Brad Pennington

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Brad Pennington

Tampa Bay Devil Rays — No. 57
Pitcher
Born: April 14, 1969 (1969-04-14) (age 54)
Salem, IN
Batted: Left Threw: Left 
Organizational debut
April 10, 1998 for the Durham Bulls
Last organizational appearance
September 22, 1998 for the Tampa Bay Devil Rays
Teams

Brad Lee Pennington (born April 14, 1969 in Salem, IN) was a pitcher for the Tampa Bay Devil Rays.

Amateur Career

Pennington played collegiate ball at Bellarmine College in Louisville, KY. He was selected by Baltimore in the 12th round of the 1989 Amateur Draft.[1]

Professional Career

Known for his imposing 6'6" frame and a fastball that could occasionally hit 100 MPH, Brad Pennington advanced quickly within the Orioles' organization, starting at Advanced-Rookie Bluefield in 1989, reaching Triple-A Rochester by 1992, and getting his first taste of the Majors by 1993.[1]

At Rochester during the 1994 season, Pennington was struck on the side of the head by a pitch hit back toward him on the mound by Pawtucket batter Luis Ortiz. Following that incident, he pitched another 12 innings, all no-hit, over 4 more appearances, but still walked 15 batters in that time.[2]

He was traded by Baltimore to Cincinnati in mid-1995, and from there spent time in the Boston, California and Kansas City systems, primarily at Triple-A with occasional appearances in the Majors.

With the Devil Rays

On January 8, 1998, Tampa Bay signed Pennington to a minor league contract with an invitation to their first Major League Spring Training camp.

Pitching coach Rick Williams believed Pennington's control problems were related to his size, which could be correctable with enough extra coaching[2], and manager Larry Rothschild expressed a desire for a least two left-handers in his bullpen, which gave Pennington a chance to make the Devil Rays' inaugural Opening Day roster. Pennington performed poorly in Spring Training, however, and was reassigned to Minor League camp on March 13.[3]

To start the regular season, Pennington was assigned to the Triple-A Durham Bulls of the International League, and even earned a save when the Bulls defeated the Devil Rays in a friendly exhibition game at Durham Bulls Atheletic Park.[4] He played out the entire minor league season with Durham, spending time both in the rotation and the bullpen and continuing to exhibit control issues (though they were better than in prior seasons).[5]

Following Durham's playoff appearance, Pennington received an unexpected late callup to the Devil Rays along with Dave Eiland on September 21.[6] He was called into action the following night, replacing struggling starter Julio Santana in the 3rd inning with one out and a runner on first. He walked the first three batters he faced and allowed a single to the fourth before being replaced by Mike Duvall.[7] Unfortunately, that appearance would be Pennington's lone outing for the Tampa Bay Devil Rays. Through the 2011 season, Pennington remains the only pitcher in franchise history to make at least one appearance in a Major League game for the (Devil) Rays and never record an out.

After the Devil Rays

Prior to the 1999 season, Pennington had been ready to play in Japan, but after that deal fell through he signed a minor league deal with Toronto on May 18 and was assigned to Triple-A Syracuse when injuries depleted the SkyChiefs' pitching staff.[8] He was released on August 27[9].

Pennington would later return to professional ball with the Allentown Ambassadors of the independent Northeast League in 2001.[10]

Personal

Pennington married Tara Hartman, who he met in Durham while pitching for the Frederick Keys in 1991. They have a daughter, Kyrie (born ca. 1996).[5]

References

  1. 1.0 1.1 "Brad Pennington Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference. http://www.baseball-reference.com/players/p/pennibr01.shtml. Retrieved January 10, 2012. 
  2. 2.0 2.1 Mills, Roger (February 21, 1998). "In control of his own destiny?". St. Petersburg Times: p. 1C. 
  3. Topkin, Marc (March 14, 1998). "Rotation candidate among roster cuts". St. Petersburg Times: p. 4C. 
  4. Potter, Mike (April 7, 1998). "Chalk up a `W' for Triple-A - Bulls debut with win over their parent club". The Herald-Sun (Durham, NC): p. D1. 
  5. 5.0 5.1 Potter, Mike (July 19, 1998). "Fewer walks from wild side of Pennington". The Herald-Sun (Durham, NC): p. D3. 
  6. "Eiland, Pennington promoted". The Herald-Sun (Durham, NC): p. D3. September 22, 1998. 
  7. "Retrosheet Boxscore: Boston Red Sox 11, Tampa Bay Devil Rays 2". retrosheet.org. Retrosheet. http://www.retrosheet.org/boxesetc/1998/B09220BOS1998.htm. Retrieved January 10, 2012. 
  8. Michael, Matt (May 20, 1999). "Pennington plans to hit the mark". The Post-Standard (Syracuse, NY): p. D6. 
  9. Michael, Matt (August 28, 1999). "Syracuse rearranges bullpen". The Post-Standard (Syracuse, NY): p. D6. 
  10. Fierro, Nick (June 8, 2001). "Ambassadors derailed in their comeback bid". The Express-Times (Easton, PA): p. D3. 

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