Randy Wolf

[Michael Trzinski]

Randy Wolf wasn’t a superstar. The left-hander was named to only one All-Star team. But he made over 30 starts seven times, compiled 200+ innings six times, and won 133 games in a 16-year career that included stops in Milwaukee, Philadelphia, Los Angeles, San Diego, Houston, Detroit, Miami, and Baltimore. If you look up the phrase ‘dependable starter’ in your baseball dictionary, he picture was beside it.

Randall Christopher Wolf was born in Canoga Park, California and although he was drafted out of high school by the Dodgers in the 25^th round of the 1994 MLB Amateur Draft, he elected not to sign. He attended Pepperdine University where he became an All-American pitcher. He was drafted by the Phillies in the second round of the 1997 MLB draft.

The player known as ‘Wolfie’ made his big-league debut with Philadelphia after just two-plus years in the minors. He became a regular starter in 1999 and made 142 starts over the next five years, culminating in a 16-win season and his only All-Star nod in 2003. Wolf underwent Tommy John surgery in 2005 and missed half of that season and the next. After the 2006 season, he signed as a free agent with the Dodgers. In 2007, Wolf made 18 starts for the Dodgers before undergoing season-ending shoulder surgery. He pitched for both San Diego and Houston in 2008 before going back to the Dodgers in 2009, where he had one of his best seasons, compiled a 3.9 bWAR, an ERA+ of 124, and a FIP of 3.96.

Wolf signed as a free agent with the Brewers in December 2009 and played for Milwaukee for the better part of three seasons, making a total of 91 starts. He won 13 games in both 2010 and 2011.  Wolf was a major part of the rotation during the 2011 campaign in which the Brewers fell one win short of reaching the World Series, losing to St. Louis in six games in the NLCS. Wolf was the winning pitcher in a 4-2 Game 4 victory for the Brewers.

He underwent a second TJ surgery in 2012 and missed the following season. Over the next two years, Wolf pitched in only 14 major league games and retired after the 2015 season.

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