American baseball player (born 1971)
Baseball player
Brendan Kevin Donnelly
(born July 4, 1971) is an American former
Major League Baseball
relief pitcher
. A right-hander, Donnelly pitched for twenty-one teams (two of them independents), twelve organizations, two independent leagues, eleven organized minor leagues, and both the
American League
and the
National League
.
He won the
World Series
in 2002 with the
Anaheim Angels
and was on the roster for the
Boston Red Sox
during their
2007 World Series
victory. Donnelly was also the winning pitcher of the
2003 All-Star Game
.
After ten seasons in minor league baseball and eight seasons in Major League Baseball, he retired in 2011.
Career
[
edit
]
Minor leagues
[
edit
]
Donnelly was drafted by the
Chicago White Sox
in the 27th round of the
1992 Major League Baseball Draft
.
[1]
The White Sox released him in April 1993. In June 1993, he signed with the
Chicago Cubs
organization; the Cubs released him before the start of the 1994 season. In 1994, he played for the independent
Ohio Valley Redcoats
.
In March 1995, he signed with the
Cincinnati Reds
and participated in
Spring Training
as a
replacement player
during the
1994 Major League Baseball strike
. As a result of his participation as a replacement player, Donnelly is permanently barred from joining the
Major League Baseball Players Association
.
[2]
Donnelly remained in the Reds organization until he was released in April 1999.
He started the 1999 season with the independent
Nashua Pride
. In May 1999, he was purchased by the
Tampa Bay Devil Rays
. He was released on August 12, 1999. On August 18, 1999, he was signed by the
Pittsburgh Pirates
. He was released on August 25, 1999. On August 26, 1999, he was signed by the
Toronto Blue Jays
. He was released in July 2000. In August 2000, he signed with the
Chicago Cubs
. He became a free agent after the 2000 season.
Anaheim Angels
[
edit
]
In January 2001, he signed with the
Anaheim Angels
, where he made his major league debut in 2002 at 30 years of age.
[3]
He was an immediate fan favorite because of his intensity, the
goggles
that he wears, and his effectiveness as the main
setup man
to
Troy Percival
.
[4]
Donnelly would go on to play an integral part of the Angels' bullpen in their
2002 championship season
, serving as the winning pitcher in Game 6 of the
World Series
.
Donnelly was the third
replacement player
to win the World Series, behind both
Shane Spencer
of the
1998
,
1999
and
2000 New York Yankees
and
Damian Miller
of the
2001 Arizona Diamondbacks
. His name does not appear on any official commemorative merchandise from the Angels 2002 World Series win, due to him being barred from the MLBPA.
In 2003, in that same role, Donnelly put up a 1.58
earned run average
and became a rare example of a non-
closer
who was selected as an
All-Star
. Donnelly went on to be the winning pitcher in that mid-summer classic.
[5]
He suffered a broken nose during
spring training
2004, causing him to miss a large portion of the season. Donnelly remained fairly effective throughout 2004 in a very good
bullpen
for the American League West Champion Anaheim Angels. In 2005, Donnelly began to see a decline in performance, including a decrease in velocity on his
fastball
as a set-up man for
closer
Francisco Rodriguez
after Percival's departure. In June 2005, Donnelly was suspended ten days for having
pine tar
on his glove.,
[6]
an incident that caused a scrum and accusations that former teammate
Jose Guillen
tipped manager
Frank Robinson
[7]
The suspension was the culmination of three weeks of extra scrutiny on Donnelly from opposing managers and umpires, including an accusation from then-
Chicago White Sox
manager
Ozzie Guillen
accusing Donnelly of touching his mouth too often.
[6]
He would later advocate for the legalization of pine tars for pitchers.
[3]
In 2006, Donnelly continued to drop down the depth chart in the bullpen becoming an inconsistent
middle reliever
.
[
citation needed
]
Boston Red Sox
[
edit
]
On December 15, 2006, Donnelly was traded to the
Boston Red Sox
for
Phil Seibel
.
[8]
On July 31, 2007, it was announced that Donnelly would need
Tommy John surgery
. During his absence, the Red Sox would eventually go on to win the 2007 World Series. Donnelly became a free agent after the 2007 season.
