Travis Schlichting

Travis Jay Schlichting is a professional American baseball player who plays as a pitcher. Playing for the Round Rock High School, Schlichting was one of the top players in the country and was picked right out of high school, at the 2003 MLB Amateur Draft, by the Tampa Bay Devil Rays, at 98th overall.

Travis began in the Rookie League with the Princeton Devil Rays in 2003, playing primarily as a third baseman. He had a .226 batting average and a .298 on-base percentage, gaining entry to the A-League with the Charleston RiverDogs in 2004. Travis stayed in the A-League for three seasons, playing with the Southwest Michigan Devil Rays in 2005, before being traded out to the Los Angeles Angles of Anaheim in 2006. His third season at the A-League was with the Cedar Rapids Kernels, this time switching to first base as well, for a while.

At the end of 2006, the Los Angeles Angles of Anaheim decided against renewing Schlichting’s contract, making him a free agent. Schlichting decided to turn to pitching and signed up with the Kansas City T-Bones for the 2007 season. Pitching at 5.29 with a 1-2 record, the Los Angeles Dodgers decided to invite him to Spring Training in 2008 and eventually offered him a job as a pitcher for the AA-League’s Jacksonville Suns.

Schlichting spent 2008 with the Suns and was named to the 40-man roster at the beginning of the 2009 season. However, instead of making his debut, Travis was sent back to the AA-League, this time to play for the Chattanooga Lookouts. In May, 2009, Schlichting got another promotion to the MLB, this time making his debut against the Philadelphia Phillies, getting hit for a home run against Ryan Howard, the first batter he pitched to.

After just 2.2 innings over 2 games, Schlichting was sent down to the Albuquerque Isotopes in the AAA-League where he had a premature close to the season with an injury. Schlichting was again named to the 40-man roster of the Dodgers in 2010.