Brendan Kevin Donnelly (born July 4, 1971) is a former

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...

relief pitcher In baseball and softball, a relief pitcher or reliever is a pitcher who enters the game after the starting pitcher is removed because of fatigue, ineffectiveness, injury, or ejection, or for other strategic reasons, such as inclement weat ...

. 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 The American League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the American League (AL), is one of two leagues that make up Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada. It developed from the Western League, a minor league ...

and the

National League The National League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the National League (NL), is the older of two leagues constituting Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada, and the world's oldest extant professional team ...

. He won the

World Series The World Series is the annual championship series of Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada, contested since 1903 between the champion teams of the American League (AL) and the National League (NL). The winner of the World ...

in 2002 with the

Anaheim Angels The Los Angeles Angels are an American professional baseball team based in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. The Angels compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West division. Since 1966, the team h ...

and was on the roster for the

Boston Red Sox The Boston Red Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Boston. The Red Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. Founded in as one of the American League's eight ...

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

Minor leagues

Donnelly was drafted by the

Chicago White Sox The Chicago White Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The White Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. The team is owned by Jerry Reinsdorf, and p ...

in the 27th round of the 1992 Major League Baseball Draft. 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 The Cincinnati Reds are an American professional baseball team based in Cincinnati. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) National League Central, Central division and were a charter member of ...

and participated in

Spring Training Spring training is the preseason in Major League Baseball (MLB), a series of practices and exhibition games preceding the start of the regular season. Spring training allows new players to try out for Schedule (workplace), roster and position spo ...

as a

replacement player In professional sports, a replacement player is an athlete who is not a member of the league's players association and plays during a labor dispute such as a strike or lockout, serving as a strikebreaker. Instances of replacement players Nati ...

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 The Major League Baseball Players Association (or MLBPA) is the union representing all current Major League Baseball players. All players, managers, coaches, and athletic trainers who hold or have held a signed contract with a Major League cl ...

. Donnelly remained in the Reds organization until he was released in April 1999. He started the 1999 season with the independent

Nashua Pride The Nashua Pride was a professional baseball team based in Nashua, New Hampshire, in the United States, not affiliated with Major League Baseball. They played home games at Holman Stadium from 1998 through 2008, when they were sold and renamed ...

. In May 1999, he was purchased by the

Tampa Bay Devil Rays The Tampa Bay Rays are an American professional baseball team based in St. Petersburg, Florida. The Rays compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. Since its inception, the team's home ve ...

. He was released on August 12, 1999. On August 18, 1999, he was signed by 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 ...

. He was released on August 25, 1999. On August 26, 1999, he was signed by the

Toronto Blue Jays The Toronto Blue Jays are a Canadian professional baseball team based in Toronto. The Blue Jays compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. Since 1989, the team has played its home games ...

. 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

In January 2001, he signed with the

, where he made his major league debut in 2002 at 30 years of age. He was an immediate fan favorite because of his intensity, the

goggles Goggles, or safety glasses, are forms of protective eyewear that usually enclose or protect the area surrounding the eye in order to prevent particulates, water or chemicals from striking the eyes. They are used in chemistry laboratories and ...

that he wears, and his effectiveness as the main

setup man In baseball, a setup man (or set-up man, also sometimes referred to as a setup pitcher or setup reliever) is a relief pitcher who regularly pitches before the closer. They commonly pitch the eighth inning, with the closer pitching the ninth. A ...

Troy Percival Troy Eugene Percival (born August 9, 1969) is an American baseball coach and former professional baseball pitcher. He gained fame as a closer. During a 14-year baseball career spanning from 1995 to 2009, he pitched for four Major League Baseball ...

. 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

. Donnelly was the third

to win the World Series, behind both

Shane Spencer Michael Shane Spencer (born February 20, 1972) is a former Major League Baseball outfielder. In Major League Baseball, he played a total of 538 games for the New York Yankees, Texas Rangers, Cleveland Indians, and New York Mets, compiling 438 hi ...

of the 1998, 1999 and 2000 New York Yankees and

Damian Miller Damian Donald Miller (born October 13, 1969) is a former professional baseball catcher. He won the 2001 World Series with the Arizona Diamondbacks, beating the New York Yankees. High school years Miller attended West Salem High School in West S ...

of the

2001 Arizona Diamondbacks The 2001 Arizona Diamondbacks, in their fourth year of existence, looked to improve on their 2000 season. They had to contend in what was a strong National League West Division. Arizona had the best one-two pitching combination in the majors: C ...

. 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 In baseball statistics, earned run average (ERA) is the average of earned runs allowed by a pitcher per nine innings pitched (i.e. the traditional length of a game). It is determined by dividing the number of earned runs allowed by the number ...

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. He suffered a broken nose during

spring training Spring training is the preseason in Major League Baseball (MLB), a series of practices and exhibition games preceding the start of the regular season. Spring training allows new players to try out for Schedule (workplace), roster and position spo ...

2004, causing him to miss a large portion of the season. Donnelly remained fairly effective throughout 2004 in a very good

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 ...

