Franklyn Miguel Germán Madé (born January 20, 1980) is a Dominican former professional

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball sport played between two team sport, teams of nine players each, taking turns batting (baseball), batting and Fielding (baseball), fielding. The game occurs over the course of several Pitch ...

relief pitcher In baseball and softball, a relief pitcher or reliever is a pitcher who pitches in the game after the starting pitcher or another relief pitcher has been removed from the game due to fatigue (medical), fatigue, injury, ineffectiveness, ejection ...

. He played in

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball league composed of 30 teams, divided equally between the National League (baseball), National League (NL) and the American League (AL), with 29 in the United States and 1 in Canada. MLB i ...

(MLB) for the

Detroit Tigers The Detroit Tigers are an American professional baseball team based in Detroit. The Tigers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League Central, Central Division. One of the AL's eight chart ...

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 team plays its home games at LoanDepot Park. The ...

, and Texas Rangers over parts of six seasons.

Career

Germán joined the

Oakland Athletics The Oakland Athletics (frequently referred to as the Oakland A's) were an American Major League Baseball (MLB) team based in Oakland, California from 1968 to 2024. The Athletics were a member club of the American League (AL) American League We ...

organization on July 2, 1996. He made his professional debut with the Arizona League Athletics in 1998, serving as the starting pitcher in 12 of his 14 appearances. In 1999, he was promoted to the low Class–A Southern Oregon Timberjacks, where he recorded a 3–5 record and an

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 ...

(ERA) of 5.99 in 15 starts. Germán split the 2000 season between the

Vancouver Canadians The Vancouver Canadians are a Minor League Baseball (MiLB) team located in Vancouver, British Columbia. They are members of the Northwest League and the High-A affiliate of the Toronto Blue Jays. The Canadians play their home games at Nat Bail ...

and the

Modesto A's Modesto ( ; ) is the county seat and largest city of Stanislaus County, California, United States. With a population of 218,069 according to 2022 U.S. Census Bureau estimates, it is the 19th-most populous city in California. Modesto is located ...

. He started in 16 of his 26 appearances, tallying a 6–5 record and a 4.68 ERA. Germán spent the entire 2001 season with the

Visalia Oaks Visalia ( ) is a city in the agricultural San Joaquin Valley of California. The population was 141,384 as per the 2020 census. Visalia is the fifth-most populous city in the San Joaquin Valley, the 38th most populous in California, and 183 ...

. Having converted from a starting pitcher to a reliever, he posted a 3.98 ERA in 53 appearances. Germán was acquired by the

on July 5, 2002, in a three-team trade between the Tigers,

, and

New York Yankees The New York Yankees are an American professional baseball team based in the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of the Bronx. The Yankees compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Am ...

. Germán,

first baseman A first baseman, abbreviated 1B, is the player on a baseball or softball team who fields the area nearest first base, the first of four bases a baserunner must touch in succession to score a run. The first baseman is responsible for the majori ...

Carlos Peña, and pitcher

Jeremy Bonderman Jeremy Allen Bonderman (born October 28, 1982) is an American former professional baseball pitcher. Bonderman played in Major League Baseball for the Detroit Tigers and Seattle Mariners from 2003 to 2010 and in 2013. High school Bonderman atten ...

were traded by Oakland to Detroit in exchange for pitcher Jeff Weaver, whom Oakland then traded to New York for pitcher

Ted Lilly Theodore Roosevelt Lilly III (born January 4, 1976) is an American former professional baseball pitcher. Lilly attended Yosemite High School in Oakhurst, California, and Fresno City College. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) from 1999 t ...

, outfielder

John-Ford Griffin John-Ford David Griffin (born November 19, 1979) is an American former professional baseball outfielder. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Toronto Blue Jays. Early life An All-State athlete at Sarasota High School, was part of a ...

, and minor league pitcher Jason Arnold. Germán never played for Oakland, though he did spend 1997–2002 with their rookie league, Single-A, and Double-A minor league affiliates before being traded. Germán's inconsistency on the

mound A mound is a wikt:heaped, heaped pile of soil, earth, gravel, sand, rock (geology), rocks, or debris. Most commonly, mounds are earthen formations such as hills and mountains, particularly if they appear artificial. A mound may be any rounded ...

was in contrast to the Tigers' two primary starters at the time, Bonderman and lefty Mike Maroth, who were regarded to possess Major League talent, but frequently suffered from insufficient run support on a team in the midst of having the worst season in

American League The American League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the American League (AL), is the younger of two sports leagues, leagues constituting Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada. It developed from the Western L ...

history — that year, the Tigers set a new record for total losses (119), eclipsing the previous record (117) held by the 1916 Philadelphia Athletics. After spending much of the 2004 season on the Tigers' Triple-A minor league team, the

Toledo Mud Hens The Toledo Mud Hens are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League and the Triple-A affiliate of the Detroit Tigers. They are located in Toledo, Ohio, and play their home games at Fifth Third Field. A baseball team nicknamed the ...

