Brandon Michael Knight (born October 1, 1975) is an American professional baseball pitcher and

coach Coach may refer to: Guidance/instruction * Coach (sport), a director of athletes' training and activities * Coaching, the practice of guiding an individual through a process ** Acting coach, a teacher who trains performers Transportation * Co ...

. Knight played Major League Baseball for the New York Yankees and the New York Mets, Nippon Professional Baseball for the Fukuoka Daiei Hawks and the

Hokkaido Nippon Ham Fighters The are a Japanese professional baseball team based in Kitahiroshima, Hokkaidō. They compete in the Pacific League of Nippon Professional Baseball, playing the majority of their home games at ES CON Field Hokkaido. The Fighters also host a s ...

, and in the KBO League for the

Nexen Heroes The Kiwoom Heroes () are a South Korean professional baseball team based in Seoul. They are a member of the KBO League. The Heroes play their home games at Gocheok Sky Dome in Gocheok-dong, a neighborhood located in the southwestern part of Seou ...

. He is the current pitching coach for the Kiwoom Heroes of the KBO.

Professional

American baseball

Knight, who was selected by the Texas Rangers in the amateur draft, was traded by the Rangers to the New York Yankees on December 13, 1999, with pitcher

Sam Marsonek Samuel R. Marsonek (born July 10, 1978) is a former Major League Baseball pitcher. Professional career Sam Marsonek was a 6'6" right handed pitcher out of Tampa, Florida. Sam was a graduate from Jesuit High School (FL) and was drafted as the 2 ...

for outfielder Chad Curtis, and appeared in 11 major league games for the New York Yankees in and .

Nippon Professional Baseball

From –, Knight played for Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) in Japan. He spent two years in

Fukuoka, Japan is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located on the island of Kyūshū. Fukuoka Prefecture has a population of 5,109,323 (1 June 2019) and has a geographic area of 4,986 Square kilometre, km2 (1,925 sq mi). Fukuoka Prefecture borders S ...

playing for the Fukuoka Daiei Hawks and one year in Sapporo, Japan playing for the Nippon Ham Fighters.

Return to American baseball

Upon returning to the United States, Knight signed and played in the

Pittsburgh Pirates The Pittsburgh Pirates are an American professional baseball team based in Pittsburgh. The Pirates compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) Central division. Founded as part of the American Associati ...

organization for the season. In , Knight signed with the Somerset Patriots of the Atlantic League.

Brett Jodie Brett P. Jodie (born March 25, 1977) is a former Major League Baseball (MLB) pitcher. He played in with the New York Yankees and San Diego Padres. He batted and threw right-handed. He is the current manager for the Lincoln Saltdogs of the America ...

, the former Yankee pitcher, now the Patriots pitching coach noticed that Knight's release point was too high. After Knight modified his release point, his command and velocity improved. The Mets decided to purchase his contract and signed him to their Triple-A team (

New Orleans Zephyrs New is an adjective referring to something recently made, discovered, or created. New or NEW may refer to: Music * New, singer of K-pop group The Boyz Albums and EPs * ''New'' (album), by Paul McCartney, 2013 * ''New'' (EP), by Regurgitator, ...

) in New Orleans, Louisiana. While pitching for the New Orleans Zephyrs, Knight was selected to play for the

U.S. Olympic team United States of America (USA) has sent athletes to every celebration of the modern era Olympic Games, except for the 1980 Summer Olympics, during which it led a boycott to protest the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan. American athletes have w ...

at the

2008 Summer Olympics The 2008 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXIX Olympiad () and also known as Beijing 2008 (), were an international multisport event held from 8 to 24 August 2008, in Beijing, China. A total of 10,942 athletes from 204 Na ...

Beijing, China } Beijing ( ; ; ), alternatively romanized as Peking ( ), is the capital of the People's Republic of China. It is the center of power and development of the country. Beijing is the world's most populous national capital city, with over 21 ...

. Knight pitched in two baseball games at the Olympics, earning one win. He earned a bronze medal as part of the U.S. team. Knight made his first career major league

start Start can refer to multiple topics: *Takeoff, the phase of flight where an aircraft transitions from moving along the ground to flying through the air * Starting lineup in sports *Standing start, and rolling start, in an auto race Acronyms *St ...

in Shea Stadium for the New York Mets on July 26, , against the St. Louis Cardinals. He allowed four runs in the first inning, but settled down, and held the Cardinals scoreless through the next four innings. Though he left the game with the Mets leading 5-4, the

bullpen In baseball, the bullpen (or simply the pen) is the area where relief pitchers warm up before entering a game. A team's roster of relief pitchers is also metonymically referred to as "the bullpen". These pitchers usually wait in the bullpen if t ...

was unable to hold the lead and Knight was denied his first major league win. He was designated for assignment the following day, so that he could remain on the Olympic Roster. He was recalled to the Mets when rosters expanded in September, and he earned his first MLB win later in the year.

KBO League

On July 24, 2009, the New York Mets released Knight so that he could sign with the

Samsung Lions The Samsung Lions () are a South Korean professional baseball team founded in 1982. They are based in the southeastern city of Daegu and are members of the KBO League. Their home stadium is Daegu Samsung Lions Park. They have won the Korean Champ ...

in South Korea. On August 4, 2010, he was released from Samsung Lions due to an injury. Knight played with the

Baseball Club of Seoul, South Korea from 2011 to 2014. In 2012 he led the KBO in ERA with 2.20 and innings pitched with 208-2/3, and was second in wins with 16. His career record in Korea was 48 wins and 38 losses with an ERA of 3.84. Since his retirement in 2015, Knight has been coaching within the Heroes organization. He is the franchise's current pitching coach.Yoo Jee-ho
"(Yonhap Interview) Armed with strong bullpen, American pitching coach confident his KBO club will contend again,"
''Yonhap News Agency'' (April 24, 2020).

Personal life

Knight was born in Oxnard, California. He was raised in Ventura, California, and continues to reside there with his wife Brooke and children.

References

External links

Career statistics and player information
from

Korea Baseball Organization The Korea Baseball Organization (KBO; ko, 한국야구위원회) is the governing body for the professional leagues of baseball in South Korea. The KBO was founded in 1981 and has governed two leagues: the KBO League ( ko, KBO 리그) and KBO ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Knight, Brandon Major League Baseball pitchers American expatriate baseball players in Japan Fukuoka Daiei Hawks players Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters players Gulf Coast Rangers players Charleston RiverDogs players Hudson Valley Renegades players Tulsa Drillers players Oklahoma RedHawks players Columbus Clippers players Altoona Curve players Somerset Patriots players New Orleans Zephyrs players New York Yankees players New York Mets players Ventura Pirates baseball players KBO League pitchers American expatriate baseball players in South Korea Samsung Lions players Kiwoom Heroes players Baseball players at the 2008 Summer Olympics Olympic bronze medalists for the United States in baseball Buffalo Bisons (minor league) players Baseball players from Oxnard, California 1975 births Living people Medalists at the 2008 Summer Olympics Sportspeople from Ventura, California