Chris Carpenter

Explore about the Famous Baseball Player Chris Carpenter, who was born in United Kingdom on April 27, 1975. Analyze Chris Carpenter’s net worth, age, bio, birthday, dating, height-weight, wiki. Investigate who is Chris Carpenter dating now? Look into this article to know how old is Chris Carpenter?

Chris Carpenter Biography

2005 National League Cy Young Award winner who helped lead the St. Louis Cardinals to World Series titles in 2006 and 2011.

He pitched in the Pioneer League in 1994, where he had the league’s third-lowest ERA.

He was named National League Comeback Player of the Year in 2009 after a miraculous return from Tommy John surgery.

He had a son, Sam, and daughter, Ava, with his wife Alyson.

He won the World Series twice alongside superstar hitter Albert Pujols.

On June 4, he threw his 26th career complete game, and lowered his ERA for the season to 0.71, the lowest for any Cardinals’ pitcher in the first six starts of a season, exceeding Harry Brecheen’s mark of 0.75 in 1948. In July, he was 4–0 in five starts and 36 IP with a 1.75 ERA and 1.222 WHIP. He hurled seven shutout innings while striking out ten Reds on August 12. A 7–0 victory over San Diego at Petco Park on August 22 gave him his ninth win in ten starts with a 1.92 ERA in that span. It was also the unofficial 10,000th win in the Cardinals’ all-time franchise history, dating back to the American Association era. The official total at the time, counted since their entry into the NL in 1892, was 9,219.

After winning several awards for his regular season performance, Carpenter was the National League Cy Young Award winner. He amassed 19 first-place votes for 132 points while runner-up Dontrelle Willis of the Florida Marlins garnered 112 total points. Carpenter became just the second pitcher in team history to win a Cy Young since Gibson, who had last won in 1970. He won the Major League Baseball Players Association (MLBPA) Players Choice Award for the National League Outstanding Pitcher, and the Sporting News Award for the National League Pitcher of the Year. He also won the This Year in Baseball Starting Pitcher of the Year Award. To recognize his selection as the NL Outstanding Pitcher, MLBPA Trust contributed $20,000 to Kristen’s Gift in Lebanon, New Hampshire. The St. Louis chapter of the Baseball Writers’ Association of America (BBWAA) selected him, along with Albert Pujols, as co-St. Louis Baseball Man of the Year Award winners. He finished eighth in the NL MVP voting, the highest placement of all pitchers.

Christopher John Carpenter (born April 27, 1975) is an American retired professional baseball starting pitcher. He played 15 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Toronto Blue Jays and St. Louis Cardinals from 1997 to 2012. A Cy Young Award winner and two-time World Series champion, he was also a three-time All-Star selection. In addition, he was twice named the Sporting News National League Pitcher of the Year, and voted for a number of Comeback Player of the Year awards for surmounting injury.

With 13 wins before the All-Star break, Carpenter became just the third Cardinal pitcher ever to achieve the feat, following Joaquín Andújar in 1984 and 1985, and Kent Bottenfield in 1999. He was picked to start an All-Star Game at Comerica Park in Detroit, the first Cardinal pitcher in 32 years since Rick Wise to do so. He pitched one scoreless inning. On another occasion facing Clemens on July 17, Carpenter struck out nine Astros while giving up just three hits and no walks as St. Louis won, 3–0. It was his sixth consecutive start allowing one or no runs. He yielded five earned runs over ​40 ⁄3 innings in July for a 1.11 July ERA (second in MLB), 33 strikeouts, seven walks and 24 hits, and one home run. Carpenter became the first Cardinals pitcher since Andújar in 1985 to record 15 wins before August 1. Carpenter’s August resulted in a 4–0 record, 2.17 ERA six BB and 38 SO in six starts. On September 3, he won a complete game in Houston to become the majors’ first 20-game winner. It was his 28th start, making him the fastest Cardinal to win 20 since Dizzy Dean in his 23rd start in 1934. With a 2–0 record, 1.69 ERA, 13 SO and ​16 ⁄3 IP, Carpenter won his first NL Player of the Week Award for the week ending September 4. On September 23, the Cardinals’ streak of winning 17 consecutive starts by Carpenter ended with a 9–6 loss to Milwaukee.

Chris Carpenter was born in Exeter, New Hampshire, but grew up in Raymond, New Hampshire, later moving to Bedford. He played in Little League Baseball, Babe Ruth League, and American Legion Baseball. While attending Trinity High School in Manchester, New Hampshire, he was selected all-state for three years in both baseball and hockey. As a junior in 1992, his baseball team won the state championship. He was selected for The Boston Globe All-Scholastic team as a senior. In 1993, his senior campaign, he earned Athlete of the Year honors. He committed to play college baseball for Creighton.

