Name: Matt Karchner

Rank: 201

Position: P

Years With White Sox: 1995-1998

Matt Karchner was acquired by the White Sox from the Royals via the minor league draft in 1993.  He made his major league debut on July 18, 1995, pitching a scoreless inning of relief in the White Sox victory over the Yankees.  He finished the season with 31 appearances for the year, with a stellar 1.69 ERA.

1996 did not go as well for Karchner.  He spent nearly the entire year with the big league club before knee surgery cost him the last six weeks of the season, appearing in 50 games, but his ERA skyrocketed to 5.76.

Karchner bounced back in 1997, after splitting time between the White Sox and Triple A.  He took over the closer role after Roberto Hernandez was shipped to the Giants as part of the White Flag trade, putting together a string of 15 consecutive converted save opportunities, until bone spurs ended his season early.

By early May of 1998, Karchner had extended his saves streak to 20, but, once again, injuries curtailed his effectiveness.  He went on the DL on May 10 to have hernia surgery and again in early July with a strained groin.  As the trade deadline approached, and with the White Sox out of contention, Matt Karchner made his most valuable contribution to the White Sox when he was traded to the crosstown Cubs in exchange for a young minor league pitcher named Jon Garland.

Karchner’s numbers in a White Sox uniform, both for games I attended and overall, were:

Wins	Losses	ERA	Saves	IP	Hits	Runs	ER	Walks	Strike Outs	HR	HBP	Appearances
0	0	1.42	2	6.333	3	1	1	6	5	0	0	5
16	11	4.08	27	180.667	177	89	82	98	130	18	8	165