Cy Young Profile: Eric Gagne, 2003

Pitcher, Los Angeles Dodgers

Age:  29

4^th season with Dodgers

Bats – Right, Throws – Right

Height: 6’2”    Weight: 195

Prior to 2003:

A native of Montreal, Quebec, Canada, Gagne played baseball and ice hockey at Polyvalente Edouard Montpetit High School. An intimidating pitcher with his size, demeanor, and excellent fastball, he was chosen by the Chicago White Sox in the 1994 amateur draft. Gagne opted instead for college at Seminole State Junior College in Oklahoma where he developed a slider and split-fingered fastball and was encouraged to be aggressive in his approach to pitching. Gagne signed with the Dodgers for $75,000 in 1995. Initially developed as a starting pitcher, he was first assigned to the Savannah Sand Gnats of the Class A South Atlantic League in 1996 where he posted a 7-6 record in 21 starts with a 3.28 ERA amd 131 strikeouts. Gagne missed the entire 1997 season due to “Tommy John” surgery on his right elbow. Upon his return to action in 1998 with Vero Beach of the advanced Class A Florida State League, he began to develop a changeup and was 9-7 with a 3.74 ERA and 144 strikeouts over 139.2 innings pitched. Gagne was a Class AA All-Star in 1999 while playing for San Antonio of the Texas League where he finished with a 12-4 record and league-leading 2.63 ERA and 185 strikeouts. Called up to the Dodgers in September he was 1-1 in five starts with a 2.10 ERA and 30 strikeouts over 30 innings. Following a poor spring performance in 2000, Gagne was sent to Albuquerque of the Class AAA Pacific Coast League where he was 5-1 with a 3.88 ERA over nine starts. Bouncing back-and-forth between the Dodgers and Albuquerque, he finished the year in LA and his major league totals were 4-6 with a 5.15 ERA and 79 strikeouts over 101.1 innings pitched. Gagne started the 2001 season with the Dodgers and was sent back to Class AAA in June after having compiled a 6.40 ERA. Returning to LA a month later he was utilized as a long reliever and finished with a 6-7 record and 4.75 ERA while appearing in 33 games (24 of them starts). Unable to earn a starting spot during spring training in 2002, Gagne stayed in the bullpen and proved to be an excellent fit in the closer role. He appeared in 77 games and earned 52 saves and an All-Star selection. His record was 4-1 with a 1.97 ERA and 114 strikeouts over 82.1 innings.

2003 Season Summary

Appeared in 77 games

[Bracketed numbers indicate NL rank in Top 20]

Pitching

Games – 77 [10, tied with Kyle Farnsworth, Mike Matthews & David Weathers]

Games Started – 0

Complete Games – 0

Wins – 2

Losses – 3

PCT - .400

Saves – 55 [1]

Shutouts – 0

Innings Pitched – 82.1

Hits – 37

Runs – 12

Earned Runs – 11

Home Runs – 2

Bases on Balls – 20

Strikeouts – 137

ERA – 1.20 [Non-qualifying]

Hit Batters – 3

Balks – 0

Wild Pitches – 2

League-leading saves were +10 ahead of runner-up John Smoltz

Midseason Snapshot: 1-3, ERA - 1.99, G – 44, SV – 31, SO - 76 in 45.1 IP

---

Most strikeouts, game – 4 (in 2 IP) vs. Montreal 8/20

Fielding

Chances – 15

Put Outs – 4

Assists – 11

Errors – 0

DP – 0

Pct. - 1.000

Awards & Honors:

NL Cy Young Award: BBWAA

NL Pitcher of the Year: Sporting News

All-Star

6^th in NL MVP voting (143 points, 32% share)

  

NL Cy Young voting:

Eric Gagne, LAD: 146 pts. – 28 of 32 first place votes, 91% share

Jason Schmidt, SF: 73 pts. – 2 first place votes, 46% share

Mark Prior, ChiC.: 60 pts. – 2 first place votes, 38% share

Russ Ortiz, Atl.: 9 pts., 6% share

Dodgers went 85-77 to finish second in the NL Western Division, 15.5 games behind the division-winning San Francisco Giants. The pitching staff led the league in ERA (3.16), shutouts (17), and saves (58). The Dodgers just fell short of a wild card playoff spot.

Aftermath of ‘03:

Gagne followed up in 2004 by appearing in 70 games and registering 45 saves, although his consecutive saves streak ended at 84 in August. An elbow injury that required surgery limited him to 14 games and 8 saves in 2005. Gagne underwent a second elbow surgery in 2006 followed by back surgery which effectively cost him the entire season. The Dodgers refused to extend his $12 million contract, making him a free agent, and he signed with the Texas Rangers for 2007. He was 2-0 with 16 saves and a 2.16 ERA in 34 appearances when he was traded to the Boston Red Sox at the end of July. Used in a setup role by the World Series-bound Red Sox, he initially struggled and appeared in 20 games, compiling a 2-2 tally and 6.75 ERA. A free agent once more in the offseason, he moved on to the Milwaukee Brewers for 2008. His name came up in the Mitchell Report as a user of performance-enhancing drugs, which he later acknowledged. He had a difficult year with Milwaukee, losing the closer role and going 4-3 with 10 saves and a 5.44 ERA in 50 appearances. Signing a minor league deal with the Brewers for 2009, he was released after experiencing shoulder problems in spring training and joined Quebec of the independent minor Can-Am League, where he started 17 games and was 6-6 with a 4.65 ERA. In 2010 he attempted a comeback with the Dodgers and was released during spring training and retired. There was a return to the Can-Am League in 2015-16 and the Atlantic League in 2017, but his major league career was finished. Gagne pitched in a total of 402 major league games, all but 48 as a reliever, and compiled a 33-26 record with 187 saves and a 3.47 ERA. He struck out 718 batters over 643.2 innings. With the Dodgers he was 25-21 with 161 saves and a 3.27 ERA and 629 strikeouts. In nine postseason appearances he was 0-1 with no saves. Gagne was a three-time All-Star, all with the Dodgers.

--

Cy Young Profiles feature pitchers who were recipients of the Cy Young Award by the Baseball Writers’ Association of America (1956 to present). The award was presented to a single major league winner from its inception through 1966 and from 1967 on to one recipient from each major league.