A Blue Jay from the Past: Cliff Politte

Do you remember Cliff Politte?

This is “A Blue Jay from the Past”. Each week, I’ll spin every Blue Jays’ season in the Wheel of Names and pick a player who played a significant number of games for the Toronto Blue Jays, ideally a full season. This week, the Wheel of Names landed on the 2003 season, with the player we’ll look at in today’s article being Cliff Politte. Last week, we looked at Alfredo Griffin.

Politte, a right-handed pitcher born in St. Louis, Missouri, was drafted by his hometown team in the 54th round of the 1995 draft. Three years later, he made his big league debut with the Cardinals, posting a 6.32 ERA and a 5.60 FIP in eight starts, of 37 innings pitched. After the 1998 season, Politte was traded to the Philadelphia Phillies.

In 1999, Politte had a 7.13 ERA and 5.45 FIP in 17.2 innings pitched, with all 13 of his appearances coming in relief. Politte made eight starts in 12 games in 2000, finishing with a 3.66 ERA and 4.57 FIP in 59 innings pitched. He returned to the bullpen for the 2001 season, when he had a 2.42 ERA and a 3.32 FIP in 26 innings pitched.

Politte finally became a big league regular in 2002, pitching 16.1 innings with the Phillies with a 3.86 ERA and 2.96 FIP. In late May, he was traded to the Blue Jays for Dan Plesac and had a 3.61 ERA and 3.15 FIP in  57.1 innings with the Canadian team. As a whole, Politte finished the 2002 season with a 3.67 ERA and 3.11 FIP in 73.2 innings pitched.

The 2003 season was Politte’s first and only full season with the Blue Jays. His ERA jumped back up, as he finished the season with a 5.66 ERA and 5.40 FIP in 49.1 innings pitched. If the 2003 Blue Jays had a good pitcher aside from Roy Halladay, they likely would have made the postseason. Following the 2003 season, Politte signed a contract with the Chicago White Sox.

In 2004, Politte had a 4.38 ERA and 4.10 FIP in 51.1 innings pitched. The righty’s best season was in 2005, as he finished with a 2 ERA and 3.75 FIP in 67.1 innings pitched, helping the White Sox win the World Series that season.

Politte’s final big league season was in 2006 with the White Sox, where his ERA ballooned to 8.70 with a 7.54 FIP in 30 innings pitched. He was designated for assignment in late July that season and never pitched in Major League Baseball again.