Scott Wynne Feldman (born February 7, 1983) is an American former professional baseball pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Texas Rangers, Chicago Cubs, Baltimore Orioles, Houston Astros, Toronto Blue Jays, and Cincinnati Reds.
After going 25–2 in his first two years of college baseball, he was drafted in the 30th round by the Texas Rangers in 2003. Feldman had Tommy John surgery later that year. He followed it up with a minor league career in which he had a 2.70 ERA, and held batters to only 6.6 hits per 9 innings, pitching almost exclusively in relief.
After pitching out of the bullpen while bouncing back and forth between Texas and its Triple-A affiliate in 2005–07, Feldman converted to a starter in 2008. He established himself in 2009 with a breakout season for the Rangers. He was 17–8, tied for 4th in the American League in wins, and tied the major league record with 12 victories on the road. As the Reds' Opening Day starter in 2017, he became one of 52 pitchers to have started Opening Day for at least three major league teams.
Early and personal life
Feldman was born in Kailua, Hawaii, and grew up in Burlingame, California. He is Jewish, as is his father, and the family belonged to Peninsula Temple Sholom in Burlingame for a period of time. His father, an FBI agent who grew up in a Pennsylvania coal mining town and played college baseball at Duquesne, coached Feldman in youth baseball in Northern California.
The Feldman was big from an early age. "His second-grade teacher made a comment to my wife that it was like 'Alice in Wonderland,' because Scott was always too big for his seat", his father recalls.
As for Feldman's road to the major leagues, "The dream started off like any other kid", Feldman said. "You’d think about it as you were watching games in front of the TV, and you’d think about it playing in the neighborhood park with your friends. You always hope, but you just don’t know if it's ever going to happen."
He went to Lincoln Elementary, Burlingame Intermediate School, and later Burlingame High School in Burlingame, where he pitched a no-hitter. Feldman led the Peninsula Athletic League in batting average in his junior year. He was overweight in high school; at one point he was up to .
In 2018, Feldman was one of 42 players born in Hawaii to have made it to the majors. In 2014, he and Jerome Williams joined Brian Fisher (1990) and Sid Fernandez (1997) as the only Hawaiian-born players to ever pitch for the Astros.
College
Feldman lost before the start of his freshman year at the College of San Mateo, and walked on to the team. In two seasons, he went 25–2, with a 1.30 ERA and a strikeout-to-walk ratio of 8-to-1. "When Feldman pitched", said Bulldogs coach Doug Williams, "the game was 95% over." He earned Coast Conference Pitcher of the Year honors both as a freshman in 2002 and as a sophomore in 2003, and was also an All-American both years. "He has a gift", Williams said.
Picked in the 41st round (1,241st overall) of the 2002 Major League Baseball Draft by the Houston Astros, he did not sign. He was then drafted again, in the 30th round (886th overall) of the 2003 Draft by the Texas Rangers, 13 rounds behind future teammate Ian Kinsler, and this time he signed with the Rangers after they offered him a lucrative contract.
Minor leagues
Feldman underwent reconstructive elbow surgery for a torn ulnar collateral ligament in October 2003. In his four appearances in 2004 for the Arizona League Rangers in the Arizona League, he pitched seven scoreless innings. He began the 2005 season with the Single-A Bakersfield Blaze, but after nine scoreless innings in relief was quickly promoted to the Double-A Frisco RoughRiders.
On July 28, 2005, Feldman and two teammates threw a perfect game against the Corpus Christi Hooks. It was the first combined nine-inning perfect game in Texas League history, and the third overall. Feldman was tasked with getting the last three outs, and with two outs in the ninth he let the count get to 3–1. "I was just telling myself, 'Don't walk him,'" Feldman said. "Once it got to 3–1, I threw it right down the middle. If they got a hit, they got a hit. But they're not going to break up a perfect game on a walk." The batter grounded out. On July 31, the three pitchers shared the Texas League Pitcher of the Week Award.