Mike Capel

Michael Lee Capel (born October 13, 1961) is an American professional baseball pitcher who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Chicago Cubs, the Milwaukee Brewers, and the Houston Astros.

In 49 career games, Capel pitched 62 1⁄3 innings, struck out 43 batters, and had a career win–loss record of 3–4 with a 4.62 earned run average (ERA).

While he played in MLB, Capel stood at 6 ft and weighed 175 lb. A starting pitcher in college and parts of his Minor League Baseball career, he converted to relief pitching while in Chicago's minor league system.

Capel was born on October 13, 1961, in Marshall, Texas, and attended Spring High School in Harris County.

As a child, he watched the Astros play on weekends.

The championship was the fourth World Series title in University of Texas history, and their first since 1975.

Capel finished the season with a 13–1 record and a 2.98 ERA.

, his career winning percentage (.957) ties him with Rick Burley for the fifth-best in Texas Longhorns history (with a minimum of ten decisions).

During his senior year in 1979, the Spring Lions won the AAAA conference state championship, and Capel was named to the All-State team, composed of the best high school players in the state.

He set several pitching records at Spring High School.

The Philadelphia Phillies chose Capel in the 24th round of the 1980 MLB draft, but the 18-year-old did not sign with the team; instead, he opted to attend the University of Texas.

Future teammate Calvin Schiraldi called Capel a "hard thrower when he came out of high school" and "the top guy out of the state in 1980"; Roger Clemens said he was "probably the best pitcher in the state at that time".

The Philadelphia Phillies drafted Capel with the 605th overall pick in the 1980 MLB Draft, and offered him $45,000 to sign.

Instead of signing with the Phillies, he chose to attend the University of Texas.

Aside from intrateam scrimmages, Capel did not play baseball his freshman season due to a torn ligament (or stretched ligaments) in his elbow.

Capel pitched sidearm for the remainder of his collegiate career to compensate for a loss in the velocity of his fastball.

Capel played on the 1982 USA College All-Star Team, which competed in the Amateur World Series in Seoul and placed third.

The next year, Capel and the Texas Longhorns won the College World Series.

In 1982, he was named to the All-Southwest Conference team and pitched to a 9–0 win–loss record with a 3.68 ERA, as the Longhorns finished 59–6.

In the 1982 College World Series, Texas defeated the Oklahoma State Cowboys and the Stanford Cardinal, but losses to the Miami Hurricanes and the Wichita State Shockers eliminated them from play, per the tournament's double-elimination format.

Capel played on the United States team in the 1982 Amateur World Series, overseen by the International Baseball Federation.

Starting against Australia, he pitched a 14–4 complete game victory, with the match ending after seven innings per the championship's ten-run rule.

The United States eventually placed third in the competition.

The 1983 Longhorns finished the regular season with a 61–14 record and were ranked as the number one team in the nation by Collegiate Baseball Magazine.

That season, the Texas team featured four future MLB pitchers: Capel, Clemens, Bruce Ruffin, and Schiraldi.

In the 1983 College World Series, Capel allowed four hits in a complete game against the Michigan Wolverines as the Longhorns advanced to the World Series finals.

Facing the Alabama Crimson Tide, the Longhorns made Clemens their starting pitcher and won 4–3.

In June, before the College World Series, he was drafted by the Cubs with the 320th overall pick in the 1983 MLB draft.

After he signed a professional contract with the Cubs, Capel no longer threw sidearmed.

Capel began professional baseball with the Double-A Midland Cubs, but was demoted to the Class A Quad Cities Cubs after pitching to a 1–1 record with a 6.91 ERA in Double-A.

Now in Single-A, Capel recorded a 3–2 record with a 2.42 ERA and a 1.03 walks plus hits per inning pitched rate.

In 1984, Capel split playing time between the Class A-Advanced Lodi Crushers and Midland; he led Midland in losses (10) and wild pitches (11) and had the second-worst ERA (6.31) on the team.

With Midland, Capel started 11 games out of the 16 in which he appeared.

On his 0–7 record for the Crushers, Tom Alexander of the Lodi News-Sentinel wrote that Capel's luck "has been all bad when it comes to wins".

After he was drafted by the Cubs, Capel left Texas and signed to play professional baseball; he played in six seasons of Minor League Baseball before he made his MLB debut in 1988.

Capel spent the entire 1989 season in Triple-A, one level below the majors, but the Cubs released him at the end of the year.

He agreed to terms with the Brewers and played in MLB after an injury opened a spot on Milwaukee's roster, but was again released at the end of the season.

A free agent, the Astros signed Capel, and over the course of the season he pitched in 25 games for the team.

He spent the final part of his career in the Astros farm system, and after he made the 1992 Triple-A All-Star team, Capel played his last season in 1993.

After retirement, Capel worked as the general manager of a car dealership in Houston, Texas.