The Toronto Blue Jays selected Carpenter in the first round and 15th overall pick of the 1993 Major League Baseball draft. He was the first player from New Hampshire ever taken in the first round of the draft. He signed for $580,000. Standing 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m), scouts saw potential in his size, projectability, low-90s fastball, and power curveball. However, he needed to develop his control and changeup—he consistently struggled with his control early in his career. He began his professional career in 1994 in Minor League Baseball with the Medicine Hat Blue Jays of the short-season Pioneer League. In his debut against the Great Falls Dodgers, he tossed six scoreless innings of one-hit ball, fanning nine along the way. When he defeated the Lethbridge Mounties, he claimed the July 2 Pitcher of the Week award. His early success continued throughout the season as he finished with a 2.56 earned run average (ERA) with 80 strikeouts (SO), 39 bases on balls (BB) and 76 hits allowed in ​84 ⁄3 innings pitched (IP). He ended the season with a win–loss record (W–L) of 6–3 and turned in the league’s third-lowest ERA. He was also picked as the Pioneer League’s number-three prospect by league managers, behind Aaron Boone and Ray Brown.

The Blue Jays selected Carpenter in the first round of the 1993 amateur draft from Trinity High School in New Hampshire, and he made his MLB debut in 1997. However, injuries and ineffectiveness delayed his career before the Blue Jays released him in 2002. After the Cardinals signed him, he emerged as an ace in 2004, winning the Cy Young Award in 2005 and helping lead the Cardinals to World Series titles in 2006 and 2011. For much of his career, Carpenter relied on his cutter that produced a heavy bore and finished with a sharp drop, a 12-to-6 curveball, and a sinker.

The Blue Jays promoted Carpenter to the Class-A Advanced Dunedin Blue Jays of Florida State League in 1995. Baseball America rated him the #100 prospect in the minor leagues before the season. He made 15 starts and yielded a 2.17 ERA in ​99 ⁄3 IP. In 13 of those starts, he yielded three or fewer earned runs (ER). However, he posted a poor strikeout-to-walk ratio (K/BB) of 1.12, with 56 SO and 50 BB. After a promotion to the AA Knoxville Blue Jays of the Southern League, he struggled with a 5.18 ERA, 53 SO and 31 for 1.17 K/BB.

Carpenter made his Major League Baseball (MLB) debut as a starter against the Minnesota Twins on May 12, 1997, completing three innings with eight hits, seven runs, and three BB while striking out five in a 12–2 loss. His first strikeout victim was Paul Molitor. At 22 years and 18 days old, he became the sixth-youngest starting pitcher for the Blue Jays. After two more appearances with a 12.71 ERA and 0–2 W–L, he returned to Syracuse. Carpenter’s second round at Syracuse consisted of 12 more starts, including a seven inning complete game–shutout against the Richmond Braves on May 28. Totaling 19 games started at Syracuse in 1997, he pitched 120 innings, allowed 113 hits, and a 4.20 ERA. He posted 97 SO with 53 BB for a 1.83 K/BB, his best figure since playing at Medicine Hat. However, his home run (HR) rate jumped after surrendering 16 HR—a rate of 1.2 home runs per nine innings (HR/9). His previous high (0.7) was at Knoxville in 1996.

In 1997, Baseball America promoted Carpenter’s prospect ranking to 28th in the minor leagues. He started the season with the AAA Syracuse SkyChiefs of the International League, where he made his first seven starts of the season for a 3.88 ERA and 1–3 record. The Blue Jays purchased his contract on May 10, conferring his first major-league call-up.

Performance struggles plagued Carpenter early in 1998. After just 10 innings with a combined 9.00 ERA in his first two starts, the Blue Jays moved him into the bullpen, where he remained until the end of May. On May 18, he totaled four innings and struck out six, which was a season-high for Toronto relievers. That stage included his total relief work for the season, where he made nine appearances and completed ​22 ⁄3 IP, allowing a 2.38 ERA and carrying a 1–0 record. After Carpenter returned to the starting rotation, he earned a four-hit complete game-shutout on July 4 against the Tampa Bay, his first complete game and shutout of the season. 12 days later, he struck out a season-high 10—and then-career high—against the White Sox.

Carpenter battled through an injury-plagued 1999 season. Initially, he continued the skillful finish from the season before, allowing three or fewer ER in his first nine starts, and was credited with a 3–4 W–L and 3.02 ERA. His first loss of the season came in a 1–0 decision in Baltimore on April 10. His second start of the season resulted in an 11–1 complete game two-hitter at home on April 15 against Tampa Bay. For the month of April, his performance included a 2–1 W–L and 2.55 ERA. However, the results reversed in May; he was 1–4 in six starts with a 4.50 ERA. Pitching elbow inflammation stationed him on the DL from June 3–28. After returning to play, he won the next five decisions of eight starts through August 11. He shut out Tampa Bay on July 3, the third of his career, and allowed just three hits. His season output at the All-Star break was a 3.24 ERA with a 6–5 W–L. He remained effective in June and throughout July, allowing 20 ER in ​49 ⁄3 IP for a 3.62 ERA.

For the season, Carpenter established then-career bests with 15 victories, a 3.46 ERA, 7.5 K/9 and allowed less than one hit per inning for the first time as a Major Leaguer. He tallied 182 IP, his highest total since 2001. His ERA placed thirteenth in the NL, 1.137 WHIP fourth, 1.879 BB/9 sixth, K/BB ratio of 4.000 placed fifth, and overall record of 15–5 with a .750 winning percentage ranked second. The Cardinals staff finished second in the league in ERA (3.75) as they won a National League-high 105 games, their most since 1944, and first NL pennant since 1987. The nerve problem caused Carpenter to miss the postseason, including what would have been his first World Series appearance, which the Boston Red Sox won. Carpenter won the National League Comeback Player of the Year Awards from the Sporting News and the Major League Baseball Players Association (MLBPA) Players Choice Award series.

Beginning his 2001 season with 13 scoreless innings—a career high—he won his first start 11–0 against Tampa with 11 strikeouts (also a new career high). His April totals included a 3.15 ERA and 2–1 W–L. He tossed a six-hitter in a 4–0 victory over the White Sox on May 29 for his first complete game and shutout of the season. He gained three wins in May, his first three-win month since September 1998. At the end of June, Carpenter had a 7–4 record with a 3.67 ERA. However, he lost his next seven decisions in ten starts from July 1 to August 19 to fall to 7–11 and a 4.59 ERA. During that stretch he allowed 12 home runs and 40 ER in ​56 ⁄3 IP for an ERA of 6.35. Lee Stevens became his 500th career strikeout casualty in a July 6 game against Montreal. The losing streak ended on August 24 with seven shutout innings against Baltimore. On September 4, his third CG of the season was a 14–0 defeat of the Yankees in a contest in which he set a career high with 12 SO. He won his last four decisions in eight starts, allowing just 14 ER in 51 IP for a 2.52 ERA. He finished with a record of 11–11 and an ERA of 4.09. His 11 victories tied him with Esteban Loaiza and Paul Quantrill for the team high, and he was considered one of the Blue Jays’ starters of the future along with Roy Halladay. Prior to the All-Star break, he was 7–5 with a 3.99 ERA. After, he was 4–6 with a 4.21 ERA. He allowed 29 HR on the season, which was the fourth-highest total in the AL. His two shutouts placed fourth and three CG ninth.

The St. Louis Cardinals signed Carpenter on December 13, 2002, while he was still recovering from elbow surgery in anticipation that he would be ready by the middle of the 2003 season. He made eight minor league starts as rehabilitation assignments before it was discovered that he had torn his labrum again after the pins anchoring it had destabilized. Scar tissue developed, necessitating further surgery and a DL stay for the remainder of the season. On November 3, 2003, the Cardinals declined Carpenter’s option for 2004 worth $2 million, instead buying him out for $200,000 and making him a free agent again. The two sides negotiated on a new contract and resigned for $300,000 on December 3, 2003.

Carpenter landed on the DL in August for the third time in 2002, where he remained for the rest of the season. Shoulder surgery followed in September to repair a torn glenoid labrum. Surgeons inserted three tacks to anchor the labrum. He allowed four home runs in last 58 IP. Carpenter finished the year 4–5 with a 5.28 ERA. After the season—and plagues of injuries and control issues that did not fully resolve over his career in the Toronto organization—the Blue Jays removed him from the 40-man roster and offered him a minor league, incentive-based deal. Carpenter refused, allowing him to become a free agent.

The Blue Jays named Carpenter their opening day starter for the first time in his career on April 1, 2002, at Fenway Park against the Red Sox. He was rocked in this start, recording ​2 ⁄3 innings and allowing six runs. He received a no-decision as Toronto prevailed, 12–11. The Blue Jays placed him on the DL due to a shoulder injury after that start. Making his second start on April 21, Carpenter lasted only three innings, allowing three runs against the New York Yankees. He took the loss as New York won, 9–2. However, he was back on the DL after that start due to shoulder tendonitis. After recovering, Carpenter made six rehab starts between Tennessee and Syracuse. He allowed seven HR in his first four starts covering 16 IP. Carpenter’s first win of the season came against the Arizona Diamondbacks, after completing five innings and allowing two runs.

