| Josh Outman | |
| Position: | Pitcher |
| Birth Date: | 14 September 1984 |
| Birth Place: | St. Louis, Missouri, U.S. |
| Bats: | Left |
| Throws: | Left |
| Debutleague: | MLB |
| Debutdate: | September 2 |
| Debutyear: | 2008 |
| Debutteam: | Oakland Athletics |
| Finalleague: | MLB |
| Finaldate: | September 19 |
| Finalyear: | 2014 |
| Finalteam: | New York Yankees |
| Statleague: | MLB |
| Stat1label: | Win–loss record |
| Stat1value: | 16–11 |
| Stat2label: | Earned run average |
| Stat2value: | 4.43 |
| Stat3label: | Strikeouts |
| Stat3value: | 226 |
| Teams: | |
Joshua Stephen Outman (born September 14, 1984) is an American former professional baseball pitcher. He pitched in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Oakland Athletics (2008-2009, 2011), Colorado Rockies (2012-2013), Cleveland Indians (2014), and New York Yankees (2014).
Outman graduated from Lindbergh High School and then pitched for Forest Park Community College in Saint Louis before transferring to the Central Missouri State. While playing for the Central Missouri State Mules, he posted a 10-2 record and helped the Mules finish third in the NCAA Division II World Series. Outman was one of five Mules drafted in the 2005 MLB Draft.
Outman was a prospect in the Philadelphia Phillies organization, and was named the 12th-best prospect in the Phillies organization in .[1]
On July 17, 2008, Outman was traded, along with fellow prospects Adrian Cardenas and Matthew Spencer, to the Oakland Athletics for starting pitcher Joe Blanton.[2]
Outman was called up to the majors for the first time on September 2,, and pitched two scoreless innings that night against the Kansas City Royals, striking out two. Outman's performance in the 2009 season gave him the fan nickname "Out-Man", because of his ability to get the easy outs . Outman's brother, Zachary, was selected by the Toronto Blue Jays, in the 28th round of the 2009 Major League Baseball Draft, out of Saint Louis University.
After a successful first half of the 2009 season starting 12 games for the Athletics. Outman was placed on the disabled list with an injury to his pitching elbow. Outman underwent Tommy John surgery, ending his season on June 30.[3]
Outman, recovering from surgery, missed the entire 2010 season.
In 2011, Outman pitched 58.1 innings (starting 9 games), with a 3–5 record, 35 strikeouts and 3.70 ERA.
On January 16, 2012, Outman, along with pitcher Guillermo Moscoso, was traded to the Colorado Rockies for outfielder Seth Smith.[4]
Outman was traded to the Cleveland Indians on December 18, 2013 in exchange for outfielder Drew Stubbs.[5]
On January 14, 2014, Outman avoided arbitration after filing for arbitration earlier that morning. He was the first player to avoid arbitration in 2014. Cots Contracts reported that he had signed a 1 year/$1.25M contract.[6]
On June 18, 2014, the Indians designated Outman for assignment and was outrighted on June 25.[7]
Josh Outman was acquired by the New York Yankees on August 28, 2014 in exchange for a player to be named later or cash considerations.[8] He was designated for assignment on September 22, 2014. Outman elected free agency September 30, 2014.[9]
Outman signed a one-year contract with the Atlanta Braves on January 7, 2015.[10] He was released on August 4, 2015.
On April 7, 2016, Outman signed with the New Britain Bees of the Atlantic League of Professional Baseball. In 14 starts 85 innings he went 3-3 with a 4.24 ERA with 55 strikeouts also throwing 2 complete games and 1 shutout.
On July 9, 2016, Outman signed a minor league deal with the Pittsburgh Pirates. He was released by the Pirates on August 18, 2016.
On December 31, 2016, Outman signed a minor league contract with the Washington Nationals.[11] He was released on May 2, 2017.
On May 7, 2017, Outman signed with the Sugar Land Skeeters of the Atlantic League of Professional Baseball. In 2 games (1 start) 7 innings he went 0-0 with a 1.29 ERA and 5 strikeouts.
On June 2, 2017, Outman signed with the Acereros de Monclova of the Mexican Baseball League. [12] In 7 games 8.1 innings of relief he went 2-0 with a 3.24 ERA and 7 strikeouts.
He was traded to the Pericos de Puebla on June 24, 2017. In 8 starts 43.2 innings he struggled going 5-1 with a 5.36 ERA and 27 strikeouts and throwing 1 complete game.
On November 11, 2017, he was traded to the Rieleros de Aguascalientes along with Andres Ivan Meza, Julio Felix, and Ramon Delgado. He was released prior to the 2018 season.
On June 1, 2018, Outman signed with the New Britain Bees of the Atlantic League of Professional Baseball.[13] In 21 games (5 starts) 42 innings he struggled going 4-4 with a 5.79 ERA and 37 strikeouts.
On August 16, 2018, Outman's contract was purchased by the Pericos de Puebla of the Mexican League. He became a free agent following the season. In 3 starts 16 innings pitched he went 1-2 with a 4.50 ERA and 13 strikeouts.
On May 15, 2019, Outman signed with the Piratas de Campeche of the Mexican League. He was released on July 16, 2019. In 10 games (9 starts) 34 innings pitched he struggled immensely going 2-4 with a 9.26 ERA and 25 strikeouts.
Outman throws five pitches, relying most heavily on a four-seam fastball at 93–96 mph. He also throws a two-seamer (90–95), a slider (80–83), a changeup (78–83), and a curveball (low-to-mid 70s). His changeup is not thrown to left-handed hitters, but is a common pitch against right-handers. He uses his slider a great deal against lefties but typically uses it against righties only in 2-strike counts. Throughout his career, the slider has been his best swing-and-miss pitch, with a whiff rate of 46% through June 2012.[14]