Andy Gruenebaum (; born December 30, 1982) is a retired American professional soccer

goalkeeper In many team sports which involve scoring goals, the goalkeeper (sometimes termed goaltender, netminder, GK, goalie or keeper) is a designated player charged with directly preventing the opposing team from scoring by blocking or intercepting o ...

. He was selected by the

Columbus Crew The Columbus Crew, formerly known as Columbus Crew SC, is an American professional soccer club based in Columbus, Ohio. The Crew competes in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference and began play in 1996 as one ...

with the third overall pick in the 2006 MLS Supplemental Draft. He made his MLS debut in 2006.

Career

Amateur

Gruenebaum, who is Jewish, is an

Overland Park Overland Park ( ) is the second-most populous city in the U.S. state of Kansas. Located in Johnson County, Kansas, it is one of four principal cities in the Kansas City metropolitan area and the most populous suburb of Kansas City, Missouri. ...

Kansas Kansas () is a state in the Midwestern United States. Its capital is Topeka, and its largest city is Wichita. Kansas is a landlocked state bordered by Nebraska to the north; Missouri to the east; Oklahoma to the south; and Colorado to th ...

, native. He was an All-American at

Blue Valley North High School Blue Valley North High School is a public high school located in Overland Park, Kansas, United States, serving students in grades 9–12. The school is one of the five high schools operated by Blue Valley USD 229 school district. The school col ...

. He attended the

University of Kentucky The University of Kentucky (UK, UKY, or U of K) is a public land-grant research university in Lexington, Kentucky. Founded in 1865 by John Bryan Bowman as the Agricultural and Mechanical College of Kentucky, the university is one of the state ...

, where he recorded 21 shutouts in 66 collegiate games. Gruenebaum earned All-Conference honors and picked up the nickname “The Hebrew Hammer.” Prior to his senior season, Gruenebaum starred for the

Des Moines Menace Des Moines Menace is an American soccer team based in Des Moines, Iowa, United States. Founded in 1994, the team plays in USL League Two, the fourth tier of the American Soccer Pyramid. The Menace have had sustained success in USL League Two dur ...

in the

USL Premier Development League USL League Two (USL2), formerly the Premier Development League (PDL), is a semi-professional developmental soccer league sponsored by United Soccer Leagues in the United States and Canada, forming part of the United States soccer league syst ...

and was named MVP of the 2005 PDL championship as the Menace won their only title.

Professional

Gruenebaum was selected by the

with the third overall pick in the 2006 MLS Supplemental Draft. He made his MLS debut in May 2006 when

Jon Busch Jon Busch (born August 18, 1976) is an American professional soccer coach and former player, who played as a goalkeeper. Busch is currently the goalkeeping coach for USL Championship club Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC. He is best remembered for ...

suffered a knee injury in a match against

D.C. United D.C. United is a professional soccer club based in Washington, D.C. that competes in the Eastern Conference of Major League Soccer, the top tier of American soccer. Domestically, the club has won four MLS Cups (league championships), four Supp ...

and started the final two matches of the season. He started ten matches in the 2007 season, earning his first two career shutouts in back-to-back matches in April. However, his playing time gradually decreased as Will Hesmer established himself as the starting goalkeeper. He made just one league start in 2008 as the Crew won the Supporters' Shield and

MLS Cup The MLS Cup is the annual championship game of Major League Soccer (MLS) and the culmination of the MLS Cup Playoffs. The game is held in November and pits the winner of the Eastern Conference Final against the winner of the Western Conferen ...

. Playing time remained sporadic due to the presence of Hesmer and Gruenebaum's own injuries, but he finally enjoyed a breakout season in 2012, starting 33 matches (including eight shutouts) as Hesmer missed time with injuries. He continued to start in 2013 despite missing time due to injuries. Following the 2013 season, Gruenenbaum was traded to his hometown club, Sporting Kansas City, in exchange for a 2nd-round pick in the

2016 MLS SuperDraft The 2016 MLS SuperDraft was the seventeenth SuperDraft conducted by Major League Soccer. The SuperDraft is held each year in conjunction with the annual National Soccer Coaches Association of America convention. The 2016 convention was held in B ...

. After one season in Kansas City, Gruenenbaum's 2015 contract option was declined and he entered the 2014 MLS Re-Entry Draft. He was selected in stage one of the draft by San Jose Earthquakes. However, Gruenenbaum instead opted to retire and take a role as a broadcaster with Sporting.

Career statistics

''Sources:''

Honors

Des Moines Menace

National Champions (1): 2005

Columbus Crew

* Major League Soccer MLS Cup (1):

2008 File:2008 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Lehman Brothers went bankrupt following the Subprime mortgage crisis; Cyclone Nargis killed more than 138,000 in Myanmar; A scene from the opening ceremony of the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing; ...

* Major League Soccer Supporter's Shield (2):

, 2009

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Gruenebaum, Andy 1982 births Living people American soccer players Jewish American sportspeople Jewish footballers Kentucky Wildcats men's soccer players Des Moines Menace players Columbus Crew players Sporting Kansas City players Association football goalkeepers Columbus Crew draft picks USL League Two players Major League Soccer players Soccer players from Kansas 21st-century American Jews