Clayton Hamilton (born June 15, 1982) is an American retired

professional baseball Professional baseball is organized baseball in which players are selected for their talents and are paid to play for a specific team or club system. It is played in baseball league, leagues and associated farm teams throughout the world. Mod ...

pitcher In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throws ("pitches") the baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of retiring a batter, who attempts to either make contact with the pitched ball or draw ...

. He played for the

Yokohama DeNA BayStars The are a professional baseball team in the Japan, Japanese Central League. Their home field is Yokohama Stadium, located in central Yokohama. The team has been known by several names since becoming a professional team in 1950. It adopted its c ...

Nippon Professional Baseball or NPB is the highest level of baseball in Japan. Locally, it is often called , meaning ''Professional Baseball''. Outside Japan, it is often just referred to as "Japanese baseball". The roots of the league can be traced back to the formation ...

in 2011 and 2012.

Biography

From

Penn State University The Pennsylvania State University (Penn State or PSU) is a public state-related land-grant research university with campuses and facilities throughout Pennsylvania. Founded in 1855 as the Farmers' High School of Pennsylvania, Penn State became ...

, he was selected by the

San Diego Padres The San Diego Padres are an American professional baseball team based in San Diego. The Padres compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Founded in 1969, the club has won two NL penna ...

in the 17th Round (492nd overall) of the 2004 amateur entry draft. He was signed by scout Josh Boyd. On December 8, 2005, he was sent by the

to 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 ...

as a player to be named later in a November 21, 2005 trade. On December 6, 2007, he was picked up in the Minor League phase of the Rule 5 Draft by the Texas Rangers. Hamilton split 2008 between the

Bakersfield Blaze The Bakersfield Blaze were a minor league baseball team in Bakersfield, California. They played in the Class A – Advanced California League. They played their home games at Sam Lynn Ballpark. Opened in 1941, the stadium is well known for facing ...

and

Frisco RoughRiders The Frisco RoughRiders (often shortened to 'Riders) are a Minor League Baseball team of the Texas League and the Double-A (baseball), Double-A affiliate of the Texas Rangers (baseball), Texas Rangers. They are located in Frisco, Texas, and are nam ...

. In 2009, he worked with Frisco and the

Oklahoma City RedHawks Oklahoma (; Choctaw: ; chr, ᎣᎧᎳᎰᎹ, ''Okalahoma'' ) is a state in the South Central region of the United States, bordered by Texas on the south and west, Kansas on the north, Missouri on the northeast, Arkansas on the east, New ...

. In 2005, Hamilton won the

Fort Wayne Wizards A fortification is a military construction or building designed for the defense of territories in warfare, and is also used to establish rule in a region during peacetime. The term is derived from Latin ''fortis'' ("strong") and ''facere'' ...

' "Pitcher/Prospect of the Year" award, and was selected for the Eastern Division's All-Star team.

Nippon Professional Baseball

In October 2010, Hamilton traveled to

Yokohama is the second-largest city in Japan by population and the most populous municipality of Japan. It is the capital city and the most populous city in Kanagawa Prefecture, with a 2020 population of 3.8 million. It lies on Tokyo Bay, south of To ...

, Japan to try out with the

Yokohama BayStars The are a professional baseball team in the Japan, Japanese Central League. Their home field is Yokohama Stadium, located in central Yokohama. The team has been known by several names since becoming a professional team in 1950. It adopted its c ...

of the

league. In November 2010, Hamilton signed a 1-year contract with the Baystars Following the

2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami The occurred at 14:46 JST (05:46 UTC) on 11 March. The magnitude 9.0–9.1 (M) undersea megathrust earthquake had an epicenter in the Pacific Ocean, east of the Oshika Peninsula of the Tōhoku region, and lasted approximately six minutes ...

, Hamilton was allowed to return to the United States while the NPB figured out the fate of the season. Clayton decided to return to Japan after discussions with his family.https://twitter.com/HamiltonClayton/status/49902676183494658

References

External links

Yokohama BayStars Players DirectoryClayton Hamilton TwitterBaseball Prospectus Interview Podcast
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hamilton, Clayton Living people 1982 births Arizona League Padres players Eugene Emeralds players Fort Wayne Wizards players Lake Elsinore Storm players Lynchburg Hillcats players Bakersfield Blaze players Frisco RoughRiders players People from Beaver Falls, Pennsylvania Sportspeople from Beaver County, Pennsylvania Yokohama BayStars players Yokohama DeNA BayStars players American expatriate baseball players in Japan Penn State Nittany Lions baseball players Baseball players from Pennsylvania

Biography

Nippon Professional Baseball

See also

References

External links