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Richard Alexander Ankiel (; born July 19, 1979) is an American former professional baseball outfielder and pitcher. Ankiel played in Major League Baseball from 1999 through 2013 for the St. Louis Cardinals, Kansas City Royals, Atlanta Braves, Washington Nationals, Houston Astros, and New York Mets. Ankiel was a pitcher with the Cardinals from 1999 until 2004, when he lost his ability to throw strikes consistently. After trying to regain his pitching form in the minor leagues, he switched to the outfield in early 2005. For two and a half years, he honed his skills as a hitter and fielder in the Cardinals' minor-league system. He returned to the Cardinals on August 9, 2007. As a Cardinal (1999–2009), Ankiel hit 47 home runs as an outfielder and two as a pitcher. After the 2009 season, Ankiel became a free agent. Subsequently, he was signed by the Royals and later was traded to the Braves. Ankiel became the first player since Babe Ruth to have won at least 10 games as a pitcher and also hit at least 50 home runs. Ankiel is also the only player other than Ruth to both start a postseason game as a pitcher and hit a home run in the postseason as a position player. His change of position, and the fact that he played for six teams in a five-season span, suggest that Ankiel's playing history represents "one of the stranger careers in baseball history" in the words of journalist Barry Petchesky. ==Early career== Ankiel attended Port St. Lucie High School in Florida, where he went 11–1 with a 0.47 earned run average (ERA) during his senior season, striking out 162 batters in 74.0 innings pitched, and was named the High School Player of the Year by ''USA Today'' in 1997.〔(【引用サイトリンク】url=http://www.baseball-almanac.com/awards/All-USA_Today_High_School_Baseball_Team_Award.shtml )〕 He was also a first-team high-school All-American pitcher. The St. Louis Cardinals selected Ankiel in the second round of the 1997 Major League Baseball Draft, and Ankiel signed with the Cardinals, receiving a $2.5 million signing bonus, the fifth-highest ever given to an amateur player. In 1998, he was voted the best pitching prospect in both the Carolina and Midwest leagues, and was the Carolina League's All-Star starting pitcher, ''Baseball America''s first-team Minor League All-Star starting pitcher, and the Cardinals' Minor League Player of the Year. That year he led all minor league pitchers in strikeouts, with 222.〔(【引用サイトリンク】url=http://www.baseball-reference.com/minors/player.cgi?id=ankiel001ric )〕 In 1999, Ankiel was named the Minor League Player of the Year by both ''Baseball America'' and ''USA Today''. He was also Texas League All-Star pitcher, Double-A All-Star starting pitcher, Cardinals Minor League Player of the Year, and ''Baseball America'' First Team Minor League All-Star starting pitcher. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Rick Ankiel」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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