By Jordan Long
Pitcher Chad Bettis decided to call it a career in Major League Baseball. He pitched 7 years, all with the Colorado Rockies. Let’s take a look back at his time in the Mile High City.
Bettis started pitching for the Rockies in the 2013 season. That year he went 1 and 3 with an ERA of 5.64. 2014 wasn’t any better going 0-2 with an ERA of 9.12. His top year for the Rockies was in 2016. Bettis won a career high 14 games with an ERA of 4.79. At the end of 2016, Bettis was diagnosed with testicular cancer and had treatments for it into the 2017 season. His production dropped after his successful treatment ended and he had a 2-4 record with an ERA of 5.05.
Bettis pitched last year, but he was clearly not the same pitcher. He won a career worst 1 game with 6 losses. His ERA skyrocketed to 6.08. He showed he couldn’t pitch at the MLB level anymore.
Even though the MLB season hasn’t started due the COVID19 pandemic, Bettis decided to call it a career. He walks away with a 31-31 record and an ERA of 5.12. His strength was the ability to strikeout batters. Hitters would swing at a pitch low or outside the zone. Bettis finished with 431 of them.
Bettis may not have his number retired by the Colorado Rockies or be a member of the Baseball Hall of Fame. He will be remembered not as an outstanding pitcher at the Major League Baseball level but one who beat cancer and came back to pitch. It is a remarkable story of resilience in Major League Baseball.
Leave a Reply