Joshua Patrick Beckett (born May 15, 1980) is an American former professional baseball pitcher in Major League Baseball (MLB). A three-time MLB All-Star, he played for the Florida Marlins, the Boston Red Sox, and the Los Angeles Dodgers.
After a stellar high school career in which he was regarded as one of the top baseball prospects in the U.S., Beckett was drafted by the Marlins with the second overall pick in the 1999 MLB draft. He won the 2003 World Series with the Marlins and the 2007 World Series with the Red Sox, receiving the 2003 World Series MVP award and the 2007 American League Championship Series MVP award. Beckett was traded from the Marlins to the Red Sox in 2006 and from the Red Sox to the Dodgers in 2012, both as part of multi-player transactions.
Beckett recovered from a serious injury that caused him to miss most of the 2013 season. He pitched a no-hitter for the Dodgers against the Philadelphia Phillies on May 25, 2014, becoming the 19th man in Dodgers history to pitch a no-hitter. However, his season was again cut short due to an injury, and he announced his retirement on October 7, 2014.
Beckett grew up idolizing fellow Texans Nolan Ryan and Roger Clemens. As a youth, he starred on Little League All-Star teams. He later attended Spring High School in Spring, Texas. He had trouble with grades and with paying attention to his coach during his freshman year, so his coach in frustration threw Beckett off the team. He experienced a growth spurt before his sophomore year and added speed to his fastball. He also raised his GPA and was able to get back on the team, where he had a 9–3 record with a 1.18 earned run average (ERA) as a sophomore, tossing three no-hitters.
As a high school junior, Beckett was ranked by Baseball America as the top high school prospect in the nation, and his team as the top high school baseball team. He compiled a 13–2 record and struck out 2.1 batters per inning while walking only 20 batters all season. His high school coach said "I’ve never seen a pitcher with his ability—ever.
