Carlos Marmol

From BR Bullpen

Carlos Agustin Marmol

  • Bats Right, Throws Right
  • Height 6' 2", Weight 180 lbs.

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Biographical Information[edit]

Signed by scout Jose Serra for the Chicago Cubs in 2000, Carlos Marmol began his career with a .314 campaign for the DSL Cubs. As an outfielder and backup backstop for the 2001 AZL Cubs, Marmol batted .295/.355/.380. As the AZL Cubs won the Arizona League title in 2002, Carlos slipped to .258/.271/.339 as a regular outfielder, walking 3 times in 189 plate appearances while striking out 35 times. He also hit just .149/.167/.191 for the Lansing Lugnuts and had four errors and three passed balls in 14 games at catcher.

Struggling offensively, Marmol was converted to pitching in 2003 and went 3-5, 4.19 back with the AZL Cubs, but he struck out 74 in 62 innings. Marmol moved back to Lansing in 2004 and the 21-year-old went 14-8 with a 3.20 ERA, whiffing 154 in 155 innings. He was part of a 5-way tie for the Midwest League lead in victories on the hill.

Carlos pitched well for the 2005 Daytona Cubs, going 6-2 with a 2.99 ERA and 8.83 K/9 and moved to the West Tenn Diamond Jaxx, where he went 3-4, 3.65. Beginning 2006 with West Tenn, he was 3-2, 2.33 after 11 starts, having struck out 67 in 58 innings while allowing 42 hits. With Glendon Rusch injured, Carlos was called up to the Cubs and has begun his career 1-2 with a 4.18 ERA.

Marmol had an excellent season for the 2007 Cubs. He was 5-1 with a save and a 1.43 ERA in 59 games. He allowed only 41 hits in 69 1/3 innings while striking out 96 batters. Amazingly, the middle reliever earned a share of the MVP voting. He was 0-1 in the playoffs, allowing 3 runs in 3 innings.

In the 2008 Caribbean Series, Marmol had 2 saves and a 4.91 ERA for the Tigres del Licey as they won their 10th Caribbean Series title. He blew a save against the Yaquis de Obregón in Licey's lone loss, allowing a single to Armando Rios, triple to Carlos Valencia and single to Oscar Robles with a Ronnie Belliard error also playing a role as the Yaquis scored 3 runs to rally against the Licey closer.

Marmol saved the 10,000th win in Cubs history; they were the second franchise to that plateau. Carlos pitched a scoreless 10th on April 23, 2008 after Kerry Wood had blown the save in the 9th. For the 2008 Cubs, Marmol went 2-4 with 7 saves and a 2.68 ERA. He struck out 114 in 87 1/3 IP and gave up just 40 hits for a .135 opponent average (.098 by right-handed batters). His 82 games pitched tied Joe Smith for third in the 2008 NL. He pitched the 13th inning of the 2008 All-Star Game, appearing after Aaron Cook and before Brandon Webb; Carlos got Dioner Navarro to ground out. J.D. Drew reached on an error and stole second as Michael Young struck out. Marmol then whiffed Carlos Quentin. Carlos again struggled in the playoffs, allowing two earned runs in 2 2/3 IP.

Marmol was the only Dominican Republic hurler to allow an earned run in the 2009 World Baseball Classic, but it was costly. Felipe Alou brought him in with a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the 11th inning of a make-or-break game against the Dutch national team. Carlos immediately yielded a double to PH Sidney de Jong. He got Curt Smith on a grounder, but Eugène Kingsale tied it with a single. Marmol tried to pick off Kingsale, but his throw was wide of Willy Aybar and Kingsale raced to third. Carlos fanned Sharlon Schoop then walked Randall Simon intentionally. Yurendell de Caster grounded to Aybar, whose error let Kingsale score the game winner, eliminating the Dominican Republic from the competition. Marmol was 0-1 with a 5.40 ERA in two appearances in the Classic with 4 K in 1 2/3 IP.

Notable Achievements[edit]

  • NL All-Star (2008)
  • 30 Saves Seasons: 2 (2010 & 2011)

Related Sites[edit]