Mike Hostetler

Michael David Hostetler

• Bats Right, Throws Right
• Height 6' 2", Weight 195 lb.
• School Georgia Institute of Technology
• High School Sprayberry High School

• Born June 5, 1970 in Marietta, GA USA

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Biographical Information

Mike Hostetler pitched for Team USA and later spent four seasons in AAA but never made the majors.

Hostetler was picked by the Atlanta Braves in the 14th round of the 1988 amateur draft, one round before Tony Tarasco. He was 12-4 with a 2.76 ERA at Georgia Tech in 1990, finishing 4th in the Atlantic Coast Conference in ERA (between Paul Shuey and Tim Rumer) and possibly tying for the win lead. He was named the All-ACC starting pitcher. He tied for 17th in NCAA Division I in wins. He was named third-team All-American by Baseball America, joining Phil Stidham, Aaron Sele, Rich Robertson and Dave Fleming as the pitchers.

Mike then spent the summer with Team USA. They won Bronze in the 1990 Goodwill Games. He was 1-1 with a 10.13 ERA in the 1990 Baseball World Cup; only Darrin Paxton was higher for the USA. He beat Eric de Vries and the Dutch national team but lost to Chien-Fu Kuo Lee and Taiwan. For the summer, he had a 4-2, 4.71 record, one win behind team co-leaders Stidham and Sele. He tied Joey Hamilton for second on the team with nine starts (one behind Sele) and tied Sele for the lead with one complete game.

The right-hander fell to 7-8 with a save and a 3.93 ERA as a junior. He fell to the 21st round of the 1991 amateur draft, when Atlanta again picked him, one round before they took Ryan Karp. He was 3-2 with a 1.91 ERA for the Pulaski Braves, fanning 61 in 47 innings and posting a .94 WHIP, turning it back around from his junior struggles. Had he qualified, he would have been 6th in the Appalachian League in ERA, between Rick Krivda and Todd Fiegel.

He split 1992 between the Greenville Braves (6-2, 3.90 in 16 G) and Durham Bulls (9-3, 2.15). He teamed with Barry Chiles, Mike Potts and Dave Williams on a no-hitter of the Peninsula Pilots April 13. Had he qualified, he would have been second in the Carolina League in ERA, behind Joe Caruso and ahead of Sele. He led Braves farmhands in wins, one ahead of David Nied, and was second to Nied in Ks.

Hostetler spent 1993 mostly with Greenville (8-5, 2.72 in 19 G) and also was 1-3 with a 5.06 ERA in nine games for the Richmond Braves in his AAA debut. He again threw a no-hitter, this time a solo affair - it was to open the finals of the Southern League playoffs to beat the Knoxville Smokies of Carlos Delgado. Knoxville would rally to take the series, though. He was second in the SL in ERA, .47 behind James Baldwin, but lost All-Star RHP honors to Scott Ruffcorn. He tied for 9th in the Atlanta system in victories and was 5th in K (141, between two other Mikes, Mike D'Andrea and Mike Birkbeck).

He was 0-2 with a 6.17 ERA in six games for Richmond in 1994; he presumably missed time to injury. He dropped back to Greenville in 1995 and posted a 10-10, 5.26 record, not bad but not nearly as dominant as in 1992-1993. He tied for 9th in the SL in wins, tied for 4th in losses and allowed a league-high 24 dingers. He tied Chris Seelbach and Terrell Wade for 5th in the Atlanta farm chain in wins and tied for 4th in losses.

Hostetler was back up to Richmond in 1996, going 11-9 with a 4.38 ERA. He tied Brian Boehringer for 4th in the 1996 IL in wins and tied Damian Moss for second in the Braves minors, one behind Derrin Ebert. As this was the era of Greg Maddux, Tom Glavine, John Smoltz and Steve Avery, there were fewer openings on the 1996 Braves staff, so Mike did not get a call-up. He returned to Richmond in '97 and folded (1-2, 9.43 ERA, 2.00 WHIP in 5 G), presumably battling injuries to end his career.

He had gone 49-38 with a 4.04 ERA in 132 games (126 starts) as a pro.