James Baldwin

[William Malone]

James J. Baldwin Jr was born on July 15, 1971 in Southern Pines, North Carolina.

The Chicago White Sox drafted him in round four of the 1990 MLB Draft. He made his Major League debut for them, and pitched parts of seven seasons for the White Sox. Baldwin went 69-53 with a 5.04 ERA over 165 starts and 19 relief appearances for Chicago. He was the 1996 AL Rookie of the Year runner-up, and an All-Star in 2000. The Los Angeles Dodgers acquired him at the 2001 trade deadline. Baldwin pitched for the Seattle Mariners in 2002.

He began 2003 on a minor league deal with the Kansas City Royals. Baldwin became a free agent on June 1st after exercising an opt out in his contract. The Minnesota Twins signed him to a minor league deal. They called him up to help out with long relief in mid-July. Baldwin covered 12.2 innings over his first eight appearances with the club, allowing only two runs. This included his first career Major League save on August 1st against the Toronto Blue Jays. Minnesota released him after back-to-back sub-par outings on August 12th and 14th, needing a fresh arm for their bullpen.

Baldwin made two starts for the New York Mets in 2004, and had cups of coffee with the Baltimore Orioles and Texas Rangers in 2005. He coached at his alma mater, Pinecrest High School, from 2007 to 2012. Baldwin was also a pitching coach in the Cincinnati Reds farm system from 2016 to 2020, working at various levels during those years.

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