Clayton Richard

Clayton Colby Richard (born September 12, 1983) is an American former professional baseball pitcher.

He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Chicago White Sox, San Diego Padres, Chicago Cubs, and Toronto Blue Jays.

Richard was awarded Indiana's Mr. Football and Mr. Baseball his senior year at McCutcheon High School.

He was also his class's valedictorian.

Richard accepted a scholarship to play football and baseball at the University of Michigan in the fall of 2003.

Richard was redshirted for the Wolverines football team his first year.

In 2004, he battled for the starting quarterback spot on the team but lost it to Chad Henne.

Richard was the Wolverine's No. 2 quarterback that season, but he saw limited action, mostly in blowout wins over Miami (Ohio), Indiana, and Northwestern.

Richard appeared in four total games for the Wolverines in 2004, only attempting 15 passes for eight completions and 52 total yards.

The following spring, Richard joined the Wolverines baseball team and pitched well.

In his one season in Ann Arbor, Richard pitched 21 games, mostly as a reliever and compiled a 0–1 record with a 2.43 ERA, a 1.20 WHIP, and 27 K's in 33.1 IP, good for a 7.29 K/9 innings ratio.

The Wolverines were 42–19 that season and finished fourth in the Big 10 with a 17–12 conference record.

They were the third seed in the Atlanta Regional of the College Baseball Tournament but were eliminated in the second round of the Regionals, losing both games to South Carolina by one run.

After starting his baseball career with moderate success, Richard dropped his football scholarship at Michigan and focused on baseball full-time.

The White Sox selected Richard in the eighth round (245th overall) of the 2005 MLB draft.

He was the second player from Michigan drafted, the first being Chris Getz, also selected by the Sox in the fourth round.

He made his professional debut with the Rookie-level Great Falls White Sox and also played for the Single-A Kannapolis Intimidators in 2005, going 2–2 with a 3.33 ERA in 13 games (11 starts).

In 2006, he played for Kannapolis and the High-A Winston-Salem Warthogs, posting a 7–9 record and 3.85 ERA in 22 games (21 starts) between the two teams.

He returned to Winston-Salem in 2007, and pitched to an 8–12 record and 3.63 ERA in 28 games (27 starts) with 99 strikeouts in 161.1 innings pitched.

In 2008, he played with the Double-A Birmingham Barons and Triple-A Charlotte Knights, and posted a 12–6 record and 2.89 ERA in 20 starts for the two affiliates.

On July 23, 2008, Richard made his major league debut, allowing five runs (four earned) on seven hits in four innings pitched against the Texas Rangers.

In 13 appearances (eight starts) for Chicago, Richard struggled to a 2–5 record and 6.04 ERA.

In 2009, Richard was initially used out of the bullpen, but was later moved to the starting rotation on May 12, and appeared in 26 games (14 starts) for the White Sox, registering a 4–3 record and 4.65 ERA.

On July 31, 2009, Richard was traded along with Aaron Poreda, Adam Russell and Dexter Carter to the San Diego Padres for 2007 Cy Young Award-winner Jake Peavy.

Richard made his first start for the Padres on August 1, 2009, recording no decision in 5 innings at home against the Milwaukee Brewers.

Richard compiled a 5–2 record with a 4.08 ERA over 12 starts in his partial season with the Padres.

Richard started 33 games for the Padres in 2010, building a 14–9 record and a 3.75 ERA over 201 innings.

On September 21, 2010, Richard threw his first career shutout, giving up eight hits, two walks, and recording six strikeouts in a win against the Los Angeles Dodgers along with a golden sombrero at the plate, striking out four times.

In 2011, Richard regressed slightly, posting a 5–9 record with a 3.88 ERA in 18 starts, while his strikeout-to-walk ratio dropped to 1.39 K/BB from 1.93 K/BB in 2010.

A left shoulder strain forced Richard to the disabled list in July and later required arthroscopic surgery, ending his season.

In 2012, Richard resumed his role in the Padres starting rotation.

At the end of the season, he was the unanimous pick as the Padres Pitcher of the Year by writers covering the team.

He had a 14–14 record with a 3.99 earned run average.

His 33 starts were tied for second in the National League (NL) and he was fourth with 218 2⁄3 innings pitched.

On February 16, 2013, Richard and the Padres avoided going to arbitration, both sides agreeing on a $5.24 million deal for one season.

Richard opened 2013 as the Padres number two starter, but had a rough beginning to the season, posting an 8.54 ERA in his first six starts.

An intestinal virus forced Richard to push back a start in late April, and he was then placed on the disabled list on May 5 when the virus flared up again.

Richard returned on May 27, but continued to struggle.

On June 1, Richard pitched two innings in relief to earn his first win of the season in a 17-inning affair against the Blue Jays that the Padres won 4–3.

On June 21, Richard injured his left shoulder and left the game after making only two pitches.