Matt Belisle

[William Malone]

Matthew Thomas Belisle was born on June 6, 1980 in Austin, Texas.

The Atlanta Braves took him in round two of the 1998 MLB Draft. He became one of the best pitching prospects in baseball, peaking as the 28th ranked prospect on the Baseball American preseason top 100 in 2001. Only 11 of the players ranked ahead of him were pitchers. Belisle was acquired by the Cincinnati Reds on August 14, 2003 as the player to be named later from a previous deal. He made his Major League debut for them on September 7, 2003.

Belisle pitched with the Reds through 2008. He mostly worked out of the bullpen during his first few seasons, becoming a full time starter in 2007. Early season struggles in 2008 saw Belisle sent back down to Triple-A, where he began working as a reliever again. Cincinnati non-tendered Belisle after the season.

He signed with the Colorado Rockies on January 14, 2009. Belisle was designated for assignment twice during the season, clearing waivers both times and remaining in their minor league system. He made their Opening Day roster in 2010, and enjoyed a career year. Belisle had a 2.93 ERA across 76 appearances in 2010, serving as the primary set-up man for Rockies closer Huston Street. He remained a regular in the Colorado bullpen through the end of the 2014 season, owning a 3.88 ERA across his six seasons with the club.

The St. Louis Cardinals signed him to a one year deal for the 2015 season. He had a 2.67 ERA with them, but was limited to just 34 appearances due to an arm injury that caused him to miss July, August and the first week of September. Belisle was on their NLDS roster that fall, but did not appear in a game as the Cardinals fell to the Chicago Cubs in four games.

He signed with the Washington Nationals for the 2016 season, boasting a 1.76 ERA in 40 relief appearances. His availability was once again limited due to injuries, and Belisle was left off the Nationals playoff roster that fall.

The Minnesota Twins signed Belisle ahead of the 2017 campaign as part of an underwhelming off-season for the club. Minnesota was coming off a disappointing 103 loss season in 2016, and they only added two outside players on Major League deals that off-season; Belisle and catcher Jason Castro. Belisle got off to a rough start with the Twins, recording a 6.53 ERA over 33 appearances through the end of June. But things turned around quickly for the veteran reliever, and he didn't allow a single run over 12.1 innings in July. Belisle only allowed seven base runners that entire month.

Minnesota traded All-Star closer at the deadline, and manager Paul Molitor gave the role to Belise. He continued his strong play through the end of the season, going 9-for-11 in save chances and helping the Twins sneak into the final playoff spot. Belisle tossed a 1-2-3 eighth inning against the Yankees in the 2017 AL Wild Card Game, facing the top of their order. Unfortunately, this didn't really mean much with Minnesota trailing by four runs.

Belisle signed with the Cleveland Indians in the ensuing off-season, but he struggled early on and was designated for assignment in mid-May. The Twins picked him back up a few weeks later, hoping Belisle could repeat his second half turnaround that they saw in 2017. Things didn't work out that way, and his ERA with Minnesota in 2018 was north of nine. He spent a chunk of the second half on the injured list, serving as a mentor to many young Twins relievers while inactive.

He did return to the active roster in September, taking part in Joe Mauer's de facto retirement celebration. With Mauer getting behind the plate to catch one final pitch, he requested that Belisle be the one to throw it. This would also wind up being the final Major League appearance for the 38-year old Belisle.

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