Gilbert Allen Meche (/ɡɪl mɛʃ/; born September 8, 1978) is an American former right-handed Major League Baseball starting pitcher.

[1] Meche, who is Cajun,[2] was a star pitcher at Acadiana High School in his hometown of Lafayette, Louisiana, and was a member of the U.S.

However, shortly afterwards, he suffered a viral infection that caused him to miss a considerable amount of playing time his senior year.

[4] He intended to attend Louisiana State University, but reconsidered when the Seattle Mariners surprised him by selecting him in the first round (22nd overall) of the 1996 Major League Baseball draft.

[11][12] After coming back to go 4–0 with a 2.64 ERA through his July 4 start against Anaheim,[10] Meche was lifted in the sixth inning having thrown 113 pitches.

[9] In February 2001, Meche underwent arthroscopic surgery to partially repair a frayed rotator cuff, and at the time he was expected to only be on the disabled list for six months.

[17] Meche returned to pitching in 2002 for the Double-A San Antonio Missions of the Texas League, and went 4–6 with a 6.51 ERA in 25 games (13 starts).

[9] He went on to earn the Sporting News' American League Comeback Player of the Year Award at the end of the season.

[27][28] His record stood at 5–6 with a 3.28 ERA when he was named the Royals' sole representative at the 2007 Major League Baseball All-Star Game in San Francisco.

[29][30] Meche finished the season with a 9–13 record, while posting career bests in ERA (3.67), innings pitched (216) and a league-leading 34 starts.

[1] The rock group Band of Horses, which was founded in Seattle in 2004, wrote and dedicated their song "Wicked Gil" to Meche.