San Diego Padres In 1992,
Baseball America ranked him as the top prospect in the San Diego Padres organization and the 36th in
Major League Baseball. The Padres sent Hamilton to their
Single-A affiliate, the
Charleston Rainbows, who were managed by future
Baltimore Orioles manager
Dave Trembley. With the Rainbows he went 2–2, with a 3.38
ERA in seven games and 34 innings pitched. During his time with the Quakes, he went 1–0 with a 4.09 ERA in 11 innings during two starts. but ended up winning the game 6–3 after
Phil Clark hit a three–run
home run. Overall, Hamilton went 9–6 with a 2.69 ERA in 108 innings pitched. Hamilton compiled a 12–7 record with a 4.25 ERA for the season and gave up 69 walks and struck out 124. Hamilton called the injury "real scary", saying that he feared he may lose the ability to throw . With the Padres in 1998, Hamilton's last season in San Diego, he had a 13–13 record, 4.27 ERA in 34 starts and 217 innings pitched. He
walked a career-high 106 batters and
struck out 147. During the
1998 World Series, the Padres scheduled Hamilton to pitch game four but was passed over for game one starter Kevin Brown and instead entered game three to relieve starter
Sterling Hitchcock. With San Diego, Hamilton went 55 and 44 with a 3.75 ERA in 934 innings pitched. Analysts believe that Toronto acquired Hamilton if
Roger Clemens's trade request was successful. Hamilton began the
1999 season with the
Syracuse SkyChiefs, the
Triple-A affiliate of the Blue Jays. He started three games, recording one loss, no wins, and a 5.11 ERA in 12 innings pitched. The Blue Jays called him up, and Hamilton made 18 starts in 22 games pitched. Pitching in 98 innings, he went 7–8 with a 6.52 ERA. For the second time in his career, Hamilton began the season in Syracuse and went 3–2 with a 3.66 ERA in six games and 39 innings pitched. Hamilton had a shortened 2000 season for Toronto in which he went 2–1 with a 3.55 ERA in six games. For the first time during his tenure with Toronto, Hamilton started the season with the Blue Jays. He went 5–8 with a 5.89 ERA in 22 games and 122 innings, before being released on August 3, 2001. Hamilton signed with the Cincinnati Reds on August 17,
2001, and was
optioned to their Triple-A team, the
Louisville Bats. He made one start in Louisville, posting a 1–0 record with a 5.40 ERA. The Reds called him up, and he made four starts and went 1–2 with a 6.23 ERA. In the game, Hamilton allowed two runs on seven hits in five innings of work. The Reds won the game over the
Chicago Cubs, 5–4. For the rest of the year, he spent time in Louisville and
Cincinnati and posted a combined 5–10 record, 3.92 ERA, and
started 20 games and pitched in
relief in 22 games. According to
ESPN's
Peter Gammons, Hamilton, "looked like the '97 Hamilton" when he was making his comeback to the majors after spending time in the minors. At the conclusion of the 2002 season, he was offered
arbitration by the Reds along with
José Rijo, which they both rejected in mid-December, meaning the Reds could not sign them until May 1, 2003.
Final years Hamilton was signed by the
St. Louis Cardinals on January 6,
2003, but was released on March 26, 2003, after struggling in
spring training. After posting a 12.66 ERA in three starts with the Reds, he was sent down to Louisville. He made 33 appearances for the Bats with an 8–3 record and a 3.23 ERA in 86 innings. On October 15, 2003, he became a free agent. He was signed by the New York Mets on March 10,
2005, to a minor league contract. ==References==