Mark Prior

Luck has had little to do with Mark introductorys success as a ballplayer. It was his dedication andtalent that landed prior in the major leagues and perhaps a lack of luck that attri provideded to the right-handed pitcher being sidelined during the peak of his career. But at age 26, preliminary is optimistic ofa come tail.When anterior debuted with the scratch Cubs on whitethorn 22, 2002, he was zippo short ofimpressive which should have been expected considering he was the second overall pick in thedraft. His platter earned him all-star status as he was chosen to play in the 2003 All-Star game in save his first full season in the major leagues.Priors pitching technique seemed perfect and was considered a combination of the styles ofGreg Maddox and Roger Clemens. His first full season with the Chicago Cubs ranked him thirdin the content Leagues Cy Young Award voting with a record of 18 wins and only sestet losses.Prior became well known for his 90-plus mph fastball, curve ball, slurveball and changeup.But freak accidents and injuries began to disrupt his career in the making. numerous stints onthe disabled list and now an entire season on hold to recuperate from raise surgery havemany questioning the future of the once valued Cubs pitcher.Born September 7, 1980, Prior attended University of San Diego High School where heexcelled on the ball field. As a 1998 graduate, he had a 0.93 earned run average. Prior was thendrafted by the New York Yankees in the amateur draft but a contract was never negotiated andsigned.He began his college education at Vanderbilt University, the same school his father attended.During his second-year year, Prior transferred to the University of Southern California (USC).There he was honored as one of the best collegiate athletes in the country.Prior pitched for USC for two seasons and earned numerous awards including seven nationalPlayer of the socio-economic class awards. As a junior, his record was 15-1 with six complet e games and tierceshutouts. His ERA was 1.69. He earned the honored Golden Spikes Award. He also led theteam to the 2000 College World Series.Prior entered the draft again and this judgment of conviction he was chosen as the second pick overall in thedraft. As he concentrated on his baseball career and the hope of one day being called up to playfor the Chicago Cubs, Prior continued his college education on a part-time basis and eventuallyearned a business degree in 2004 from the USC Marshall School of Business.In 2003, his first full season as a pitcher for the Cubs, his talent was obvious as he tallied an18-6 win-lose record despite missing three starts due to an injury.Prior was injured when hecollided on the field with the Atlanta Braves second baseman Marcus Giles. Both Prior and Gileswere scheduled to play in the 2003 All-Star Game but missed due to their injuries.Prior was voted Player of the month in August and September. He went on to earn a 10-1record as the Cubs made t heir path into the playoffs. That led to the infamous fan interferenceincident in which Steve Bartman caught a fly ball turn over into the stands that could have easily beencaught by the Cubs outfielder. The Cubs ended up losing the game and Prior suffered through theloss.In 2004, Prior missed the first two months of the season with an Achilles tendon injury.Although rumors surfaced that Prior needed reconstructive elbow surgery, he returned to themound with a less than stellar performance with six wins and four losses and an ERA of 4.02. over again in 2005, Prior started the season on the disabled list. He returned and was pitching upto par until May 27th when another misfortune came his way.Prior was pitching to Brad Hawpe, an old rival from LSU who hit a three-run homerun offPrior in the College World Series. As they faced off in the major leagues, Hawpe cut a pitchand sent a 117 mph line drive back to Prior, hitting him in the right elbow and devoteting him on thedisabled li st with a compression fracture. Prior washed-up the season 11-7 in 27 starts.During spring training the following year, Prior began to feel a grimness in his throwingshoulder.He was put on a slow pitch program and sent for tests that revealed he had a strainedshoulder. He was put on the disabled list for 15 days in March missing the start of the 2006season. When he returned, he gave up six runs to the Detroit Tigers in the first inning. He wenton to earn a devastating 0-4 record with a 7.71 ERA and was once again put on the disabled listafter straining his left oblique during batting practice. He returned to the minor leagues and threegames later, Prior earned his first win of the year against the Pittsburgh Pirates.By August of 2006, he was back on the disabled list with tendonitis for the remainder of theseason. His record was 1-6 and ERA was a high 7.21.During the off-season, he complained of a loose shoulder and when conditioning did notimprove the situation, Prior sought med ical intervention and discovered he would need arthroscopicsurgery on his right shoulder.In April, Prior underwent surgery and it was undefeated but put an early end to the 2007season before it even began for him. Because of his age, doctors see no understanding Prior cannotreturn to pitching in 2007.RESOURCESMLB Advanced Media, LP (2001-2007) Chicago Cubs. Retrieved May 8, 2007 from http//chicago.cubs.mlb.com/team/player.jsp?player_id=407578