Donald Marek Snelten (born May 29, 1992) is an American professional baseball pitcher for the Chicago Dogs of the American Association of Professional Baseball. He has previously played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the San Francisco Giants.

Career

Amateur

Snelten attended Lakes Community High School in Lake Villa, Illinois. He was drafted by the San Diego Padres in the 30th round of the

2010 Major League Baseball Draft The 2010 Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft was held on June 7–9, 2010 at the MLB Network Studios in Secaucus, New Jersey. First-round selections The draft order was determined based on the 2009 MLB standings, with the worst team pic ...

, but did not sign and played college baseball at the University of Minnesota. In 2011, he briefly played

collegiate summer baseball Collegiate summer baseball leagues are amateur baseball leagues in the United States and Canada featuring players who have attended at least one year of college and have at least one year of athletic eligibility remaining. Generally, they operat ...

with the Cotuit Kettleers of the

Cape Cod Baseball League The Cape Cod Baseball League (CCBL or Cape League) is a collegiate summer baseball wooden bat league located on Cape Cod in the U.S. state of Massachusetts. One of the nation's premier collegiate summer leagues, the league boasts over one thousan ...

. After his junior season, he was drafted by the San Francisco Giants in the ninth round of the

2013 MLB Draft The 2013 Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft was held from June 6 through June 8, 2013. The first two rounds were broadcast from Studio 42 of the MLB Network in Secaucus, New Jersey. Each team received one selection per round, going in ...

San Francisco Giants

Snelten signed and spent 2013 with the AZL Giants, going 3–1 with a 1.57 ERA in 34.1 innings. He spent 2014 with the Salem-Keizer Volcanoes and Augusta Greenjackets, posting a combined 4–1 record and 2.56 ERA in 29 relief appearances, and 2015 with the San Jose Giants and Augusta, pitching to a combined 5–11 record and 3.44 ERA in 23 total starts between the two teams. In 2016, he pitched for San Jose, going 4–7 with a 4.11 ERA in 31 games (13 starts), and in 2017, he played for the Richmond Flying Squirrels and Sacramento River Cats where he went 8–1 with a 2.20 ERA and 1.09 WHIP in 51 appearances out of the bullpen. After the season, he played in the Arizona Fall League. The Giants added him to their 40-man roster after the 2017 season. Snelten began 2018 with Sacramento. On April 28, 2018, the Giants called up Snelten ahead of a double-header and he made his major league debut in the second game. He was optioned back to Sacramento on May 8 and designated for assignment on May 28.

Baltimore Orioles

Snelten was claimed off waivers by the Baltimore Orioles on June 4, 2018. He was released on March 25, 2019.

Chicago Dogs

On April 15, 2019, Snelten signed with the Chicago Dogs of the independent

American Association American Association may refer to: Baseball * American Association (1882–1891), a major league active from 1882 to 1891 * American Association (1902–1997), a minor league active from 1902 to 1962 and 1969 to 1997 * American Association of Profe ...

Tampa Bay Rays

On December 29, 2019, Snelten signed with the Tampa Bay Rays, getting exposure after throwing 99 mph in viral videos seen on

Rob Friedman Rob Friedman (born 1950) is an American media executive. He was the Co-Chairman of Lionsgate Motion Picture Group, overseeing all aspects of Lionsgate’s domestic and international feature film acquisition, production and distribution as well ...

's FlatGround Twitter account. Snelten did not play in a game in 2020 due to the cancellation of the minor league season because of the COVID-19 pandemic. He became a free agent on November 2, 2020.

Chicago Cubs

On November 19, 2020, Snelten signed a minor league contract with the

Chicago Cubs The Chicago Cubs are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The Cubs compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as part of the National League (NL) Central division. The club plays its home games at Wrigley Field, which is located ...

organization.

New York Yankees

On August 5, 2022, Snelten signed a minor league deal with the New York Yankees. He did not appear in a game for the Yankees organization in 2022. In 2023, Snelten played in 30 games for the Triple–A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders, struggling to a 7.50 ERA with 48 strikeouts and 2 saves in 36.0 innings of work. On July 24, 2023, Snelten was released by New York.

Chicago Dogs (second stint)

On July 31, 2023, Snelten signed with the Chicago Dogs of the American Association of Professional Baseball.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Snelten, D. J. 1992 births Living people Baseball players from Illinois Major League Baseball pitchers San Francisco Giants players Minnesota Golden Gophers baseball players Cotuit Kettleers players Arizona League Giants players Salem-Keizer Volcanoes players Augusta GreenJackets players San Jose Giants players Richmond Flying Squirrels players Sacramento River Cats players Scottsdale Scorpions players Chicago Dogs players Rochester Honkers players Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders players