Greg Runser

Greg Runser

• Bats Right, Throws Right
• Height 6' 1", Weight 200 lb.
• School University of Houston, San Jacinto College
• High School The Woodlands High School
• Born April 5, 1979 in Hamilton, ON Canada

BR Minors page

Biographical Information

Greg Runser played in the minor leagues from 2000 to 2004 and in 2007.

Runser was 27-1 in high school, then helped San Jacinto finish second in the NJCAA Division I Baseball World Series in both 1998 and 1999. He moved on to the University of Houston for the 2000 season and went 5-2 with six saves and a 2.69 ERA. He was third in Conference USA in ERA. He was drafted by the Texas Rangers in the fifth round of the 2000 amateur draft, six rounds before Houston staffmate and future major leaguer Shane Nance. He signed for a bonus of $170,000.

Runser began his professional career that year, playing for the Pulaski Rangers. In 21 relief appearances, he went 3-3 with six saves and a 1.12 ERA in a stellar pro debut. He somehow failed to win honors as the Appalachian League's All-Star reliever; Robert Pepen was picked instead. He was 1-0 with 11 saves and a 2.12 ERA in the 2000-2001 Panamanian Winter League season, allowing 8 hits and fanning 19 in 17 innings. Wikipedia claimed he won MVP honors but contemporary Panamanian sources list Olmedo Sáenz, the Triple Crown winner, as the MVP. See La Prensa for instance.

In 2001, he pitched for the Charlotte Rangers, going 3-4 with 30 saves and a 2.93 ERA in 50 appearances, leading the Florida State League in saves and finishing second in games finished with 47 (behind Juan Padilla's 49). He was named the FSL All-Star right-handed reliever. He led Texas farmhands in games pitched and saves and tied Justin Huisman and Luke Anderson for 5th in the affiliated minors in saves. He pitched for the Tulsa Drillers in 2002, going 1-4 with a 3.84 ERA and 25 saves in 61 appearances. He led the Texas League in saves and tied Aaron Taylor and Javier Lopez for second in appearances. He again led the Rangers minor leagues in both saves and games pitched.

He moved to the independent circuit for 2003, appearing in 32 games for the Pennsylvania Road Warriors and going 1-5 with six saves and a 4.61 ERA in 32 games (five starts). In 2004, he played for the Quebec Les Capitales and Joliet JackHammers, going a combined 2-4 with two saves and a 5.87 ERA in 33 relief appearances. He missed two years due to shoulder surgeries. He appeared in 13 games for the Atlantic City Surf in 2007, with a save and a 10.29 ERA, getting rocked for 26 hits and 6 walks in 14 innings while fanning only two.

Overall, Runser went 10-20 with 70 saves and a 3.95 ERA in 210 games.

He later served as a scout for the Minnesota Twins, covering Louisiana and the greater Houston area. He signed J.T. Chargois and Kohl Stewart.

Sources

• Team Extreme baseball instructors
• 2012 Twins Media Guide
• 2001-2003 Baseball Almanacs