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 The fastball is the most common type of pitch thrown by pitchers in baseball and softball. " Power pitchers," such as former American major leaguers Nolan Ryan and Roger Clemens, rely on speed to prevent the ball from being hit, and have thr ...

as a set-up man for closer Francisco Rodríguez after Percival's departure. In June 2005, Donnelly was suspended ten days for having pine tar on his glove., an incident that caused a scrum and accusations that former teammate Jose Guillen tipped manager

Frank Robinson Frank Robinson (August 31, 1935 – February 7, 2019) was an American professional baseball outfielder and manager in Major League Baseball (MLB) who played for five teams, from to . The only player to be named Most Valuable Player (MVP) of both ...

The suspension was the culmination of three weeks of extra scrutiny on Donnelly from opposing managers and umpires, including an accusation from then-

manager

Ozzie Guillén Oswaldo José Guillén Barrios (; born January 20, 1964) is a former professional baseball player and manager. He played in Major League Baseball as a shortstop for 16 seasons, primarily with the Chicago White Sox, from 1985 to 2000. During tha ...

accusing Donnelly of touching his mouth too often. He would later advocate for the legalization of pine tars for pitchers. In 2006, Donnelly continued to drop down the depth chart in the bullpen becoming an inconsistent

middle reliever In baseball, a middle reliever or middle relief pitcher, is a relief pitcher who typically pitches during the fifth, sixth, and seventh innings of a standard baseball game. In leagues with no designated hitter, such as in the National League pri ...

Boston Red Sox

On December 15, 2006, Donnelly was traded to the

for Phil Seibel. 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

On February 6, 2008, the

Cleveland Indians The Cleveland Guardians are an American professional baseball team based in Cleveland. The Guardians compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. Since , they have played at Progressive F ...

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. Donnelly was brought up to the Indians in August 2008, as a replacement for Tom Mastny.

2009

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 The Houston Astros are an American professional baseball team based in Houston, Texas. The Astros compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West division, having moved to the division in 2013 after ...

. He was released on July 1, 2009. On July 5, 2009, Donnelly signed with the

Florida Marlins The Miami Marlins are an American professional baseball team based in Miami. The Marlins compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) East division. The club's home ballpark is LoanDepot Park. The fran ...

. He became a free agent after the 2009 season.

Pittsburgh Pirates

On January 16, 2010, Donnelly agreed with the

on a one-year deal worth $1.5 million. 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. 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 His likeness, name, and uniform number were still replaced by fictional players in video games.

Retirement

He announced his retirement on March 9, 2011.

Mitchell Report

Donnelly was named in the December 13, 2007

Mitchell Report The ''Report to the Commissioner of Baseball of an Independent Investigation into the Illegal Use of Steroids and Other Performance Enhancing Substances by Players in Major League Baseball'', informally known as the Mitchell Report, is the res ...

regarding the use of performance-enhancing drugs in baseball. According to former clubhouse attendant and admitted steroids distributor

Kirk Radomski Kirk J. Radomski (born 1969) is a former batboy and clubhouse employee, colloquially known by players as Murdock, for the New York Mets of Major League Baseball from 1985 to 1995. On April 27, 2007, he pleaded guilty in United States district cour ...

, Donnelly sought him out in 2004 looking to purchase

oxandrolone Oxandrolone, sold under the brand names Oxandrin and Anavar, among others, is an androgen and anabolic steroid (AAS) medication which is used to help promote weight gain in various situations, to help offset protein catabolism caused by long-ter ...

, an

anabolic steroid Anabolic steroids, also known more properly as anabolic–androgenic steroids (AAS), are steroidal androgens that include natural androgens like testosterone (medication), testosterone as well as synthetic androgens that are structurally related ...

. Radomski says he made one sale of

nandrolone Nandrolone, also known as 19-nortestosterone, is an androgen and anabolic steroid (AAS) which is used in the form of esters such as nandrolone decanoate (brand name Deca-Durabolin) and nandrolone phenylpropionate (brand name Durabolin). Nandrolon ...

to Donnelly, for which he received $250–$300. 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.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Donnelly, Brendan 1971 births Living people Major League Baseball pitchers American League All-Stars Baseball players from Washington, D.C. Major League Baseball replacement players Anaheim Angels players Los Angeles Angels players Boston Red Sox players Cleveland Indians players Colorado Mesa Mavericks baseball players Florida Marlins players Pittsburgh Pirates players Gulf Coast White Sox players Geneva Cubs players Ohio Valley Redcoats players Winston-Salem Warthogs players Indianapolis Indians players Charleston AlleyCats players Chattanooga Lookouts players Nashua Pride players Durham Bulls players Syracuse SkyChiefs players Altoona Curve players Iowa Cubs players Arkansas Travelers players Salt Lake Stingers players Rancho Cucamonga Quakes players Buffalo Bisons (minor league) players Kinston Indians players Gulf Coast Indians players Round Rock Express players Jupiter Hammerheads players