Lincoln Holdzkom

Lincoln H. Holdzkom

• Bats Right, Throws Right
• Height 6' 5", Weight 245 lb.

• School Arizona Western College
• High School Cibola High School
• Born March 23, 1982 in Pasadena, CA USA
• Died December 13, 2015 in Pomona, CA USA

BR Minors page

Biographical Information

Lincoln Holdzkom reached AAA as a pitcher. His brother John Holdzkom also has pitched professionally.

Holdzkom was picked by the Florida Marlins in the 7th round of the 2001 amateur draft, the sixth of nine straight pitchers the Marlins took to open their 2001 draft; Chris Resop (4th round) and Jeff Fulchino (8th round) would be the only ones to make the majors. For the 2001 GCL Marlins, Holdzkom was 1-3 with two saves and a 2.49 ERA. He struck out 43 and allowed only 26 hits in 43 1/3 IP but walked 27. The big right-hander went 1-5 with 11 saves and a 2.53 ERA for the Kane County Cougars in 2002, walking 29 and fanning 42 in 32 innings. He tied Steve Andrade and Roy Corcoran for 10th in the Midwest League in saves.

In 2003, the Californian pitched for the Greensboro Bats (1-4, 4 Sv, 2.84 in 43 G, 36 H, 27 BB, 74 K in 57 IP) and Jupiter Hammerheads (0-2, 2 Sv, 3.07 in 13 G, 20 K in 14 2/3 IP). He tied for third in the Marlins chain in games pitched, behind Oswaldo Mairena and Casey Blalock. His 94 strikeouts led all Marlins farmhands who were used strictly in relief. His career was then derailed by injury as he missed all of 2004.

Holdzkom saw limited action upon his return in 2005, with the GCL Marlins (3 R in 4 IP, 1 ER) and Jupiter (0-1, Sv, 6 R in 9 1/3 IP). He moved to the Chicago Cubs chain in 2006 in a trade with Zach McCormack for Todd Wellemeyer. In '06, he pitched for the AZL Cubs (4 R, 2 ER in 8 2/3 IP), Daytona Cubs (0 R in 5 IP) and West Tenn Diamond Jaxx (2-3, 1.95 in 18 G). The Houston Astros took him in the 2006 Rule V Draft but he did not make the club and was returned to Chicago.

Lincoln wound up in the Boston Red Sox chain for 2007, though. He pitched for the Portland Sea Dogs (4-1, Sv, 3.47 in 30 G, 30 BB in 46 2/3 IP) and Pawtucket Red Sox (1-0, 1.59 in 12 G, 14 BB in 17 IP), control remaining an issue. The Philadelphia Phillies took him in the 2007 Rule V Draft but he again did not stick. With Pawtucket for all of 2008, he went 6-5 with a 5.33 ERA and 33 walks in 50 2/3 IP. His K rate was down (29 K) and he was allowing more hits (57). He signed with the Pittsburgh Pirates as a free agent in 2009 and was with the Altoona Curve for 14 games (0-1, 7 UER, 0 ER in 17 IP, 10 BB) to end his career in Organized Baseball.

Overall, Holdzkom was 16-25 with 21 saves and a 2.96 ERA in 227 minor league games, walking 198 and allowing 269 hits in 337 2/3 IP; he struck out 380.

He was on the New Zealand national team roster for the 2013 World Baseball Classic Qualifiers (his father was born in New Zealand). He led the team with 3 games pitched and 7 1/3 IP, going 0-1 with a save and a 4.91 ERA; he lost versus Taiwan and got the save against the Philippines national team. He had a better ERA than brother John, who would wind up in the majors.

He died in a car crash at age 33.