Casey Fossum

From SoSH

Casey Paul Fossum was born on January 6, 1978 in Cherry Hill, NJ. Drafted by the Boston Red Sox with the 48th pick in the first round of the 1999 Amateur Draft, he made his major league debut with the Red Sox on July 28, 2001 and played his final game for the Sox on September 6, 2003. He currently pitches for the Tampa Bay Devil Rays.

Contents 1 Overall Career 2 Moment in the Sun 3 Trivia 4 Transactions 5 External Links

Overall Career

After leading the Texas A&M Aggies to the national title in 1999, Casey, a left-handed pitcher, was drafted by the Red Sox in the sandwich round following the first round in 1999. Fossum sped through the minors, pitching in just 45 games at the minor league level and skipping triple A entirely before his major league debut in 2001. Nicknamed "Blade" because of his rail-thin frame, Casey spent the first half of 2002 in the bullpen before being moved into the starting rotation, finishing the year with an impressive 3.46 ERA.

In the offseason following 2002, Casey became the sticking point in the Red Sox attempt to acquire Bartolo Colon or Javier Vasquez from the Montreal Expos, as the Sox offered Shea Hillenbrand and Freddy Sanchez, while the Expos wanted Fossum included in the deal. When Theo Epstein balked at the prospect of trading Fossum, stating that he didn't want to "sacrifice the team's future", the New York Yankees jumped in with a three-way deal sending Colon to the Chicago White Sox.

Following the Colon bonanza, much was expected of Fossum in the 2003 season. However, an injury limited Fossum's effectiveness for much of the season and caused him to miss over a month's playing time, and Casey finished the year with a 5.47 ERA in just 79 innings.

Following the 2003 season, Fossum was again the subject of trade rumors, and, in perhaps his greatest contribution to the Red Sox, Casey was traded, along with Jorge de la Rosa, Michael Goss, and Brandon Lyon, to the Arizona Diamondbacks for Curt Schilling. He pitched badly for the Diamondbacks in 2004 before being sent to the Tampa Bay Devil Rays for Jose Cruz, Jr. in the following offseason. He tried to right himself as a starter with the Rays, but was released on August 10, 2007, and subsequently signed into the San Diego Padres farm system.

Moment in the Sun

• Getting the Red Sox Curt Schilling.

Trivia

• Was originally drafted by the Diamondbacks in the 7th round of the 1996 draft, but chose to go to college instead
• Most regular user of the eephus pitch among current major league players

Transactions

• June 4, 1996: Drafted by the Arizona Diamondbacks in the 7th round of the 1996 amateur draft, but did not sign.
• June 2, 1999: Drafted by the Boston Red Sox in the 1st round (48th pick) of the 1999 amateur draft.
• November 28, 2003: Traded by the Boston Red Sox with Michael Goss, Brandon Lyon, and Jorge de la Rosa to the Arizona Diamondbacks for Curt Schilling.
• February 6, 2005: Traded by the Arizona Diamondbacks to the Tampa Bay Rays for Jose Cruz Jr. and cash.

External Links

• Baseball-Reference.com - Career Statistics and Analysis