R.J. Swindle pitches against the Nationals July 27th at Miller Park.

Swindle gave up just one hit in two innings but that hit was a solo homer by Ryan Zimmerman to put the capper on a 14-6 Washington win over Milwaukee.  Swindle did strike out a pair of batters and threw 23 strikes out of his 35 pitches.

Robert Joseph Swindle has led a nomadic existence since turning pro in 2004.  After being named the 2002 Big South freshman of the year and the 2003 Big South player of the year at Charleston Southern University, he was selected in round 14 of the 2004 amateur draft by Boston.  The 6-foot-3, 190-pound lefty put together a strong rookie season in Low-A ball with Greenville where he put together a 56-4 K-BB mark in 51 innings while going 5-1 with a 1.94 earned run average.  That wasn't enough to impress the Red Sox, who decided to release him during spring training in 2005.  Apparently, the Red Sox brass felt he was not going to recover from a lingering back injury.

Swindle had to go to the Schaumberg Flyers of the independent Northern League in 2005 to prove he deserved another shot at the majors.  He put together a record of 6-4 with a 3.27 ERA while compiling a 102-27 strikeout-walk total in 118 1/3 innings but he did not receive any major league interest.  It was back to Schaumberg in 2006 where he began the year with a 2-2 mark with a 3.41 ERA in five starts.  The New York Yankees liked what they saw and signed him to a minor league deal in June.  He returned to his college roots by pitching at Single-A Charleston where he pitched out of the bullpen.  He dominated South Atlantic League hitters with a 4-2 record and a microscopic ERA of 0.64.  His K-BB total was an impressive 46-5 in 44 1/3 innings.  That led to a promotion to Triple-A Columbus where he earned a save by allowing one hit over two scoreless innings in his lone appearance.

Unfortunately for Swindle, history repeated itself when the Yankees let him go during spring training in 2007.  It was back to the independent leagues where he hooked up with the Newark Bears of the Atlantic League.  A 1.93 ERA in nine relief appearances convinced the Philadelphia Phillies to give him a minor league deal at the end of May.  He went to Single-A Lakewood and had more fun at the expense of South Atlantic League hitters by going 2-1 with a 0.93 ERA and racked up 10 saves while posting a 37-5 K-BB mark in 29 innings.  He advanced to Single-A Clearwater and even though he went 0-1 with a 4.80 in 15 appearances, he collected three saves and struck out 20 hitters while walking only three in 15 innings. 

Swindle began 2008 at Double-A Reading and he kept his ERA well below one at 0.54 while walking just one hitter and striking out 16 in 16 2/3 innings.  He was then called up to Triple-A with Lehigh Valley where he struck out 51 hitters and walked only seven in 36 1/3 innings while going 2-1 with a 1.98 ERA.  He received a belated Canada Day gift by getting called up to Philadelphia July 2nd but he was sent back down on the 4th of July to make room for J.A. Happ without seeing any action.  Just three days later, Tom Gordon went on the disabled list and Swindle was called up to make his major league debut that day against the Mets at Citizens Bank Park. 

Swindle's debut did not go according to Hoyle as he gave up a homer to the first man he faced in David Wright.  That was followed by singles from Carlos Beltran and Damion Easley but he bounced back by striking out Carlos Delgado on three pitches.  He pitched three innings that day and gave up two runs on four hits and a walk with three strikeouts.  His next appearance was July 11th against Arizona but he gave up a single to Stephen Drew, the only hitter he faced.  He was back on the mound the next day when he relieved an ineffective Adam Eaton in the fourth inning.  He was burned by the long ball again as Mark Reynolds launched a three-run homer.  On the positive side, he settled down with a 1-2-3 fifth inning and collected his first major league RBI with a run-scoring ground out against Randy Johnson.  Unfortunately, he only retired one of the three hitters he faced in the sixth and was given the hook by manager Charlie Manuel.  That turned out to be his final appearance in a Phillies uniform.  He was released by Philadelphia in November but he was picked up later in the month by Milwaukee.

Swindle started last season in Triple-A Nashville and continued to add to his impressive minor league numbers with a 3-1 record and a 1.03 ERA in 31 appearances in the Sounds bullpen.  His K-BB total was 41-13 in 43 2/3 innings.  He made his Brewers debut in late April against the Phillies at Citizens Bank Park but he wasn't able to stick it to his former team as he allowed a run on two hits and a walk during 1 1/3 innings of work.  He got another shot with the Brew Crew in May but wound up allowing three runs over two appearances covering 1 1/3 innings against the Twins at the Metrodome.  His lone appearance at Miller Park came July 27th when the Nationals Ryan Zimmerman took him deep but that was his only blemish in two innings of work.  He was scored upon again by allowing two runs in one inning in San Diego July 31st and was then burned for five runs in one inning against the Dodgers August 4th.  That pushed his ERA up to an unsightly 16.20.

Milwaukee designated Swindle for assignment August 7th and was quickly claimed on waivers by Tampa Bay.  However, the Rays let him go and he was picked up by Cleveland on August 12th.  He made six appearances with the Indians Triple-A affiliate in Columbus and went 1-0 with a 4.05 ERA but he did not make an appearance in Cleveland.  The Indians let him go after the season but the Rays entered the picture again by signing him to a minor league deal with a spring training invite in November.

If you look up "crafty lefty" in the baseball dictionary, chances are you will find a picture of Swindle.  He throws everything but the kitchen sink by throwing a 55 mile per hour curveball along with an 82 MPH fastball.  In between, he also throws a cutter, a slider and a changeup with a variety of arm angles.  Beyond the Box Score has more information on his repertoire here.

Swindle hopes the third time is the charm as he is back in the American League East with his third organization.  He will be looking to land a role in the Rays bullpen in 2010.