Eric O'Flaherty
Eric George O'Flaherty (born February 5, 1985) is an American former professional baseball pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Seattle Mariners, Atlanta Braves, Oakland Athletics, and New York Mets. O'Flaherty was the first reliever in MLB history to record an earned run average below 1.00 with at least 70 appearances in a season, and was the first pitcher in Mariners franchise history to begin his MLB career with seven consecutive wins. Early career O'Flaherty graduated from Walla Walla High School in Walla Walla, Washington. As a senior at Walla Walla High School, he had a 5–2 win–loss record, an earned run average (ERA) of 1.99, and 83 strikeouts. He earned Pitcher of the Year honors in the Big Nine Conference. The Seattle Mariners selected O'Flaherty in the sixth round of the 2003 Major League Baseball Draft. He was the 176th pick overall. He was the first player since Drew Bledsoe was drafted that went to Walla Walla High School. As of 2022 he is currently an assistant baseball coach at Walla Walla High School Professional career Minor leagues O'Flaherty quickly made his way through the Mariners' minor league affiliate teams. He started 2006 with the Single-A Inland Empire 66ers where he had a 3.45 ERA and struck out 33 batters in 16 relief appearances. On May 27, he moved to the Doulble-A San Antonio Missions where he had a record of 2–2 with an ERA of 1.14 and seven saves in 25 games. He moved again that same season to the Triple-A Tacoma Rainiers on August 9; he would stay with them until his August 16 appearance with the Mariners. His combined minor league record in 2006 was 3–3 with a 2.01 ERA, eight saves, and 73 strikeouts in 43 games. Seattle Mariners O'Flaherty made his debut in the major leagues on August 16, 2006, against the Oakland Athletics. He pitched 2/3 of an inning, faced 4 batters, allowed one hit, one walk, and got his first strikeout in the major leagues. On the same day of O'Flaherty's debut, the Seattle Times reported that his "big-league visit was too short to qualify as a cup of coffee". The night before he had flown in from Triple-A Tacoma in order to replace a seemingly injured Rafael Soriano. When O'Flaherty arrived, Soriano convinced coaches he was healthy enough to remain on the Mariners' roster, so O'Flaherty was sidelined out of uniform for the rest of the night. The next day, however, infielder Greg Dobbs was returned to Triple-A, allowing O'Flaherty to pitch his first major league game. During his debut season in 2006, O'Flaherty faced some challenges: however, his pitching became more refined in the 2007 season and O'Flaherty quickly become a mainstay relief pitcher for the Mariners. Things went downhill for him in 2008. In 7 games for the Mariners, O'Flaherty gave up 15 earned runs for a 20.25 ERA and was optioned to the minors. Atlanta Braves On November 20, 2008, O'Flaherty was claimed off waivers