Wade Daniel Townsend (born February 22, 1983) is an American former professional baseball pitcher, twice selected as a first-round Major League Draft pick out of Rice University.
As a sophomore in 2003, he struggled with his control in his first appearance but came into his own as a weekday starter, pitching Rice's non-conference games against rival Houston and Big 12 opponents.
The consensus all-American also recorded five saves as a reliever, mostly in Western Athletic Conference games, and led the WAC with a school-record 164 strikeouts (broken by Eddie Degerman in 2006).
Major League Baseball, however, ruled that Townsend's return to school terminated the Orioles' right to negotiate a contract.
Townsend began playing poker professionally while at Rice University in the fall of 2004, after turning down a $2.2 million signing bonus from the Baltimore Orioles in order to finish his degree.