tied for the team high in that category. He was third on the team, and tops among the regular starters, in ERA, with a 2.98 mark, and walked 59 batters while striking out 89. [9] After advancing to the Frederick Keys for the 1990 season, Ricci again led that team with 12 defeats, as compared to his 7 victories. His ERA rose to 4.41, but his strikeout-to-walk ratio improved to 97:49. [10] In June of that year, Ricci pitched a complete-game shutout of the Prince William Cannons, winning 5–0. [11]
The 1991 season saw Ricci continue with the Keys, when he earned a 12–14 record, leading the team in both wins and losses. His 173+2⁄3 innings pitched were the team's highest total—as were his 90 runs allowed—and his 144 strikeouts were second to Kip Yaughn. [12] Ricci split the 1992 season between Frederick and the AA-level Hagerstown Suns, spending more time at the latter. [6] He began to transition to the bullpen with Hagerstown, making only 6 starts in 20 appearances. Ricci pitched 57+2⁄3 innings for the Suns, amassing a 5.77 ERA and a 1–4 record. [13] The Bowie Baysox became the Orioles' Eastern League affiliate in 1993, and Ricci played most of that season with them; he won seven games and lost four, amassing a 3.20 ERA. He struck out 83 batters against 20 walks in 81+2⁄3 innings, [14] but was granted free agency in October of that year. [1]
On April 7, 1994, the Philadelphia Phillies signed Ricci to a contract, assigning him to the double-A Reading Phillies. He recorded one victory for Reading, allowing no runs in 14 innings pitched. [15] Earning a promotion to Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre, Ricci earned four more wins against three losses, collecting a 4.04 ERA. [16] On the season, he amassed six saves, striking out 95 batters while walking 26 of the 345 he faced that year. [6] During the 1994 season, Ricci also appeared in the film Major League II as one of the Cleveland Indians baseball players. [17] [18]
Ricci duplicated his Red Barons record the next season, posting a 4–3 mark in 1995. His 2.49 ERA was the best on the team among players making more than 10 appearances, and he led all International League pitchers with 68 games played. [19] Striking out 66 batters in 65 innings, Ricci finished 48 games for Scranton/Wilkes-Barre, saving 25 of them, by far the team's highest total that season. [20] After the International League season concluded, Ricci was promoted to the major league club.
Ricci began his Phillies career with his longest appearance, [21] pitching three innings against the Houston Astros on September 8, 1995. In his debut, he walked two batters ( John Cangelosi and Andy Stankiewicz), struck out one ( Jeff Bagwell), and allowed one earned run and two hits, with the score coming on a sacrifice fly by Ricky Gutiérrez. [22] Ricci's next appearance also came against the Astros, when he threw a perfect 2⁄3 inning two days later. [23] Against the rival New York Mets on September 15, Ricci was chosen to complete the game in a 4–1 Phillies defeat; he allowed two hits and struck out one batter, lowering his ERA to 1.93. [24] In a 13–10 victory over the Florida Marlins on September 18, Ricci pitched a portion of the third inning and all of the fourth, striking out three of the five batters he faced and hitting one. [25]
Ricci earned his only major league victory on September 23 against the Cincinnati Reds, becoming the beneficiary of three ninth-inning walks by Xavier Hernandez, including the winning run walked in from the bases loaded with two outs. [26] The next night, he faced the Reds again, allowing a run on a Hal Morris double in the ninth inning of a 6–4 loss. [27] His final appearance came against the Marlins in Florida, when he allowed two hits and a walk in two innings pitched, striking out three batters on October 1. [28] Despite finishing his short stint with an undefeated record and a 1.80 ERA, Ricci was released into free agency at the end of the 1995 season. [1]
