Paul Byrd #36

Full name: Paul Gregory Byrd...Resides in Alpharetta, GA...He and his wife, Kym, have two sons - Grayson, Colby Joshua...Attended Louisiana State University (LSU), majoring in Economics...Helped lead school to the College World Series three straight years...Pitched for Tigers 1991 NCAA championship team...Earned All-American and All-SEC honors as a sophomore at LSU, posting a 17-6 record before being drafted in 1991 by the Indians in the 4th round...Graduated from St. Xavier HS in Louisville, KY in 1988...Was very active in the Cleveland community during his first season with the Indians, participating in Signature Sunday, the Grand Slam for Literacy and Dick's Sporting Goods "Shop with a Pro."

2007

Was one of three Indians pitchers to post at least 15 wins, finished tied for 11th in the American League with 15 wins ... 15 wins are his most as an Indian and are his highest output since winning a career-high 17 for Kansas City in 2002 ... Also lead the American league in walks per 9.01P (1.31), was T11th with a .652 win 0/0, tied for 1st with 2 CG/Shutouts, 10th in KlBB(3.14) and 10th with a 3.51 road ERA ... Won 4 games in August (T-3rd/AL) ... Went 48.01P without issuing a BB from April 26-June 6, setting a franchise best since 1957 (passed RHP Dick Donovan, 45.11P without a BB in 1963)... Also went 76.21P (April 26-July 3) without yielding an unintentional BB... CG/SHO-Spun a 4-hit shutout at the Metrodome on August 6, topping the Twins (Silva) by a final of 4-0 ... Season-high 9.0IP, 4H, OR, 1BB, 1K, 99p ... Was his 1st SHO since July 1,2005 (w/Angels vs. KC) and was his 10th win on the year, marking his 5th career double-digit win season and his 2nd straight with the Indians ... Fired a complete game, 4-hit shutout against Chicago on Sept. 1 at Jacobs Field in a 7-0 win (9.0IP, 4H, OR, 2BB, 3K)... Topped the White Sox 8-3 on Sept. 11 in Chicago for his 15th win... 6.1IP, 6H, 3R/ER, 2HR to Uribe ... Has won 5 of his last 9 starts and 8 of his last 12 decisions...SNOW - Started the initial home opener of the season on Friday, April 6 vs. Seattle and took a no-hitter into the 5th inning before the game was called due to snow (4.2IP, OH, OR) with 2 strikes and 2 outs ... Had a 4-0 lead before the delay forced the canceliation ...Earned the victory in his 1st official start of the season on April 14th vs. Chicago in Jacobs Field, totaling 6.0IP, 5H, OR, 2BB, 5K in the 4-0 'final... Won a 15-7 rout of the Twins at Jacobs Field on May 15... Went 7.0IP, 7H, 5RJER, OBB, 7K, 2HR (Morneau/Cuddyer)...The 7K were his most since Sept. 8, 2004 vs. PHI (w/ATL and most as an Indian) Aided by 18 Indians hits, beat host Boston (Matsuzaka) on May 30 to win his 5th straight decision 6.0IP, 9H, 2R/1ER, OBB, 1K; improved to 6-1 Pitched 7.0 frames in a 5-4, 11-inning victory at Detroit on July 3... 7.0IP, 7H, 4R/ER, 1BB, 3K, HR (Sheffield) Free pass to Ordonez (5th inn.) was first unintentional walk since April 26 vs. Texas (Lofton, 3rd inn.), ending a streak of 76.21P/11 starts without issuing an unintentional BB... Lost a 1-0 battle with Josh Towers on July 8 at Toronto to close out the 1st half... Posted 8.11 P, season-low 4H, 1R/ER, OBB, 2K... Was ripped for 7R/ER on 7H over 2.01Pagainst the visiting New York Yankees on August 11, falling to 10-5 in the 11-2 rout. .. Over his last 3 starts of the season he went 0-2 w/a 7.00 ERA (18.0IP, 30H, 14ER)... Batters hit .289 (52-180) w/RISP, .247 (19-77) w/RISP and 2 outs, and .293 (96-328) with men on base ...Was 9-2 in 16 starts following an Indians loss...Allowed 11 steals (2CS)... Kelly Shoppach caught all of his starts ... Batters were 5 for 12 off him wIthe bases loaded...Was 2nd in the AL with 239 hits allowed, T5th in HR allowed (27), 8th in runs allowed (107) and T9th in ER allowed (98).

