Rick Ankiel is known amongst baseball fans for his unprecedented failure as a pitcher and his stunning comeback as an outfielder.
A lot of mystery surrounds Ankiel’s sudden ineffectiveness as a pitcher. A brief stint in the majors in 1999, starting only five games, showed flashes of what 19-year-old Ankiel was capable of. During a brilliant rookie campaign in the 2000 season, in which he finished second in National League Rookie of the Year voting, Ankiel sported a 3.50 Earned Run Average (ERA) and struck out 194 batters in 175.0 innings pitched (Rick Ankiel Stats, 2017). Given Ankiel’s success on the mound, Cardinals manager Tony La Russa chose to start him in game one of the National League Divisional Series against the Atlanta Braves. Starting