Matt Randel

Matthew Randel (born February 15, 1977) is an American- born Korean former professional baseball pitcher. Randel was an unusual American pitcher in that over 80% of his baseball career was played in Asia. He dropped out of college after two seasons at Lewis-Clark State College in 1999. He was invited to tryout for the Fukuoka Daiei Hawks in Japan. He spent two years with the Hawks, playing mostly for their lower-tier team. He went back home to the United States in 2001, returning to baseball in 2002 in Fort Worth, Texas. The following year he returned to Japan where his career fizzled out after two years. His career was revived once again when a former teammate, Gary Rath, mentioned Randel to the Doosan Bears of the KBO League. There he was able to establish himself as a reliable starter for four seasons until an injury forced him to retire.[1][2]

Matthew Randel
Pitcher
Born: (1977-02-15) February 15, 1977
Portland Oregon, United States
Batted: Right
Threw: Right
Professional debut
NPB: 2000, for the Fukuoka Daiei Hawks
KBO: 2005, for the Doosan Bears
Last appearance
NPB: 2004, for the Yomiuri Giants
KBO: 2008, for the Doosan Bears
NPB statistics
Win–loss record4–3
Earned run average5.84
Strikeouts48
KBO statistics
Win–loss record49–32
Earned run average3.41
Strikeouts467
Teams

Early life

As a young child, Randel had no interest in playing baseball, but his father made him join a youth league when he was six and his attitude toward the sport eventually changed.[1] His high school career was in Ridgefield, Washington, where he went to high school at Ridgefield High School. Here, he was a four-year letterman and three-time team MVP. In his Junior and Senior year, he was a dominant pitcher in the 1A Trico League and averaged 15 strike outs each game.[3] Randel was the 84th-round pick of the Los Angeles Dodgers in the 1995 amateur draft. Instead of signing with the Dodgers, he accepted an athletic scholarship with Lewis-Clark State College in Lewiston, ID. In his freshman year, he was the winning pitcher in the NAIA World Series Championship game. He threw a four hit, 10-strikeout complete game in a 9-0 victory against St. Ambrose, Iowa.[4]

Playing career

Fukuoka Daiei Hawks

In 2000, Randel made his professional debut in Nippon(Japanese) Professional Baseball with the Fukuoka Daiei Hawks Randel. He faced three batters, gave up two hits and struck out 1 in 0.1 innings. At the end of the season, Randel returned home to the United States and took a year off from baseball.[5]

Fort Worth Cats

In 2002, Randel was playing in Fort Worth Texas in the (Independent) Central League with the Fort Worth Cats. He started in 5 games, and had a 3.05 ERA with 75 strikeouts; and had a record of 4 wins,5 losses, and 1 save.[6]

References
  1. "[58 Anniversary] Bears Randel Enjoys Baseball, Music". Koreatimes.co.kr. 2008-10-30. Retrieved 2014-02-04.
  2. "Matt Randel Minor League Statistics & History". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved 2014-02-04.
  3. "Serving Clark County, Washington". The Columbian. Retrieved 2014-02-04.
  4. "Lewis-Clark State College Athletics". Lcsc.edu. Retrieved 2014-02-04.
  5. "2000 Fukuoka Daiei Hawks Statistics - Japanese Leagues". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved 2014-02-04.
  6. "2002 Fort Worth Cats Statistics - Minor Leagues". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved 2014-02-04.
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