2006

Posted his 4th career double-digit win season in his first campaign with the Indians after signing with the club in the off-season to a Major League free agent contract...Was originally drafted by the Indians in 1991 out of LSU...Made his Indians debut in the home opener of Friday, April 7 against the Minnesota Twins and recorded the victory in the 11-6 win (6.0IP, 6H, 5R/ER, 3BB, 2K, HR)...Walked 3 batters in his first two starts, the first time since Sept. 4 & Sept. 9, 1999 he walked 3 batters in consecutive starts...Went 8-7 w/a 4.35 ERA in 27 starts from April 27-on (159.1IP, 209H, 77ER) and in May he was 1-2 w/a 3.18 ERA in 5 starts (34.0IP, 35H, 12ER)...Walked 4 batters on June 1 vs. Chicago-AL, and Sept. 17 vs. Minnesota to equal a career-high (last on May 17, 2002 at Cleveland)... In June he was 2-1 w/a 2.48 ERA in 6 starts (40.0IP, 39H, 11ER, 25K) after working 8.0 shutout innings in notching his 6th win vs. Cincinnati on June 24 (8.0IP, 5H, 0R)...Also tossed 6.0 shutout IP vs. Cincinnati on June 30...Over his last 21 starts after May 21 he was 6-6 w/a 4.36ERA (134.1IP, 181H, 65ER)...In July he was 1-1 w/an 9.00 ERA (5GS, 22.0IP, 46H, 22ER, 1BB, 7K, .414 AVG)...CG -Tossed his first CG of the season and his first since last July 1 in start of August 17 at Minnesota (9.0IP, 7H, 2R) in improving to 8-6... Did not receive a decision in start of August 23 despite lasting a season-low 0.2IP(equaled shortest start of career, also 4/5/00 @ARZ) as the Indians rallied from a 10-1 deficit to defeat the Kansas City Royals 15-13 in Kauffman Stadium (0.2IP, 8H, 9R/3ER, 1K, 2HR...In 5 August starts he was 2-0 w/a 3.68ERA (29.1IP, 42H, 12ER)...Went 4-3 w/a 5.63 ERA in 14 second half starts (76.2IP, 120H, 48ER, .350avg, .539slg%)...Was 1-3 in 5 September starts w/a 5.59 ERA (29.0IP, 42H, 25R/18ER) and won his last start of the season vs. Tampa Bay on Sept. 28 (7.0IP, 8H, 4R/ER, 2BB, 3K) after yielding 4 runs over the first 3.0IP...His 1.9 walks all'd per 9.0IP was 9th lowest in the AL...His 232 hits allowed were 8th most allowed in the AL and his 120 runs allowed were T6th...Batters hit .303 (104-343) with runners on and .308 (57-185) with RISP...All'd 18 SB (5CS) which was T7th most in the AL... Had 4th best run support (6.6 RS/9.0 IP) in the AL per 9.0IP... Batters hit .455 (5-11) with the bases loaded and .353 (36-102) on the first pitch...Batters hit .308 (232-754) off him with 26HR allowed, including a mark of .369 (128-347) against LHH...Indians were 16-15 (.516) in his starts and averaged 6.3 (195RS/31GS) runs per start...Worked into the 6th inning in 23 of 31 (74%) starts and into the 7th in 14 of 31 (45%).

2005

The 35-year old right-hander posted the 15th lowest ERA among league qualifiers and his 22 quality starts (see box) ranked 2nd in the entire American League behind 2004 Cy Young winner Johan Santana's 24...Byrd pitched well for the AL West Champion Angels down the stretch, going 3-2 w-a 2.25 ERA in 6 September starts (40.0IP, 40H, 10ER) and 1-0 w-a 3.38 ERA in 2 ALCS starts vs. Chicago-AL (10.2IP, 10H, 4ER)...He was the only pitcher to defeat the White Sox in the 2005 post-season...Completed first season as an Angel with a 12-11 record, two complete games, one shutout and a 3.74 ERA (204.1 IP, 85 ER) in 31 starts...Set club record for fewest walks in a season with 28 (based on 200-or-more IP)...Previous record was 44 by Bert Blyleven in 1989...11 losses tied for club lead (Scot Shields)...Limited batters to a .272 (216-793) average, including a mark of .234 (87-372) vs. RHH...Posted 204.1 innings pitched in 2005, marking second time reaching 200 IP plateau in career (228.1 in 2002)... Worked at least six innings in 28 of 31 starts and seven innings in 14 of 31 starts...Left two starts with four-run lead in sixth inning-or-later and received no decision in both Angels' losses...Won four straight decisions (six starts), June 13-July 15, one shy of career best (July 25-Aug. 16, 2001; five starts)...Was 6-4 in games started after an Angel loss...Angels were 18-13 in his 31 starts...Tossed career-best two-hitter, July 1 at Kansas City...Marked first two-hit shutout by an Angel since Chuck Finley (5-23-95 vs. NYY), first two-hitter by an Angel since Ramon Ortiz (8-8-00 vs. BOS) and first two-hitter on road by Angel since Ken Hill (9-19-97 at Texas)...Posted 1,000th career inning pitched, June 20 vs. Texas...Left June 13 game vs. Washington due to inflammation of right triceps tendon...Has not walked a batter in 22 of last 50 starts overall, including 12 of 31 starts in 2005...Ranked fourth in AL in fewest walks per 9 IP (1.2)...SO-BB ratio was 3.6 to 1 (102 SO, 28 BB)...Is 5-0 lifetime vs. Cleveland in 7 career starts.

