Koda Glover facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Koda Glover |
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Glover with the Washington Nationals in 2018
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| Relief pitcher | |||
| Born: April 13, 1993 Monroe, Oklahoma, U.S. |
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| debut | |||
| July 20, 2016, for the Washington Nationals | |||
| Last appearance | |||
| September 29, 2018, for the Washington Nationals | |||
| MLB statistics | |||
| Win–loss record | 3–4 | ||
| Earned run average | 4.55 | ||
| Strikeouts | 42 | ||
| Teams | |||
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Koda James Glover (born April 13, 1993) is an American former professional baseball pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Washington Nationals. He is from the Cherokee and Sioux Native American tribes.
Contents
Early Life and Baseball Journey
Koda Glover was born in Monroe, Oklahoma. He went to Heavener High School in Heavener, Oklahoma. Koda was a great athlete in high school. He was chosen for the all-conference team four times. He was also named conference player of the year twice.
As a pitcher, he had an amazing record of 28 wins and only 4 losses. He also struck out over 300 batters. In his senior year, he won all 11 of his games. His earned run average (ERA) was very low at 1.69. He also had 114 strikeouts that year. Koda was also a talented basketball player. He earned all-conference and all-county honors in basketball.
After high school, Glover played college baseball. He played for Eastern Oklahoma State College and Oklahoma State University. During this time, he had a major surgery called Tommy John surgery. This surgery helps pitchers recover from elbow injuries.
Professional Baseball Career
Koda Glover was always a relief pitcher in baseball. This means he came into games after the starting pitcher. The Washington Nationals picked him in the eighth round of the 2015 Major League Baseball Draft. They chose him specifically to be a relief pitcher.
Minor League Success
Glover started his professional career in 2015 with the Auburn Doubledays. After just three games, he moved up to the Hagerstown Suns. In 2016, he began with the Potomac Nationals. He did not allow any runs in seven games there. This led to him being promoted to the Harrisburg Senators.
As the 2016 season continued, Glover kept moving up. He was promoted to play with the Syracuse Chiefs. Before he reached the major leagues, Glover was very good at striking out batters. He averaged 10.8 strikeouts for every nine innings he pitched. In 2016, he pitched 45 and one-third innings in the minor leagues. He had a record of 3 wins and 0 losses. He also earned six saves and had a 2.18 ERA. He struck out 52 batters and walked 14.
Major League Debut and Challenges
Koda Glover made his Major League Baseball debut on July 20, 2016. He was one of the fastest players drafted by the Nationals to reach the majors. He was the first player from the Nationals' 2013, 2014, 2015, or 2016 drafts to play in MLB.
He entered the game in the ninth inning. He got all three batters out on just four pitches. This helped the Nationals win 8–1 against the Los Angeles Dodgers. All four pitches were strikes. At least two of them were very fast, reaching 98 miles per hour.
Later in his first season, Glover suffered a torn hip labrum. This is an injury to the hip joint. He tried to play through the pain. However, he told his pitching coach about it in September 2016. He then stopped playing for the rest of the season.
In 2017, Glover changed his jersey number. He wore #32 in his first season. But when Matt Wieters joined the Nationals, Glover switched to #30. This allowed Wieters to keep his old number, #32. Early in the 2017 season, Glover's hip trouble returned. He was placed on the disabled list in April. He came back to play in May. The team manager, Dusty Baker, said Glover would share the job of closing games. This meant he would finish games when the team was winning.
The Nationals' bullpen (relief pitchers) had a tough start in 2017. By late May, Glover became the main closer. Manager Baker called him the team's "most durable" option. Glover's improved slider pitch also got attention. He struck out a batter with a 96-mph slider. This pitch broke sharply away from the batter. He earned four saves in five days in late May.
On June 11, Glover went on the disabled list again. This time it was for back stiffness. He later said he had been pitching with right shoulder pain since May. An MRI showed severe inflammation in his rotator cuff. He believed this pain caused his back issue. Glover had a setback in his recovery in September.
Glover started the 2018 season on the disabled list. He had more shoulder inflammation. He recovered and played in the minor leagues. He was activated and sent to Syracuse in July 2018. Glover missed all of the 2019 season due to forearm and elbow pain. He announced his retirement from baseball on December 2, 2019.
Pitching Style
Koda Glover used four main pitches. His fastball was very fast, often in the high 90s. He also threw a hard slider. Sometimes he called it a cutter. This pitch often reached the mid-90s. He also threw a changeup and a curveball, but less often. A baseball scout named Bernie Pleskoff described Glover as having a "confident and no-nonsense" attitude on the mound.
Personal Life
In January 2020, Koda Glover became the head coach of the Howe High School baseball team. This is in his home state of Oklahoma.