Carpenter has credited former pitching coach Dave Duncan with helping prompt him to rethink his pitching strategy. After arriving in St. Louis in 2003, he “was able to sit around and listen and watch (Duncan),” Carpenter stated. “When I was a young kid, I didn’t think about up and down and things like that. I was just trying to throw the ball away, trying to throw the ball in, I wasn’t thinking about throwing my curveball for strikes.” When he won the 2005 Cy Young Award, he became the fourth pitcher to win with Duncan as coach, and the seventh overall in Duncan’s playing and coaching career. “When I came here (St. Louis), (Duncan) talks about throwing the ball down in the strike zone and getting ahead and attacking the strike zone. All these things have helped me progress and be successful, and I owe him a lot for what I’ve done the last few years.”

As a pitcher who missed considerable playing time due to injury, Carpenter won three major Comeback Player of the Year awards in two separate seasons. Steve Adams of MLB Trade Rumors wrote that “injuries to Carpenter shortened what could have been one of the most impressive careers of a generation, but few were better than Carpenter when he was healthy. From 2004–11, [he] posted a 3.06 ERA with 7.3 K/9 and 2.0 BB/9 in ​1331 ⁄3 innings.” Said Mozeliak, “When you think back to everything this organization has been through in regard to his ups and downs, he will still go down as one of the greatest we’ve ever had. … We think back to his career and what an amazing one it was. He was part of so many highlights and I think he really created a culture of higher expectations.” Chairman William DeWitt, Jr., remarked “Chris will always be remembered as the leader of the pitching staff during one of the great eras of Cardinals baseball.”

Fully recovered for the 2004 season, Carpenter became a regular in the Cardinals’ starting rotation. The first 11 starts of his Cardinals career included a 3.42 ERA and a 7–1 record. On April 9, he earned his first Cardinals win and 50th of his career against the Arizona Diamondbacks in a 13–7 score. He matched up against the Houston Astros and former Blue Jays rotation mate Roger Clemens on May 28, pitching eight scoreless innings while allowing just two hits. He did not factor in the decision as the Cardinals won 2–1 in 10 innings. In May, Carpenter started five games and was credited with 4–0 W–L as he allowed a 2.62 ERA; eventually his win streak reached six games.

The Cardinals called on Carpenter for his first Opening Day start for the club in 2005, and second of his career. He faced off against the Astros for his first for the Cardinals and second overall, allowing four hits in seven innings in a 7–3 win. On April 15, he signed a two-year extension through 2007 with a vesting option for 2008. He earned his first shutout in three years against the Chicago Cubs on April 21, and, on April 27, tied a career-high by striking out 12 Milwaukee Brewers in ​7 ⁄3 IP.

Carpenter won the National League Pitcher of the Month Award for August with a 5–0 record and 2.20 ERA in six starts. He threw a one-hitter on September 7 against the Brewers at Miller Park, striking out 10, and earning his first shutout since September 11, 2006. On October 1, he hit his first career home run, a grand slam, in a 13–0 rout of the Reds at Great American Ball Park, and doubled home two more runs, he became only the fourth pitcher since the advent of divisional play in 1969 with at least six runs batted in (RBI) in a game. That total broke the Cardinals’ club record for pitchers which Gibson established with five on July 26, 1973.

With the Cardinals facing the Padres in the NLDS for the second consecutive season, Carpenter won both his starts and yielded a 2.03 ERA while striking out 12 in ​13 ⁄3 IP. He was less effective against the New York Mets in the NLCS, allowing a 5.73 ERA while losing one of two starts. Carpenter made his first World Series start in Game 3 against the Detroit Tigers on October 24 at Busch Stadium in St. Louis. He pitched eight shutout innings, allowing no runs on three hits and striking out six. Per the Elias Sports Bureau, that performance made him the first pitcher in Cardinals history to pitch eight innings and allow no walks and no more than three hits in a World Series contest. Just two other pitchers in the prior 20 seasons had accomplished the feat: Greg Maddux (1995) and Clemens (2000). The Cardinals prevailed in five games over the Tigers, giving him his first World Series ring. Carpenter finished third in the NL Cy Young balloting behind Brandon Webb and Trevor Hoffman, and 19th in the NL MVP voting, second to Hoffman among pitchers. His teammates voted him as that season’s Darryl Kile Good Guy Award winner for the Cardinals. On December 4, 2006, the Cardinals announced they re-signed Carpenter to a five-year, US$65 million deal, keeping him with the team through 2011, with a $12 million option for 2012.