2004

Opened campaign with Atlanta on 15-day disabled list (recovery from Tommy John surgery) and transferred to 60-Day DL on April 28...Made three rehab starts with double-A Greenville and one start with triple-A Richmond before being activated from DL on June 19...Started for Braves in annual Hall of Fame Game in Cooperstown, NY against Twins on June 14th...Went six innings and did not earn decision in 10-7 come-from-behind win...Allowed six runs (four earned) on eight hits...Made his season debut with seven shutout innings vs. Cleveland on June 19 (allowed four hits and no walks while fanning four in 4-0 win)...Made 19 starts with Atlanta and went 8-7 with a 3.94 ERA (114.1 - 50)...Finished season with 79:19 strikeout-to-walk ratio and did not walk a batter in 10 of his 19 starts...Allowed three earned runs or less in 15 of his 19 starts...Posted 2.93 ERA (15.1 IP - 5 ER) in three June starts...Had a stretch of 32.2 IP without issuing a walk in September and posted 2.33 ERA (38.2 IP - 10 ER) in the month...Went 3-1 with a 4.06 ERA in August...Pitched season-high eight innings, Sept. 3rd at Montreal, allowing one run on four hits in 7-1 victory...Tallied season-best eight strikeouts, Sept. 8 vs. Philadelphia...Had 10-inning scoreless stretch, Aug. 28-Sept.

2003

Pitched one inning in his only spring training outing 3-4...Went on 15-day disabled list 3-21 with tendonitis in his right elbow...Transferred to the 60-day disabled list on 4-21 and was out through the end of the season... Had successful Tommy John surgery performed by Dr. James Andrews on 7-1.

2002

Turned in the best season of his 8-year Major League career, logging 17 wins, 33 starts, 2 shutouts, 228.1 IP, 129 SO and 7 complete games - all career-bests for Kansas City...His 7 complete games led the American League and were 2nd in the majors...Threw four straight CGs July 23-29...Also ranked among the league leaders in fewest walks per 9 innings (1.5, 2nd), shutouts (tied for 2nd), innings pitched (6th), road ERA (3.54, 9th) and wins (10th)...Surrendered 36 home runs (2nd most in the A.L.), 18 at home and 18 on the road...Began the season without allowing a walk in his 1st 28.1 innings...his 1st walk came on April 27 vs. Baltimore in the 1st inning (Melvin Mora)...Walked just 2 batters in 7 starts from July 18 through Aug. 19...during that time he was just 2- 4 despite a 2.56 ERA (56.1 IP, 16 ER)...he received just 17 total runs of support (including 2 shutouts) for a 2.4 per game average during that span...For the year, he had 14 starts in which he did not allow a walk...Won Royals Pitcher-of-the-Month honors for April (4-1, 3.06), May (4-1, 2.74) and July (4-2, 2.66)...Was 13-6 with a 3.33 ERA in day games (173.0 IP, 64 ER), compared to 4-5 with a 5.69 ERA in 9 night games (55.1 IP, 35 ER)...Was 9-6 on the road with a 3.54 ERA (119.1 IP, 47 ER), compared to an 8-5 mark with a 4.29 ERA (109.0 IP, 52 ER) at Kauffman Stadium...Saw his ERA jump from 3.35 on Aug. 19 to a final 3.90 after allowing 31 earned runs in 45.2 innings over his final 7 starts for a 6.11 ERA...Recorded the most wins for a team that lost 100 games in 51 years...Byrds 17 wins were the most since Ned Garver went 20-12 for the 1951 St. Louis Browns, who finished 52-102...His 17 wins accounted for 27.4 percent of Kansas Citys total of 62.

2001

Was acquired by Royals from Philadelphia in exchange for RHP Jose Santiago on 6-5...Pitched for Phillies, triple-A Scranton-Wilkes Barre and single-A Clearwater before trade... Made his Royals debut vs. Arizona on 6-8... His first win of season came in relief, as he started remainder of a suspended game against Milwaukee on 6-16 and recorded season-high seven strikeouts (5.1 IP, 6 H, 1 ER, 1 BB)...Won a team-best five straight starts from 7-25-8-16...Combined for 0.97 ERA during stretch (37 IP, 32 H, 6 R, 4 ER, 4 BB, 18 SO) to lower his ERA to a season-best 2.92...Became first Royals pitcher since Dennis Leonard in 1980 to win three games on one road trip, winning at Seattle (7-25), at Chicago (7-31) and at Minnesota (8-5)...Notched team's first complete game of year on 7-25 (101st game) at Seattle in a 5-1 victory (9.0 IP, 6 H, 1 ER)...Followed up with another 9.0IP outing in his next start, guiding KC to a 2-1, 10-inning win at Chicago on 7-31 (5 H, 1 ER, 5 SO)...Compiled an ERA under 4.00 in three of his four months with Royals...Finished season by going 0-2 with 9.37 ERA in his last three starts (16.1 IP, 17 ER), before going on the 60-day D.L. on 9-22 with shoulder strain.

