Sam Whitehead

Samuel Whitehead

• Bats Right, Throws Right
• Height 5' 9", Weight 165 lb.

• School Pomona-Pitzer College

• Born December 13, 1982

Sam Whitehead has played for the Great Britain national team. Whitehead played for three seasons in NCAA Division III then spent a year playing in Britain. In the 2005 European Championship, he was 4 for 12 with two doubles, 3 runs and 2 RBI for Britain and pitched two shutout innings; during the event, he played the outfield, pitcher and every infield position except first base.

Whitehead joined the Tübingen Hawks in Germany in 2006, alongside fellow Britain national team member Ian Young; Sam hit .231/.279/.240 at the plate and was worse on the mound (0-3, 2 Sv, 7.36, 34 H, 11 BB in 22 IP). He did field well at shortstop - his 98 assists were second in the southern Bundesliga-1.

For the 2007 Hawks, Sam batted .211/.308/.256 and had 3 saves and a 7.03 ERA in 17 games on the mound. He continued to play primarily shortstop.

In the 2007 European Championship, Whitehead was used solely as a pitcher, going 1-0 with a 5.79 ERA (picking up the win over the Russian national team); for the first time in 42 years, Britain won a Silver Medal at a European Championship.

Whitehead switched German clubs in 2008, signing with the powerhouse Heidenheim Heideköpfe. He improved his batting line to .280/.368/.320 and his .972 fielding percentage was second-best among the league's second basemen. Under the guidance of former major leaguer Mike Hartley, Whitehead's pitching improved even more - he allowed only one run (unearned) in 19 innings with 12 hits, 4 walks and 18 strikeouts. He saved one game.

In 2009, Sam hit .275/.348/.328 for Heidenheim and handled 94 chances without error at second base, leading the league. He was 0-2 with a 7.27 ERA on the mound.

Sources

• Great Britain Baseball Scorers Association
• Bundesliga stats