Topic: Eric Patterson

Eric Scott Patterson (born April 8, 1983, in Tallahassee, Florida) is an outfielder in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the San Diego Padres. He has also played second base in the majors, which he predominantly played in the minor leagues. Patterson made his major league debut with the Chicago Cubs on August 6, 2007.

Although Patterson originally was drafted by the Colorado Rockies in the 23rd round of the 2001 Major League Baseball Draft out of Harrison High School in Kennesaw, Georgia, he did not sign and went on instead to attend the Georgia Institute of Technology. With the Yellow Jackets, Patterson was named an Atlantic Coast Conference All-Star three times (2002-2004) and an All-American twice (in 2002 on the Freshman 1st Team, and in 2004 on the 3rd team). He was named to the USA Baseball team twice, in 2002 and 2003. Patterson was selected in the 8th round of the 2004 Major League Baseball Draft by the Chicago Cubs.

Patterson played in the 2006 All-Star Futures Game in Pittsburgh, and was ranked the sixth-best prospect in the Cubs organization by Baseball America prior to the 2007 season. He collected his first major league hit on August 7, by singling against Woody Williams in a game against the Houston Astros. On June 22, 2008, Patterson hit the first home run of his career.