Background and career
Carl Anthony Pavano (born January 8, 1976) is an American former professional baseball player. A right-handed pitcher, Pavano played in Major League Baseball (MLB) from 1998 to 2012 for the Montreal Expos, Florida Marlins, New York Yankees, Cleveland Indians, and Minnesota Twins. He was a member of the 2003 World Series champion Marlins and appeared in the 2004 All-Star Game. He signed with the Yankees in 2005, with whom he became known for frequent injuries during his four years with the team.
Born in New Britain, Connecticut, Pavano graduated from Southington High School in Southington, Connecticut, the alma mater of former major league pitcher Rob Dibble. Pavano's retired jersey (number 14) still hangs (unretired as of 2011). At Southington, Pavano led the baseball team to a state championship in 1994. Pavano initially committed to play college baseball at Louisiana State.
Pavano was selected by the Boston Red Sox in the 13th round (355th overall) of the 1994 amateur draft. In 1996, with the A level Michigan Battle Cats, he was 6–6 with a 3.44 ERA in 22 starts. This earned him a number of honors including Baseball America first team Minor League All-Star, Double-A All-Star, Eastern League All-Star & Pitcher of the Year and Red Sox minor league player of the year. In 1997, with the AA Trenton Thunder, he was 16–5 with a 2.63 ERA in 26 starts and was selected as a Triple-A All-Star.
In November 1997, the Red Sox sent Pavano to Montreal, along with pitcher Tony Armas Jr., in a trade that brought Pedro Martínez to Boston. Pavano made his Major League debut on May 23, 1998 by starting and pitching seven strong innings against the Philadelphia Phillies. He allowed one run and struck out six while allowing no walks. He recorded his first win on June 2, 1998 when he pitched 7.1 innings, also against the Phillies. Pavano is well known for giving up Mark McGwire's 70th home run in the 1998 season. He pitched four and one-half seasons for the Expos, making 78 starts and had a record of 24–35 and an ERA of 4.83.
The Expos traded Pavano to the Florida Marlins in the middle of the 2002 season (with Graeme Lloyd, Mike Mordecai and Justin Wayne) for Cliff Floyd, Wilton Guerrero, and Claudio Vargas. Despite being plagued by injuries, Pavano became an important part of Florida's starting rotation and had a highly successful postseason in 2003 for the World Series champion Marlins. He started Game 4 of the Series against the Yankees, holding New York to one run over eight innings in a game the Marlins would go on to win, 4–3, in extra innings. Pavano followed up his playoff exploits with his best season to date in 2004, posting an 18–8 record and a 3.00 ERA.
Pavano became a free agent following the season and, despite receiving bigger offers from Boston, Detroit, and Cincinnati, chose to accept a four-year contract worth $39.95 million with the New York Yankees on December 20, 2004.
Sources
Net-worth figure: Celebrity Net Worth (October 2026), in USD. Biography and career facts: the person's Wikipedia article and linked reporting. Snapshot date for all StarWorth figures: 28 October 2026.