In 1996, Ricci began play with the Pawtucket Red Sox of the International League, posting a career-best .667 winning percentage (8–4 record). [6] His 3.01 ERA was best among the PawSox pitchers with more than 15 appearances, and his 13 saves were a team high. Ricci pitched 80+2⁄3 innings that season, walking 32 and striking out 79. [29] In 1997, he split his appearances between the Oakland Athletics-affiliated Edmonton Trappers, where he notched a 16.88 ERA in four games, and the Ottawa Lynx, a Montreal Expos affiliate, for whom he won 2 games and lost 2 in 22 appearances. [6] For Ottawa, Ricci pitched 27 innings, striking out 27, walking 25, and allowing 22 hits. [30]
After leaving baseball as a player, Ricci worked for the Indians as a scout from 2000 to 2003. [31] He later co-founded The Athlete's Edge, an organization offering baseball clinics for private and group instruction. As of 2011 [update], Ricci was the Indians' national cross-checker in their scouting department and he lived in Greencastle, Pennsylvania. [5]
Ricci now works for the Tampa Bay Rays as a national cross checker. On October 28, 2022, Ricci was promoted to the role of director of amateur scouting. [32]
Chuck Ricci | |
---|---|
Pitcher | |
Born: Abington, Pennsylvania | November 20, 1968|
Batted: Right Threw: Right | |
MLB debut | |
September 8, 1995, for the Philadelphia Phillies | |
Last MLB appearance | |
October 1, 1995, for the Philadelphia Phillies | |
MLB statistics | |
Win–loss record | 1–0 |
Earned run average | 1.80 |
Strikeouts | 9 |
Teams | |
Charles Mark "Chuck" Ricci (born November 20, 1968) is an American former professional baseball player. During an 11-season professional career, Ricci appeared in Major League Baseball (MLB) during one year, pitching for the National League's Philadelphia Phillies in 1995. He was listed as standing 6 feet 2 inches (188 cm) and weighing 180 pounds (82 kg). [1]
Having played for eleven different minor league teams affiliated with five major league franchises ( Baltimore Orioles, Phillies, Boston Red Sox, Oakland Athletics, and Montreal Expos), Ricci also appeared as a member of the Cleveland Indians in the 1994 film Major League II; although he never played for the Indians, he worked for the franchise as a scout after retiring as a player.
Ricci graduated in 1987 from Shawnee High School in Medford, New Jersey. [1] [2] In the 1987 Major League Baseball draft, he was selected in the fourth round by the Baltimore Orioles, [3] the first player drafted by a Major League Baseball club in Shawnee's history. [4] Ricci was offered a full scholarship to the University of Hawaii, but chose to begin his professional career. [5]
The Orioles assigned Ricci to the rookie-league Bluefield Orioles in West Virginia, where he began his career by playing two seasons. [6] For the Appalachian League club, he collected a 5–5 win–loss record, averaging 6.50 earned runs per game in his 13 appearances (12 starts). His five victories were tied for the second-highest total on the team, and he allowed a team-high 11 home runs in his appearances. He struck out 40 batters in 62+1⁄3 innings pitched, walking 38. [7] The next season, Ricci amassed a 4–6 record and a 6.66 earned run average (ERA), the club's second-worst mark. He played in 14 games, all starts, and struck out 73 batters in a like number of innings, allowing 48 bases on balls. [8]
In 1989, Ricci was promoted to the A-level Waterloo Diamonds, an unaffiliated team at the time. He increased his number of appearances from the previous year more than twofold, starting 25 of his 29 games and completing 9 of those contests. [9] Ricci pitched a career-high 181+1⁄3 innings that season, [6] posting a 10–12 record; his loss total was tied for the team high in that category. He was third on the team, and tops among the regular starters, in ERA, with a 2.98 mark, and walked 59 batters while striking out 89. [9] After advancing to the Frederick Keys for the 1990 season, Ricci again led that team with 12 defeats, as compared to his 7 victories. His ERA rose to 4.41, but his strikeout-to-walk ratio improved to 97:49. [10] In June of that year, Ricci pitched a complete-game shutout of the Prince William Cannons, winning 5–0. [11]
