The all-time greatest pitcher in RailCats history, Willie Glen, will rejoin the team for the 2010 season.
Glen, 32, comes back to Gary after pitching for the Florida Marlins Double-A and Triple-A affiliates the last two seasons. The last time the right-hander was in a RailCats uniform, he was delivering the seminal performance of his career in Game Five of the 2007 Northern League Championship Series – a 143-pitch, complete game win that clinched the ‘Cats second league title.
In his first tour with the RailCats, Glen pitched in parts of three seasons (2005-07) and was a relentless force in the starting rotation, making a whopping 66 starts in his three year RailCats career. And as reliable as Glen was, he was at times even more dominant – going an unfathomable 16-1 in 2007 (including the playoffs) and shattering the Northern League’s single-season strikeout record in the regular season by piling up 162 whiffs in 139.2 innings. That sensational 2007 earned Glen mountains of awards, including First Team Baseball America All-Independent Leagues honors, the Northern League Pitcher of the Year award, the Northern League Championship Series MVP and – following the season – a shot back in affiliated baseball with the Marlins.
Glen’s career numbers with the ‘Cats are staggering, with the slender right-hander boasting a 32-9 record and 3.23 ERA. In 409.0 RailCats innings (more than any other pitcher), Glen allowed only 338 hits and amassed a whopping 384 strikeouts, an amazing 167 more than any other RailCats pitcher ever. Northern League hitters carried just a .221 average off Glen in his first stint in the league and had only a .285 on-base percentage against him.