Mark Mulder

Lore & Background

Mulder was selected by the Oakland Athletics with the second overall pick in the 1998 MLB draft. He made his MLB debut on April 18, 2000, and played for the Athletics from 2000 through 2004. He was part of Oakland's 'Big Three' rotation with Barry Zito and Tim Hudson. After the 2004 season, he was traded to the St. Louis Cardinals, where he played from 2005 through 2008. He retired in 2010.

In Their Own Story

The Coliseum lights hummed their low amber glow over the field, and the air smelled like cut grass and cheap hot dogs. Mulder stood on the mound in the fifth, the night cool enough to see his breath, and he looked at the catcher's sign like it was a suggestion. He wound up, and the ball left his hand with that particular crack that made the back row of the upper deck jump off their seats. The batter swung through it. The catcher looked up. Mulder just nodded, rolled his shoulder, and walked back to the bullpen for a quick stretch. One hundred and one on the radar gun. The crowd didn't cheer so much as exhale, a collective 'yeah, that's the guy.' He didn't need the applause. He needed the next pitch.

Reader's Guide

Mulder led the American League in wins in 2001 (21) and was a two-time All-Star (2003, 2004). He also led the AL in complete games in 2003 (9) and 2004 (5), and in shutouts in 2001 (4) and 2003 (2). He finished second in AL Cy Young Award voting in 2001.

Did You Know?

• Mulder attended Michigan State University and played collegiate summer baseball in the Cape Cod Baseball League for the Bourne Braves in 1997.
• He won the American Century Championship celebrity golf tournament three years in a row (2015, 2016, 2017).
• Mulder attempted a comeback in 2014 with the Los Angeles Angels but tore his Achilles tendon on the second day of spring training.
• He served as an analyst on ESPN's Baseball Tonight and for Athletics telecasts on NBC Sports California.