The 1991 season saw Ricci continue with the Keys, when he earned a 12–14 record, leading the team in both wins and losses. His 173+2⁄3 innings pitched were the team's highest total—as were his 90 runs allowed—and his 144 strikeouts were second to Kip Yaughn. [12] Ricci split the 1992 season between Frederick and the AA-level Hagerstown Suns, spending more time at the latter. [6] He began to transition to the bullpen with Hagerstown, making only 6 starts in 20 appearances. Ricci pitched 57+2⁄3 innings for the Suns, amassing a 5.77 ERA and a 1–4 record. [13] The Bowie Baysox became the Orioles' Eastern League affiliate in 1993, and Ricci played most of that season with them; he won seven games and lost four, amassing a 3.20 ERA. He struck out 83 batters against 20 walks in 81+2⁄3 innings, [14] but was granted free agency in October of that year. [1]
On April 7, 1994, the Philadelphia Phillies signed Ricci to a contract, assigning him to the double-A Reading Phillies. He recorded one victory for Reading, allowing no runs in 14 innings pitched. [15] Earning a promotion to Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre, Ricci earned four more wins against three losses, collecting a 4.04 ERA. [16] On the season, he amassed six saves, striking out 95 batters while walking 26 of the 345 he faced that year. [6] During the 1994 season, Ricci also appeared in the film Major League II as one of the Cleveland Indians baseball players. [17] [18]
Ricci duplicated his Red Barons record the next season, posting a 4–3 mark in 1995. His 2.49 ERA was the best on the team among players making more than 10 appearances, and he led all International League pitchers with 68 games played. [19] Striking out 66 batters in 65 innings, Ricci finished 48 games for Scranton/Wilkes-Barre, saving 25 of them, by far the team's highest total that season. [20] After the International League season concluded, Ricci was promoted to the major league club.
Ricci began his Phillies career with his longest appearance, [21] pitching three innings against the Houston Astros on September 8, 1995. In his debut, he walked two batters ( John Cangelosi and Andy Stankiewicz), struck out one ( Jeff Bagwell), and allowed one earned run and two hits, with the score coming on a sacrifice fly by Ricky Gutiérrez. [22] Ricci's next appearance also came against the Astros, when he threw a perfect 2⁄3 inning two days later. [23] Against the rival New York Mets on September 15, Ricci was chosen to complete the game in a 4–1 Phillies defeat; he allowed two hits and struck out one batter, lowering his ERA to 1.93. [24] In a 13–10 victory over the Florida Marlins on September 18, Ricci pitched a portion of the third inning and all of the fourth, striking out three of the five batters he faced and hitting one. [25]
Ricci earned his only major league victory on September 23 against the Cincinnati Reds, becoming the beneficiary of three ninth-inning walks by Xavier Hernandez, including the winning run walked in from the bases loaded with two outs. [26] The next night, he faced the Reds again, allowing a run on a Hal Morris double in the ninth inning of a 6–4 loss. [27] His final appearance came against the Marlins in Florida, when he allowed two hits and a walk in two innings pitched, striking out three batters on October 1. [28] Despite finishing his short stint with an undefeated record and a 1.80 ERA, Ricci was released into free agency at the end of the 1995 season. [1]
In 1996, Ricci began play with the Pawtucket Red Sox of the International League, posting a career-best .667 winning percentage (8–4 record). [6] His 3.01 ERA was best among the PawSox pitchers with more than 15 appearances, and his 13 saves were a team high. Ricci pitched 80+2⁄3 innings that season, walking 32 and striking out 79. [29] In 1997, he split his appearances between the Oakland Athletics-affiliated Edmonton Trappers, where he notched a 16.88 ERA in four games, and the Ottawa Lynx, a Montreal Expos affiliate, for whom he won 2 games and lost 2 in 22 appearances. [6] For Ottawa, Ricci pitched 27 innings, striking out 27, walking 25, and allowing 22 hits. [30]
After leaving baseball as a player, Ricci worked for the Indians as a scout from 2000 to 2003. [31] He later co-founded The Athlete's Edge, an organization offering baseball clinics for private and group instruction. As of 2011 [update], Ricci was the Indians' national cross-checker in their scouting department and he lived in Greencastle, Pennsylvania. [5]
Ricci now works for the Tampa Bay Rays as a national cross checker. On October 28, 2022, Ricci was promoted to the role of director of amateur scouting. [32]