Cleveland Indians
[
edit
]
On February 6, 2008, the
Cleveland Indians
signed Donnelly to a minor league contract with an invitation to spring training. The Indians hoped Donnelly would provide bullpen help at the end of the season when he recovered from Tommy John surgery.
[9]
Donnelly was brought up to the Indians in August 2008, as a replacement for
Tom Mastny
.
[10]
2009
[
edit
]
In February 2009, he was signed by the
Texas Rangers
. He was released in March 2009. In April 2009, he signed with the
Houston Astros
. He was released on July 1, 2009. On July 5, 2009, Donnelly signed with the
Florida Marlins
. He became a free agent after the 2009 season.
Pittsburgh Pirates
[
edit
]
On January 16, 2010, Donnelly agreed with the
Pittsburgh Pirates
on a one-year deal worth $1.5 million.
[11]
Before he could reach incentives that would have approximately doubled his salary, the Pirates released Donnelly in July 2010 denying that the incentives were the reason for the release.
[12]
He was the last of the replacement players still in the major leagues, signifying no conciliatory admittance into the MLBPA more than 15 years after
[13]
His likeness, name, and uniform number were still replaced by fictional players in video games.
[14]
Retirement
[
edit
]
He announced his retirement on March 9, 2011.
[15]
Mitchell Report
[
edit
]
Donnelly was named in the December 13, 2007
Mitchell Report
regarding the use of performance-enhancing drugs in baseball. According to former clubhouse attendant and admitted steroids distributor
Kirk Radomski
, Donnelly sought him out in 2004 looking to purchase
oxandrolone
, an
anabolic steroid
. Radomski says he made one sale of
nandrolone
to Donnelly, for which he received $250?$300.
[16]
In a statement in response to the report, Donnelly admitted contacting Radomski in 2004 regarding oxandrolone, hoping it would help him recover from injuries faster. Donnelly denied ever buying or using the drug because he was made aware that it was considered a steroid.
[17]
[18]
See also
[
edit
]
References
[
edit
]
- ^
"Brendan Donnelly Statistics and History"
. Baseball-Reference.com
. Retrieved
April 8,
2010
.
- ^
"Replacement Players in the Major Leagues"
. Baseball Almanac
. Retrieved
April 8,
2010
.
- ^
a
b
Brisbee, Grant (June 21, 2012).
"Brendan Donnelly: Pine Tar Should Be Legal"
.
SBNation.com
.
- ^
Gleeman, Aaron (March 9, 2011).
"Brendan Donnelly retires after nine seasons in the majors"
.
- ^
"2003 All-Star Game Play-by-Play and Box Score"
. baseball-reference.com
. Retrieved
April 1,
2010
.
- ^
a
b
"Angels' Donnelly suspended 10 days for glove pine tar"
. ESPN. June 17, 2005.
- ^
Svrluga, Barry (June 15, 2005).
"Guillen, Nats Get In the Last Word"
.
The Washington Post
.
- ^
"Red Sox acquire Donnelly from Angels"
.
ESPN
. December 15, 2006
. Retrieved
December 17,
2007
.
- ^
"Donnelly signs minor league deal with spring training invite"
.
ESPN
. February 6, 2008
. Retrieved
February 6,
2008
.
- ^
"Sports Network.com"
. Archived from
the original
on May 25, 2011.
- ^
http://www.allheadlinenews.com/articles/7017542958?Pirates%20Ink%20Reliever%20Donnelly%20To%20One-Year,%20$1.5M%20Pact
[
dead link
]
- ^
"Sports"
.
ABC News
. Archived from
the original
on February 21, 2011.
- ^
"Archives | The Philadelphia Inquirer"
.
inquirer.com
.
- ^
Good, Owen (January 30, 2010).
"The Replacements, Still Replaced in Video Games"
.
Kotaku
.
- ^
"
'Unique' reliever Donnelly calls it a career"
.
- ^
"Mitchell Report pp. 224?25"
(PDF)
.
- ^
Rob Bradford (December 15, 2007).
"Donnelly denies taking steroids"
.
Boston Herald
. Retrieved
December 17,
2007
.
- ^
"Donnelly is 'sick' over inclusion in Mitchell report"
. ESPN. December 16, 2007.
External links
[
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]