Mike Hampton

Michael William Hampton, Jr. (born September 9, 1972) is an American former professional baseball player.

Hampton was drafted by the Seattle Mariners in the sixth round of the 1990 Major League Baseball draft.

Hampton played in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a pitcher from 1993 through 2010.

He pitched for the Seattle Mariners, Houston Astros, New York Mets, Colorado Rockies, Atlanta Braves and Arizona Diamondbacks.

He made his Major League debut in 1993.

After the season, he was traded to the Houston Astros with Mike Felder for Eric Anthony.

Hampton became a starter for Houston in 1995, and kept his ERA under 4.00 for every season he was with the Astros.

In 1999, Hampton had his best year, finishing with a 22–4 record, best in the National League, and a 2.90 ERA.

He picked up his first of five Silver Slugger Awards and narrowly finished second in National League Cy Young Award voting to Randy Johnson.

That season, Hampton batted .311 (23 for 74).

Entering the final year of his contract, Hampton was dealt to the New York Mets.

He went 15–10 with a 3.12 ERA and helped the Mets reach the postseason.

From 1999 to 2003, Hampton would go on to win five consecutive Silver Slugger Awards.

He was the Most Valuable Player of the 2000 National League Championship Series, and he pitched in the 2000 World Series for the Mets.

Hampton was born in Brooksville, Florida, when his father, Mike Hampton Sr., was 19 and his mother, Joan, was 16.

He was the oldest of three children.

Hampton was raised in Homosassa, Florida, and attended Crystal River High School.

In high school, Hampton was recruited to play college football as a defensive back at Notre Dame, Miami and Florida State.

With two wins and no earned runs in two starts, Hampton was named the MVP of the 2000 NLCS.

Hampton received a loss in his only World Series appearance.

The Colorado Rockies signed Hampton to an eight-year, $121 million contract on December 9, 2000.

It was the largest contract in baseball history at the time, although it would quickly be passed by Alex Rodríguez's ten-year, $252 million contract with the Texas Rangers only two days later.

Hampton once claimed that he had chosen to move to Colorado because of "the school system", a statement that is often derisively referenced by sportswriters.

The Rockies hoped Hampton, who had been one of the best pitchers in the league over the past few seasons, would be able to succeed in the tough pitching conditions of Coors Field.

Hampton went 14–13 with a 5.41 ERA in 2001, often succumbing to control problems.

His best all-around offensive season came in 2001 with the Colorado Rockies, when he would hit .291 with seven home runs.

The next year he hit three home runs and batted .344.

The next season, 2002, Hampton went 7–15 with his ERA climbing to a league-high 6.15 and batters hitting .313 off of him.

Hampton hit ten home runs and had a .300+ batting average over two seasons.

In November 2002, Hampton was traded to the Florida Marlins, then to the Atlanta Braves.

Hampton won 14 games and got his ERA back down to 3.84 in 2003.

He overcame a slow start in 2004 by winning 10 of his last 11 decisions and helping to propel the Braves to another division championship.

Hampton's 2005 season was limited heavily by injuries.

He went 5–3 in twelve starts, but was lost for the rest of the season with an elbow injury on August 19, 2005.

Hampton had Tommy John surgery on September 25, 2005, and missed the entire 2006 season rehabbing.

The Braves were hoping for Hampton to be ready to rejoin The Rotation in time for the start of the 2007 season.

The rehab was on schedule until Hampton tore his oblique muscle on March 7, 2007, which was to sideline him until at least May.

He was the bullpen coach for the Mariners before resigning on July 9, 2017.

Hampton is a two-time MLB All-Star.

He won five Silver Slugger Awards and a Gold Glove Award.