Stefan Andrew Karsay (born March 24, 1972 in Flushing, New York) is a former right-handed Major League Baseball pitcher for the Oakland Athletics (1993-94, 1997, 2006), Cleveland Indians (1998-2001), Atlanta Braves (2001), New York Yankees (2002, 2004-05), and Texas Rangers (2005).

Karsay grew up in the College Point neighborhood in Queens, New York City, just a few miles from Shea Stadium.^[1]

A 1st round draft pick of the Toronto Blue Jays in 1990, Karsay was traded to the Athletics along with outfielder José Herrera for Rickey Henderson on July 31, 1993. A starter in his early days with the Athletics, Karsay worked mostly in middle relief and as a set up man from 1998 on, although he also had some notable success as a closer in 2000 with the Indians and 2002 with the Yankees.

His career was marred by injuries, causing him to miss the 1995 (elbow surgery), 1996 (Tommy John surgery) and 2003 (shoulder surgery) seasons; in all, he was on the disabled list seven times.^[2]

On July 28, 2005, he combined with A. J. Murray and Scott Feldman for a perfect game, as the Double-A Frisco RoughRiders defeated the Corpus Christi Hooks 3–0. It was only the third nine-inning perfect game in the Texas League's 117-year history, and the first combined one.^[3][4]

Karsay announced his retirement on June 18, 2006, the day after pitching two scoreless innings against the Los Angeles Dodgers and getting the win in a 17-inning marathon for the Athletics. He finished his 11-year Major League career with a 32-39 record, 41 saves, and a 4.01 ERA in 357 career appearances, including 40 starts.^[5][6]

[edit] References

[edit] External links

• Steve Karsay at Baseball Reference