Jeff Locke (baseball)

1.1. High School Baseball Career

Locke's high school baseball career at Kennett High School was marked by numerous accolades. In 2003, his first year, he was named a New Hampshire State Second-Team All-Star. He followed this with New Hampshire State First-Team All-Star selections in 2004, 2005, and 2006. During his junior and senior seasons (2005 and 2006), Locke was recognized as the New Hampshire Player of the Year. In his senior year, he also served as co-captain of the Kennett High baseball team and shared the prestigious Jack Burns Baseball Award.

1.2. Nickname "The Redstone Rocket"

Jeffrey Locke earned the distinctive nickname "The Redstone Rocket". This moniker was coined in June 2006 by Lloyd Jones, the sports editor for The Conway Daily Sun. The nickname draws inspiration from several elements: Locke's powerful fastball, his hometown of Redstone, New Hampshire (a village nestled within the town of Conway), and a historical reference to Alan Shepard, America's first man in space from Derry, New Hampshire. Shepard's historic Freedom 7 flight was famously launched by a Redstone rocket.

2.1. Atlanta Braves Minor League System

Locke began his professional journey after being selected as the first pick in the second round (51st overall) of the 2006 Major League Baseball draft by the Atlanta Braves. He officially signed with the organization on June 18, 2006, and was initially assigned to the Gulf Coast Braves in the Rookie League. In June 2007, Locke was promoted to the Danville Braves in the Advanced Rookie Appalachian League. His performance garnered attention, with Baseball America ranking him as the No. 8 prospect on their Atlanta Braves Top 10 Prospects list in November 2007. In 2008, he played for the Rome Braves, and by December 2008, Baseball America again listed him, this time at No. 7, on their Atlanta Braves Top 10 Prospects list. Locke started the 2009 season playing for the Myrtle Beach Pelicans.

2.2. Pittsburgh Pirates

On June 3, 2009, Locke was traded by the Braves to the Pittsburgh Pirates as part of a deal that also sent Charlie Morton and Gorkys Hernández to Pittsburgh in exchange for Nate McLouth. Upon joining the Pirates, Locke was assigned to their High-A affiliate, the Lynchburg Hillcats. In 2010, he played for the Bradenton Marauders, the Pirates' new affiliate after the relocation of the Sarasota Reds to Bradenton, Florida. Locke was the starting pitcher in the Marauders' second-ever game, on April 9, 2010, against the Fort Myers Miracle. During the 2010 season, he recorded a combined 12 wins and 5 losses across his time with the Bradenton Marauders and the Double-A Altoona Curve, to which he was promoted on July 14, 2010. Baseball America continued to recognize his potential, ranking him No. 8 on their Pittsburgh Pirates Top 10 Prospects list in January 2011.

Locke pitched for both Altoona and the Indianapolis Indians in 2011 before receiving his first call-up to the major leagues in September of that year. He made his MLB debut on September 10, 2011, against the Florida Marlins, a game that resulted in a loss. For the 2011 season, he pitched in a total of four games for the Pirates, ending with a record of 0 wins and 3 losses, an ERA of 6.48, and 5 strikeouts. In November 2011, Baseball America again included him on their prospects list, placing him at No. 10 for the Pirates.

Locke earned his first career MLB win on October 1, 2012, pitching six innings and allowing just one run against his former team, the Atlanta Braves. The 2013 season marked a significant highlight in his career when he was selected as an All-Star by San Francisco Giants manager Bruce Bochy. Although he did not pitch in the game due to back stiffness, he had an impressive first half, posting an 8-2 record with a 2.15 ERA. However, his performance declined in the second half, where he recorded a 1-2 record with an 8.10 ERA over his next eight starts. Despite achieving a career-high 10 wins, he was demoted to Altoona on August 28, 2013, and was subsequently left off the NLDS roster for the 2013 playoffs due to his late-season struggles.



On March 29, 2014, Locke was placed on the 15-day disabled list. He was activated on April 11 and optioned to the Triple-A Indianapolis Indians. He was recalled for a spot start on June 8, 2014, after teammate Gerrit Cole was placed on the disabled list, marking his return to the starting rotation. Locke found success in his second stint of the season, maintaining a 2.13 ERA over his final seven starts before the 2014 All-Star Break. This included a dominant performance against his mentor, A. J. Burnett, where he earned his second win of the season. For 2014, he started 21 games, finishing with 7 wins and 6 losses, a 3.91 ERA, and a 1.27 WHIP. Although he did not reach the required innings due to his early season absence, he maintained an ERA below 4.00 and a winning record for the second consecutive year.

In 2015, Locke made 30 starts for the Pirates, fulfilling the innings requirement. However, his performance was less consistent, as he finished with 8 wins and 11 losses and an ERA of 4.49, which was his first time above 4.00 in three seasons. The 2016 season saw Locke begin in the Pirates' starting rotation. Despite accumulating an 8-6 record, his ERA stood at 5.54, leading to his eventual move to the bullpen for the remainder of the season. On November 29, 2016, Locke was designated for assignment by the Pirates. He then became a free agent on December 2, when Pittsburgh did not tender him a contract.

2.3. Miami Marlins

On December 12, 2016, Locke signed a one-year contract valued at 3.00 M USD with the Miami Marlins. His tenure with the Marlins was brief and troubled by injury. During the first workout day of spring training, Locke reported discomfort while tossing from 60 feet away, though his MRI came back clean. Despite this, he was placed on the 10-day disabled list on March 30, 2017. He returned to the Marlins on June 1, giving up one run over 5 and 2/3 innings against the Arizona Diamondbacks. However, his struggles continued. On July 3, against the St. Louis Cardinals, Locke surrendered 11 earned runs over 2 and 2/3 innings in a game the Cardinals won 14-6. This performance raised his season ERA to 8.16. He had a career 0-7 record against the Cardinals, and the Marlins held a 0-6 record in games started by Locke during the 2017 season. The day after his disastrous outing, on July 4, he was designated for assignment. Locke cleared waivers and was sent down to the Jupiter Hammerheads, the Marlins' Class A-Advanced affiliate, but he never pitched for the team in a game. He elected free agency following the season on October 2, 2017.

2.4. Injury and Retirement

Jeffrey Locke sat out the entire 2018 season due to a partially torn labrum in his shoulder. Despite receiving offers from multiple Major League teams, Locke opted not to sign with any team until he felt fully healthy. This decision ultimately led to his departure from professional baseball.

4.1. Major Awards

• New Hampshire State High School Baseball Second-Team All-Star (2003)
• 3x New Hampshire State High School Baseball First-Team All-Star (2004, 2005, 2006)
• 2x New Hampshire State High School Baseball Player of the Year (2005, 2006)
• Jack Burns Baseball Award (2006, shared with Rob Knox)
• Appalachian League Pitcher of the Week (July 17-23, 2007)
• Appalachian League Post-Season All-Star (2007)
• Baseball America Rookie All-Star (2007)
• Carolina League Pitcher of the Week (April 28 - May 4, 2009)
• Florida State League Mid-Season All-Star (2010)
• Eastern League Mid-Season All-Star (2011)
• MLB All-Star (2013)

4.2. Uniform Numbers

During his Major League Baseball career, Jeffrey Locke wore the following uniform numbers:

• 61 (2011)
• 49 (2012-2016)
• 31 (2017)

4.3. Professional Pitching Statistics

4.4. Professional Fielding Statistics