Sunday, December 4, 2011

Oriole #805- Jaret Wright



Jaret Wright pitched in the Major Leagues from 1997-2007 and is best remembered for the six seasons he spent in Cleveland at the start of his career. He made his MLB debut at only 21 years old with the '97 Indians and almost immediately appeared in the national spotlight due to the Indians postseason runs in '97-'98. After his time in Cleveland, he bounced from the Padres to the Braves and then to the Yankees. On November 12, 2006, the Yankees traded him to the Orioles for reliever Chris Britton.

Jaret made his Orioles debut on April 4, 2007 in a start against the Twins but his time in Baltimore was very short. He made only two more starts before being  shut down for the season with shoulder problems. And unfortunately, the Orioles lost all three of his starts, so Jaret's career line as an Oriole is 0-3 with a 6.97 ERA. He began a minor league rehab assignment towards the end of the season to attempt to work his way back to Baltimore but wasn't able to stay healthy.

Jaret's three games as an Orioles pitcher are commemorated by three cards that picture him as an Oriole. He was included in three 2007 sets as an O; Topps, Topps Heritage and Upper Deck series 2, but I have yet to track down a signed copy of any of the three. Can anyone out there help me out?

Until then, this 97 Fleer rookie card showing him with the Indians will stay in my collection.

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