A. J. Burnett

Allan James Burnett (born January 3, 1977), is an American former professional baseball starting pitcher, who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Florida Marlins, Toronto Blue Jays, New York Yankees, Pittsburgh Pirates, and Philadelphia Phillies for 17 seasons.

The New York Mets drafted Burnett in the eighth round of the 1995 MLB draft, out of Central Arkansas Christian School in North Little Rock, Arkansas, where he helped lead the team to back-to-back state championships.

The New York Mets selected Burnett in the eighth round of the 1995 Major League Baseball draft.

He was traded to the Marlins with Jesús Sánchez and Robert Stratton for Al Leiter and Ralph Milliard before the 1998 season when the Marlins dismantled their 1997 World Series championship roster.

The Mets traded him to the Marlins, and Burnett made his MLB debut in 1999.

He was first called up to the Marlins from Class AA Portland in 1999, despite having a record of 6–12 and an ERA of 5.52 with Portland.

Burnett played parts of 1999 and 2000 with the Marlins; his first full regular season with the Marlins came in 2001, when he went 11–12 with an ERA of 4.05.

Burnett recorded a no-hitter in a complete game shutout in 2001, despite walking 9 batters.

On May 12, 2001, Burnett pitched a no-hitter against the San Diego Padres in a 3–0 victory, striking out seven and walking nine.

His game-worn cap and a baseball from the game are on display at the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum.

On September 7, 2001, Burnett threw a warm-up pitch that accidentally struck the window of a moving pick-up truck.

He led the National League (NL) in shutouts in 2002, and the American League (AL) in strikeouts in 2008.

In 2002, he held an ERA of 3.30 and finished with a 12–9 record and 203 strikeouts, career bests that he did not top until 2008, as well as leading the majors with five complete game shutouts.

He threw the fastest fastball of all major league starters in 2002, averaging 94.9 mph.

In 2003, Burnett was limited to four starts before missing the rest of the season due to Tommy John surgery.

He spent the postseason on the injured reserve list until the Marlins won the 2003 World Series against the Yankees.

He returned in June 2004 and made 19 starts for the Marlins, going 7–6 with an ERA of 3.68.

Even during 2004, his first season back from having the surgery, he was able to throw 102 mph. He was shut down for most of September 2004 due to a less serious elbow injury.

As former teammate Carl Pavano had done in the 2004 off-season, he wanted to test the market rather than take whatever new contract the Marlins gave him.

Since he was likely to price himself out of the Marlins' budget, he was sought after by several other teams before the July 31 trade deadline, but he ended up not being traded.

Burnett seemed to be pitching his best games of the season right around the trade deadline.

After he took the loss in the Marlins' first game after the All-Star break, dropping his record to 5–6, he strung together seven consecutive wins.

The last of those wins was on August 19, when he pitched eight shutout innings against the Los Angeles Dodgers.

He then lost six consecutive decisions, including four losses in five starts (with an ERA in that span of 5.93) during the Marlins' failed wild-card chase in September, to close out the season with a 12–12 record despite a 3.44 ERA.

The 2005 season was Burnett's last with the Marlins before he became eligible for free agency.

On September 27, 2005, Burnett was asked by the Marlins to leave the team.

The request came a day after he made comments criticizing the organization: "We played scared. We managed scared. We coached scared", he told reporters following the Marlins' 5–3 loss at Turner Field.

"I'm sick of it, man. It's depressing around here. A 3–0 ballgame, I give up one run and leave guys on base, it's like they expect us to mess up. And when we do, they chew us out. There is no positive, nothing around here for anybody."

Marlins manager Jack McKeon called Burnett into his office and broke the news.

Burnett shook his hand, gathered up his belongings, and left.

Burnett has since apologized, saying:

"'I have always been a very passionate player and person. I often wear my emotions on my sleeve, sometimes for better, sometimes for worse. I hope that my teammates always respect that of me, as I trust they know my commitment to winning. For those I've offended, I offer my most sincere apologies.'"

Because of his dismissal from the team, Burnett finished the season one inning short of receiving a $50,000 bonus for pitching 210 innings during the season; in addition, he was only two strikeouts shy of having his second 200-strikeout season of his career.

After Burnett's contract with the Marlins expired, general manager Larry Beinfest did not attempt to re-sign him, which was unlikely to happen anyway, given Florida's financial constraints and the market for Burnett.

He threw the fastest fastball of all major league starters in 2005, averaging 95.6 mph.

He signed with the Blue Jays as a free agent, before the 2006 season, and with the Yankees before the 2009 season.

Burnett was a member of the 2009 World Series champion Yankees.

The Yankees traded Burnett to the Pirates before the 2012 season.

After two years in Pittsburgh, he signed with the Phillies, where he played one season, before rejoining the Pirates for his final season.

He was selected for the NL roster for the 2015 MLB All-Star Game.