Raymond Keith King is listed at 6'1'', 230 lb's on both thebaseballcube.com and baseball-reference.com's respective stat pages, but according to Ray King himself in an ESPN the Magazine, MLB Insider article that Mr. King relates to writer and "ESPN.com Insider" Jerry Crasnick in a column entitled, "Biggest Loser":
"When I came home after the season, I was 269 pounds.
Now I'm 244. If I can go to camp in the 238 to 242 range,
I'll be satisfied."
With the Washington Nationals close to signing King for a second go-round in DC in early December '07, mlb.com's Bill Ladson reported, in an article entitled, "Nationals close to signing King", that:
"...King vows to be in the best shape of his life for 2008.
He has lost some weight by running daily and playing
basketball. His goal is to lose 25 pounds and gain more
flexibility."
King pitched for the Nationals from April through August of '07 before Washington traded the nine-year MLB veteran to the Milwaukee Brewers for Minor League IF/OF Andrew Lefave. In five months in DC, King was (1-1) with a 4.54 ERA in 33.2 innings over which King struck out 18, walked 18 and gave up 5 HR's. In 12 games with the Brewers, King gave up 4 runs in 6 innings for a 6.00 ERA.
In Mr. Crasnick and Mr. King's ESPN the Magazine article, King admits that as a free agent this winter he, "...started hearing that teams are concerned my weight could be a problem," but according to King, "I've been in 581 games, and I haven't broken down."
In those 581 games, King is (20-23) with a 3.43 career ERA, and 277 K's in 404.2 innings for the Cubs, Brewers, Braves, Cardinals, Rockies, and Nationals. In two playoff appearances, with the Braves in '03, and Cardinals in '04, both losing efforts, King has posted a 2.35 ERA in 14 games and 7.2 IP.
As one of only two left-handed relievers currently receiving serious consideration for the Nationals' '08 bullpen, King figures to play an important role, along with fellow southpaw Mike Bacsik, in late game matchups and as a bridge between Washington's young starting staff and their talented bullpen.
King's training regimen, according to Mr. Crasnick's ESPN the Magazine column, consists mainly of playing sports with his kids and building and landscaping houses, while avoiding soda, In-N-Out Burgers, and other tempting road side destinations. According to King, who takes this all in good humor:
"I'm never gonna be that superslim guy. But I hope I can
lose my nickname. Burger King."
*Ray King Links*
Ray King's career stats at thebaseballcube.com:
http://thebaseballcube.com/players/K/Ray-King.shtml
Ray King's career stats at baseball-reference.com:
http://www.baseball-reference.com/k/kingra01.shtml
espn.com and espn the magazine's Jerry Crasnick's column, "The Biggest Loser":
http://proxy.espn.go.com/espnmag/story?name=20080128/MLB/RayKing
mlb.com's Bill Ladson's article, "Nationals close to signing King", at washington.nationals.mlb.com: