Cole Kimball moves on

The only guy from Hackettstown High and Centenary College to make a 25-man big league roster, Cole Kimball, has moved on with his life. Here is the most recent newspaper story about him.

Cole has figured into this season's National League East race. He has been conspicuous by his absence. At the time he hit the big league scene with the Nationals in 2011, he was on his way to being a significant part of their bullpen in the late innings with a team that pundits projected to get to the World Series several times in the early part of this decade.

A big reason that hasn't happened for the Nats is because, in this day and age of starters being pulled after going over 100 pitches, the Nats bullpen has failed them time and time again, as it did last night. They haven't had a reliable guy to get them to their closer.

It coulda, shoulda, woulda been Cole Kimball. He's 30 now. Would have been in the prime of his career. Such is the "fickle finger of fate" in baseball, pitchers' arm injuries.

Wish him well with his new career path, and, remember Cole, college will always be there for you in the future -- that's the teacher in me talking.

http://www.nj.com/hunterdon-county-democrat/index.ssf/2015/07/major_leaguer_cole_kimball_joins_diamond_nation_in.html

Andy Loigu Andy Loigu
Sep '15

My son took a pitching clinic with him this past summer and he was fantastic.

Jazzykatt Jazzykatt
Sep '15

Good to hear, Cole is a great, great guy.

He spent a long time in the Nationals' farm system and learned what he needed to learn. His coaches and managers at the professional level all respected him. I can say that first hand from having gone into those locker rooms.

A cool thing I'll always remember about Cole -- in 2011, on the first official day of spring training, Cole was the first guy there --- at 5:30 a.m.

A cynical reporter asked him why he got there so early, what's he trying to prove? Cole replied, that's just the way he does things, wanted to get there early to get his work done.

Andy Loigu Andy Loigu
Sep '15

Cole not only is a good guy, but has a great family too. Easy to see how he came to be like he is knowing how he was brought up.

I was a teammate with Cole in an adult league a few years back- lets just say Cole is the only member of the former Liberty Athletics of the Raritan Valley National Adult Baseball Association to have made the Major Leagues! (Cole's dad was also quite a good athlete, he played up into his late 40's and was a really good player)

(And, knowing Cole a little bit, something that he is proud of, scoring a run in the Major Leagues. He walked in two plate appearances and scored a run- I believe that game was in Pittsburgh. He was quite a good hitter)

The Rhyme Animal The Rhyme Animal
Sep '15

He helps Coach Poyer out sometimes too. He had some good things to say about my son when he was hitting at a practice. I thought that was cool to hear coming from a former professional player.

Metsman Metsman
Sep '15

Here's the box score of the game in which Cole was the winning pitcher!

http://www.baseball-almanac.com/box-scores/boxscore.php?boxid=201105160WS0

Andy Loigu Andy Loigu
Sep '15

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