Mike Guilfoyle

Michael Guilfoyle

• Bats Left, Throws Left
• Height 5' 11", Weight 185 lb.

• School Saint Peter's University
• High School Marist High School

• Born April 29, 1968 in Jersey City, NJ USA

BR Register page

Biographical Information

Mike Guilfoyle pitched in the USA, Taiwan and Korea.

Guilfoyle was drafted by the Detroit Tigers in the 19th round of the 1990 Amateur Draft, and he went 4-6 with a 3.06 ERA for the Bristol Tigers in his first year. He notched 8 saves with a 2.66 ERA in 40 appearances for the Fayetteville Generals in 1991, tying Mike Munoz and Phil Stidham for 3rd in the Tigers chain in saves. He collected 11 saves and was 4-1 with a 3.18 ERA in 45 relief outings for the Lakeland Tigers in 1992. He tied Sherman Corbett and Stidham for 4th among Detroit farmhands in appearances and tied Bob Undorf for 3rd in saves. Guilfoyle had a 0.96 ERA in 9 games in Lakeland in 1993, then his ERA was 3.73 in 49 games with the London Tigers. He tied Stidham for second in their chain in games pitched, behind Wally Ritchie, and his 8 saves tied Willie Fraser and Will Hunt for 7th.

In 1994, Guilfoyle was 7-8 with a 4.47 ERA in 42 games for the Trenton Thunder, and he notched 5 saves. He then recorded a 2.88 ERA in 56 games for the Jacksonville Suns in 1995, going 5-1 with 3 saves. Only John Kelly pitched more games in the Tigers system; he tied Marc Pisciotta for 3rd in the Southern League in appearances. His ERA rose to 5.14 in 54 appearances with a 5-5 record for the AAA Toledo Mud Hens the next summer; he was 7th in the organization in games pitched and tied Bob Baxter and Curt Schmidt for 5th in the 1996 IL. The Wei Chuan Dragons signed him in 1997, but he allowed 22 runs in 8 games (0-2, 9.33). After leaving Taiwan, Guilfoyle joined the Chico Heat, and he had a 5.91 ERA in 39 appearances.

Guilfoyle had a solid 2.28 ERA in 45 games in 1998 for the Bridgeport Bluefish, and he notched 30 saves. He led the Atlantic League in saves, four ahead of Chris Eddy (the league's All-Star RP), and tied Ernie Nieves for third in appearances. The Lotte Giants then signed him in 1999, but he allowed 9 runs in 6 innings then the Giants released him. Guilfoyle then stayed with the Bluefish for five years. He had a 3.98 ERA in 48 relief outings in the rest of the 1999 season, as Dave Adam did the closing. He was third in the circuit in games pitched despite his time spent in Korea. He collected 11 saves with a 4.82 ERA in 55 games in 2000, finishing 8th in 7 saves and 7th in appearances. He notched 23 saves in 44 games with a 3.33 ERA in 2001, tying Jimmy Williams for the save lead. He lowered his ERA to 2.05 in 47 games while having 16 saves in 2002. He tied Archie Corbin and Anthony Shelby for 10th in games pitched and trailed only Craig Mattson and Williams in saves; Williams won the All-Star reliever award.

The New Jersey native had his best year in Bridgeport in 2003, as he got 40 saves with an elite 1.90 ERA in 57 games. He had 15 more saves than runner-up Del Mathews and trailed only Travis Thompson in games pitched. He set a league record for saves, broken by Jon Hunton 11 years later, and was named the All-Star closer. He also represented the USA in the 2003 Baseball World Cup; he pitched five innings, allowing one hit, three walks and one run while striking out seven. Only D.J. Johnson made more appearances for the Americans. Guilfoyle announced his retirement after the 2003 season. He had gone 50-50 with 160 saves and a 3.64 ERA in 660 games as a pro. Through 2022, he was 6th in Atlantic League annals in games pitched (296, between Cody Eppley and Andrew Johnston) and third in saves (after Hunton and Jim Ed Warren); he had retired as the all-time save leader in the circuit.

He coached Judson University from 2020-2022 after being assistant coach for five years.