2000

Began the season with Phillies...Earned first win of season vs. Cincinnati on 5-3 (7 IP, 1 ER)...Optioned to AAA Scranton on 6-2 and went 2-0 with a 1.73 ERA in three triple-A starts, including back-to-back complete games... Was recalled on 6-20...Tied a career-long four-game losing streak, 5-14-6-25...Broke the streak with 4-3 win vs. Pittsburgh on 7-1 for his last win of season...After his recall from Scranton, posted five consecutive quality starts with a 3.09 ERA (11 ER in 32.0 IP) from 6-20-7-16...Placed on D.L. on 7-27 with torn labrum in right shoulder...Underwent arthroscopic surgery to repair lesion by Dr. Craig Morgan in Wilmington, Del., on 8-2 and missed remainder of season.

1999

Went 15-11 with a 4.60 ERA in his 1st full season with the Phillies...Earned an 11-1 win in his 100th career game on May 5 vs. San Diego...Threw his only complete game of season on May 11 at St. Louis for a 9-4 win...Had 2 4-game win streaks, May 5-22 and June 2-17...won 8 of 9 games from April 25 to June 17, compiling a 2.79 ERA (25 ER, 80.2 IP). Struck out a career-high 9 batters vs. Toronto on June 12...Ranked among N.L. leaders in wins, innings, win percentage and opponents average at the All-Star break...Selected to his first N.L. All-Star team, but did not play in the game in Boston.

1998

Began the season at Richmond (AAA)...made 2 starts (0-1, 11.0 IP, 5 ER) before being recalled to the Braves on April 19...allowed 3 runs in 2.0 innings that night at Colorado...Optioned back to Richmond...made 17 starts on the year and threw 2 complete games...Claimed by Phillies off waivers on Aug. 14...made Phillies debut on Aug. 17 vs. Houston for his first start since Sept. 24, 1997 at Philadelphia (with Atlanta)...Threw 1st Major League complete game and shutout in that start vs. Houston, defeating Randy Johnson, 4-0...did not allow a runner to reach 2nd base...had an RBI single to knock in 1st run of game...became the 1st Phillies pitcher since Mike Krukow on April 11, 1982 (1-0 vs. Montreal) to throw a complete game shutout in his 1st game with the club...Threw a complete game in his 2nd start, Aug. 22 vs. Colorado, winning 6-1...Earned N.L. Player of the Week honors, Aug. 17-23...Made 8 starts for the Phillies, compiling a 5-2 record with a 2.29 ERA.

1997

Began the season with the Braves...compiled a 1.38 ERA through 1st 11 games, but held an 8.57 ERA in his next 12 appearances through July 11. Optioned to Richmond on July 12, where he made 3 starts (2-1, 3.18) before being recalled on July 30...made 8 appearances for the Braves after the recall, including 4 starts (1-3, 4.66 ERA, 19.1 IP)...threw a season-high 6.0 innings in his 1st start on July 31 at Florida (5 H, 1 ER, 1 BB, 4 SO), but lost 1-0.

1996

Began the season as a spring-training invite with the Mets...Placed on the Disabled List on March 25 with a herniated disc. ..Activated on June 9...1st game was June 11 vs. Atlanta, charged with the 13-inning loss...Only win of season came July 3 vs. Philadelpha (1.1 IP, 1 H)...Threw 9.0 shutout innings over 7 games from July 26 to Aug. 12 (7 games)...Traded to the Atlanta Braves on Nov. 25.

1995

Began the season as a starter at Norfolk (AAA)...went 2-5 with a 3.41 ERA in 10 starts...Final 12 appearances came in relief, where he was 1-0 with a save and a 0.00 ERA (15.2 IP, 0 ER) with 2 walks and 10 SO...Contract purchased by Mets on July 28...made his Major League debut on July 28 vs. Pittsburgh (0.2 IP, 4 ER)...Earned his 1st Major League win on Aug. 21 vs. San Francisco, a 5-4, 11-inning win (1.0 IP, 1 BB, 2 SO)...his other win was Sept. 9 at Montreal (2.2 IP, 1 H, 3 SO).