For the second consecutive season in 2006, Carpenter was the Cardinals’ Opening Day starter. At Philadelphia on April 3, he earned the victory after posting five IP in a 13–5 margin. With nine strikeouts in six innings against the Cubs on April 8, he departed with a 2–0 lead, but earned a no-decision as the Cubs won, 3–2. In an April 14 contest against Cincinnati, he allowed just one run in eight innings, but Aaron Harang—who had the game-winning hit off Carpenter—and the bullpen muzzled the Cardinals on just five hits for a 1–0 Reds triumph. Carpenter stifled the Pittsburgh Pirates for eight scoreless innings on April 19 at PNC Park and allowed just a pair of hits. After hitting the leadoff hitter, he retired 15 consecutive batters before surrendering a single in the sixth inning. In that inning, he fanned Nate McLouth for his 1,000th career strikeout.

After making just four starts from 2007–08, Carpenter returned for a one-hit performance on April 9 against Pittsburgh in his 2009 season debut. He shut them out for seven innings at Busch Stadium struck out seven. In his second start of the season on April 14, he strained the left side of his rib cage, prompting the club placed him on the 15-day DL. A magnetic resonance image (MRI) revealed an oblique tear.

From 2007–08, elbow problems persisted, causing Carpenter to miss nearly all of both seasons, and the Cardinals missed the playoffs in that period. He returned in 2009, helping leading the Cardinals to a Central division title. He made his third consecutive Opening Day start on April 1, 2007, facing off against Tom Glavine of the Mets. The Mets won, 6–1, giving Carpenter his first career Opening Day loss. He missed his next start due to apparent elbow inflammation. The Cardinals placed him on the DL on April 9 for impingement syndrome and moderate arthritis. On May 5, the team announced that he would require surgery to trim bone spurs in the elbow.

From 2007–08, elbow problems persisted, causing Carpenter to miss nearly all of both seasons, and the Cardinals missed the playoffs in that period. He returned in 2009, helping leading the Cardinals to a Central division title. He made his third consecutive Opening Day start on April 1, 2007, facing off against Tom Glavine of the Mets. The Mets won, 6–1, giving Carpenter his first career Opening Day loss. He missed his next start due to apparent elbow inflammation. The Cardinals placed him on the DL on April 9 for impingement syndrome and moderate arthritis. On May 5, the team announced that he would require surgery to trim bone spurs in the elbow.

After producing three successful seasons (2009–11) that had followed two injury-plagued seasons (2007–08), Carpenter would again miss nearly all of two consecutive seasons. This time, they were his final two major league seasons under contract. He did not pitch for much of 2012 because of thoracic outlet syndrome (TOS), diagnosed on June 28 after a visit to a Dallas-area specialist. Initially, a three-month strengthening program to remedy shoulder weakness was the goal. However, the treatment failed, leaving surgical intervention as the only option. On July 3, the team and Carpenter announced he would have surgery to repair the TOS. It involved removal of his first rib, the amelioration of two scalene muscles in the neck and extrication of nerves within the brachial plexus. Initial recovery time was estimated at six months, meaning he would miss the remainder of the 2012 season and be ready for spring training the following February. Dr. Greg Pearl performed the surgery on July 19 and the procedure involved removal of a rib. Defying expectations, his speedy recovery allowed him to return to the mound in a September 21 game against the Cubs. According to Carpenter, “I worked my butt off to try and get back, and it worked out.”

After the season, Carpenter won the NL Comeback Player of the Year by winning 27 of 30 first-place votes. He was the runner-up for the National League Cy Young Award. In one of the closest votes of the history of the award, winner Tim Lincecum garnered 100 total points while Carpenter had 94 despite being written in just nine of 30 first-place votes. He also finished 14th in the NL MVP voting, which was tops among all NL pitchers. For his performance in the 2009 season after missing nearly all of the previous season while recuperating from nerve ailments in his pitching arm and Tommy John surgery, he unanimously won the Tony Conigliaro Award.

For the 2010 season, Carpenter finished with a 3.22 ERA, 235 IP, 179 SO and 16–9 W–L record. It was the only time in his Cardinals career in which he played the full season but missed the playoffs. He led the major leagues in games started (35) and was second in the NL in IP. He also finished in the top ten in the NL in wins, winning percentage, walks per nine innings, batters faced and hit batsmen.

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