When the Washington Nationals take the field Thursday night at the new Busch Stadium in St. Louis, they will be led on the mound by former Baseball Factory instructor Mike O’Connor. O’Connor is making his Major League debut after four years in the minors, where he most recently pitched for the New Orleans Zephyrs of the Pacific Coast League (AAA). Mike did pitching lessons for the Baseball Factory this past January, February, and March under the direction of Senior Director of On-Field Instruction Matt Schilling.

Mike played college ball at George Washington University, where in his final season he went 4-2 with a 3.06 ERA, surrendering only 11 earned runs in 48 innings pitched. Mike was drafted by the Montreal Expos in the 7th round of the 2002 draft and pitched for the Vermont Expos in the New York-Penn League that summer. In 2003, Mike played for the Savannah Sand Gnats in the South Atlantic League (A). That season, he put together his best win-loss percentage with an 8-3 record to go along with a 3.86 ERA. Coming into this season, Mike had pitched for four minor league seasons and had compiled a 28-25 win loss record with a 3.71 ERA while pitching for four different teams in the Montreal Expos/Washington Nationals farm system. This season in the minors, Mike had pitched 18.2 innings giving up only five earned runs while striking out 20 and compiling a 2.41 ERA. 

All of us at the Baseball Factory wish Mike the best of luck in his Major League debut, and hope that his experience in the “big show” is long standing and successful.