Jon Lieber

From SoSH

Jonathan Ray Lieber (born April 2, 1970 in Council Bluffs, Iowa) is an active MLB pitcher with thirteen years experience in the MLB. He has pitched for the Pittsburgh Pirates, Chicago Cubs, New York Yankees, and Philadelphia Phillies. He made his MLB debut on May 15, 1994. He is currently a starting pitcher for the Philadelphia Phillies.

Contents 1 Overall Career 2 Lieber's Moment(s) in the Sun 3 Trivia 4 Transactions 5 External Links

Overall Career

Jon Lieber was originally drafted by the Pittsburgh Pirates in the 9th round of the 1991 Amateur Draft, but failed to leave the University of South Alabama and was re-entered into the 1992 Amateur Draft, where he was chosen by the Kansas City Royals in the 2nd round and signed with the team. He was traded one year later to the Pittsburgh Pirates with Dan Miceli for Stan Belinda. He made his major league debut with the Pittsburgh Pirates on May 15th, losing a 1-0 decision to the Philadelphia Phillies. He pitched five partial years with the Pirates before being traded to the Chicago Cubs for Brant Brown on December 14, 1998.

Lieber had two of his best years in Chicago. He pitched over 200 innings for the first time in his career with an ERA of 4.07 in 1999. He threw 232 and 2/3 innings in 2001 for the Chicago Cubs with a 3.80 ERA, the lowest full-season ERA of his career to that point. He was granted free agency at the end of 2002, after going in for Tommy John Surgery once his season ended in August. He signed with the New York Yankees the next winter for a two-year deal. He did not pitch in 2003.

He started 27 games for the Yankees in 2004, winning 14 of those games. He pitched in three games for the Yankees that postseason, recording two quality starts and a win in Game 2 of the 2004 American League Championship Series against the Boston Red Sox. After the 2004 season, he signed a three-year, 21 million dollar deal with the Philadelphia Phillies. He is currently in the third year of that three-year deal.

Over his career, he has been known as a tremendous control pitcher. He has led both the AL and NL once in BB/9, ranking 2nd among active pitchers and 42nd in baseball history.

Lieber's Moment(s) in the Sun

• On May 24th, 2001, Jon Lieber one-hit the Cincinnati Reds in a complete game - shutout. He ended a streak of over 200 consecutive games in which the Reds had scored a run.

• As a pitcher for the New York Yankees in 2004, Jon Lieber was the starting pitcher in Game 2 of the 2004 American League Championship Series. He pitched seven shut-out innings, allowing only three hits over 7+ innings pitched, and only one hit through the first six innings. He left the game after one batter in the eighth inning and recorded his only post-season win, outdueling Pedro Martinez.

Trivia

• Jon Lieber married Jessica Conway on October 18th, 1992. He has three children, a daughter named Jillian, and two sons named Jared and Justin.

Transactions

• June 3, 1991: Drafted by the Chicago Cubs in the 9th round of the 1991 amateur draft, but did not sign.
• June 1, 1992: Drafted by the Kansas City Royals in the 2nd round of the 1992 amateur draft. Player signed June 8, 1992.
• July 31, 1993: Traded by the Kansas City Royals with Dan Miceli to the Pittsburgh Pirates for Stan Belinda.
• December 14, 1998: Traded by the Pittsburgh Pirates to the Chicago Cubs for Brant Brown.
• November 1, 2002: Granted Free Agency.
• February 4, 2003: Signed as a Free Agent with the New York Yankees.
• November 5, 2004: Granted Free Agency.
• December 8, 2004: Signed as a Free Agent with the Philadelphia Phillies.

External Links

• Baseball-Reference.com - Career Statistics and Analysis
• Jon Lieber's MLB.com Player Profile
• Philadelphia Phillies Contracts