, his form on the mound improved greatly, and he made the Tigers' 2005 opening day roster. After a mediocre spring training in 2006, the Tigers left Germán unprotected on the waiver wire by designating him for another assignment to Toledo. He did not clear waivers, however, and on April 4, 2006, he was claimed off waivers by the

, and earned a spot on their opening day roster. Germán became a

free agent In professional sports, a free agent is a player or manager who is eligible to sign with other clubs or franchises; i.e., not under contract to any specific team. The term is also used in reference to a player who is under a contract at present ...

after the 2006 season. On November 17, 2006, he signed a minor league contract with the Texas Rangers. Germán pitched in the Rangers 2008 season opener against the

Seattle Mariners The Seattle Mariners are an American professional baseball team based in Seattle. The Mariners compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League West, West Division. The team joined the American ...

on March 31, 2008. It was the first time Germán had pitched outside the minors since 2006. He was designated for assignment by the Rangers on May 21, 2008, and on May 30 declined a minor-league assignment and became a free agent. On June 4, 2008, Germán signed a minor league contract with 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 (baseball), National League (NL) National League Central, Central ...

. He was traded to 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) American League Central, Central Division. The club plays its ...

on August 11, and assigned to Triple-A Charlotte. He became a free agent at the end of the season and re-signed with the Chicago White Sox. On July 10, 2009, Germán was released by the

. In 2011, Germán pitched for Diablos Rojos del Mexico of the

Mexican League The Mexican Baseball League (, or LMB, ) is a professional baseball league in Mexico. It is the oldest running professional sports league in the country. The league has 20 teams organized in two divisions, North and South. Teams play 114 games ...

, posting a 4.15 ERA in seven appearances.

Scouting report

He is a particularly large man for a pitcher, standing 6 ft 7 in (2.04 m) tall and weighing , which lends him a degree of batter intimidation, like most taller-than-average pitchers possess. He works mostly in middle relief and sometimes as a set-up man for the team's closer. PITCHf/x data from 2008 records Germán throwing a

four-seam fastball A four-seam fastball, also called a rising fastball, a four-seamer, or a cross-seam fastball, is a pitch (baseball), pitch in baseball. It is a member of the fastball family of pitches and is usually the fastest ball thrown by a pitcher. It is s ...

averaging about 94 mph and a

changeup A changeup is a type of pitch in baseball and fastpitch softball. The changeup is a staple off-speed pitch often used in a pitcher's arsenal, usually thrown to look like a fastball, but arriving much more slowly to the plate. Its reduced spee ...

averaging 85 mph.

Personal life

Germán is married and has one child with his wife, Luisa. They spend their off-seasons residing in Palenque, Dominican Republic. Germán usually plays for

Leones del Escogido Leones del Escogido (English: ''Chosen One Lions'' or ''Lions of Chosen One'' or ''Picked Lions'') is a professional baseball team in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic. Established in , Leones are the third most successful team in the Dominican Pr ...

in the

Dominican Winter Baseball League The Dominican Republic Professional Baseball League ( or LIDOM) is a professional baseball winter league consisting of six teams spread across the Dominican Republic; it is the highest level of professional baseball played in the Dominican Repub ...

, and played for the World Team during the 2002

All-Star Futures Game The All-Star Futures Game is an annual baseball exhibition game hosted by Major League Baseball (MLB) in conjunction with the mid-summer MLB All-Star Game. A team of American League-affiliated prospects competes against a team of National League- ...

, which was won, 5–1, by the World Team.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:German, Franklyn 1980 births Águilas Cibaeñas players Albuquerque Isotopes players Arizona League Athletics players Charlotte Knights players Detroit Tigers players Dominican Republic expatriate baseball players in Canada Dominican Republic expatriate baseball players in the United States Florida Marlins players Gulf Coast Marlins players Indianapolis Indians players Jupiter Hammerheads players Living people Major League Baseball pitchers Major League Baseball players from the Dominican Republic 21st-century Dominican Republic sportsmen Modesto A's players Navegantes del Magallanes players Oklahoma RedHawks players Baseball players from San Cristóbal Province Southern Oregon Timberjacks players Texas Rangers players Toledo Mud Hens players Vancouver Canadians players Visalia Oaks players Dominican Republic expatriate baseball players in Venezuela Baseball players from San Cristóbal, Dominican Republic