Top 5 Notre Dame Baseball Players of All Time
By Bobby Norell
No.5 RHP. Jeff Samardzija
Most Notre Dame fans will probably most remember Samardzija for his feats on the gridiron, but for as good he was at football he was just as good as a pitcher. Over his three seasons on the ND baseball team, Samardzija compiled a record of 21-6. Over 240.1 career innings Samardzija had an ERA of 3.81 with 159 strikeouts.
While Samardzija had a first round arm, he fell all the way to the 5th round of the 2006 MLB Draft because there were questions about whether he would play football or not. He ultimately took the money the Chicago Cubs offered him and chose baseball.
Over 8 big league seasons Samardzija has amassed a record of only 47-61. Part of that is due to how many bad teams he’s been on. He’s had his bright spots though, such as his 2011,’12 and ’14 seasons. 2014 was his best as a professional. That year he split time between the Cubs and Oakland A’s. He was named an All-Star and helped the A’s grab a Wild Card spot. He finished 2014, 7-13 with an ERA of 2.99.
After that year he was shipped to the Chicago White Sox where he really struggled. Although he struggled for the Sox he was able to work out a 5 year, $90 million deal from the San Francisco Giants.
Samardzija is slated to be the No.2 starter behind ace, Madison Bumgarner.
Next: A.J. Pollock