Jeffrey Benjamin Wendelken ( ; born March 24, 1993) is an American

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 ...

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 ...

(NPB). He previously played in

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), ...

(MLB) for the

Oakland Athletics The Oakland Athletics (often referred to as the A's) are an American professional baseball team based in Oakland, California. The Athletics compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West division. The te ...

and

Arizona Diamondbacks The Arizona Diamondbacks (colloquially known as the D-backs) are an American professional baseball team based in Phoenix. The Diamondbacks compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. The f ...

Career

Boston Red Sox

Wendelken was drafted by 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 ...

in the 13th round of the

2012 MLB draft The 2012 Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft was held from June 4 through June 6, 2012, from Studio 42 of the MLB Network in Secaucus, New Jersey. The Houston Astros, with the first overall pick, selected Carlos Correa from the Puerto R ...

out of

Middle Georgia College Middle Georgia College (MGC) was a four-year state college unit of the University System of Georgia. On January 8, 2013, it was consolidated with Macon State College into a new institution, which is now known as Middle Georgia State University. T ...

. He made his professional debut with the

Gulf Coast League Red Sox The Florida Complex League Red Sox are a professional baseball team competing in the rookie-level Florida Complex League (FCL) of Minor League Baseball. The team is owned and operated by the Boston Red Sox of Major League Baseball (MLB). Prior ...

, posting a 1.27 ERA in 13 appearances. He began the 2013 season with the Single-A

Greenville Drive The Greenville Drive are a Minor League Baseball team based in Greenville, South Carolina. They are the High-A affiliate of the Boston Red Sox and are a member of the South Atlantic League. They play their home games at Fluor Field at the West En ...

, and recorded a 2.77 ERA in 27 games for the team.

Chicago White Sox

On July 30, 2013, he was acquired 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 a trade that had Wendelken, Avisail García,

Frankie Montas Francellis Montas Luna (born March 21, 1993) is a Dominican professional baseball pitcher for the New York Yankees of Major League Baseball (MLB). He has previously played in MLB for the Chicago White Sox and Oakland Athletics. Montas signed as ...

, and Cleuluis Rondon going to the White Sox,

Jake Peavy Jacob Edward Peavy (born May 31, 1981) is an American former professional baseball pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the San Diego Padres, Chicago White Sox, Boston Red Sox, and San Francisco Giants. He batted and threw right- ...

and

Brayan Villarreal Brayan Rene Villarreal (born May 10, 1987) is a Venezuelan former professional baseball pitcher. He has played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Detroit Tigers and Boston Red Sox. He is 6'0" tall and weighs 170 pounds. Minor league career V ...

going to the Red Sox, and José Iglesias going to 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 of the American League (AL) Central division. One of the AL's eight charter franchises, the club was f ...

. He finished the year split between the High-A

Winston-Salem Dash The Winston-Salem Dash are a Minor League Baseball team in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. They are a High-A team in the South Atlantic League and have been a farm team of the Chicago White Sox since 1997. The Dash began playing their home games at ...

and the Single-A

Kannapolis Intimidators Kannapolis () is a city in Cabarrus County, North Carolina, Cabarrus and Rowan County, North Carolina, Rowan counties, in the U.S. state of North Carolina, northwest of Concord, North Carolina, Concord and northeast of Charlotte, North Carolina, ...

. In 2014, Wendelken remained in Winston-Salem for the entire year, registering a 7–10 record and 5.25 ERA in 27 games. In 2015, he split the season between the Double-A

Birmingham Barons The Birmingham Barons are a Minor League Baseball team based in Birmingham, Alabama. The team, which plays in the Southern League, is the Double-A affiliate of the Chicago White Sox and plays at Regions Field in downtown Birmingham. The current ...

and the Triple-A

Charlotte Knights The Charlotte Knights are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League and the Triple-A affiliate of the Chicago White Sox. They are located in Charlotte, North Carolina, and play their home games at Truist Field, which opened in 20 ...

, pitching to a 6–2 record and 3.20 ERA between the two clubs. The White Sox added him to their 40-man roster after the 2015 season.

Oakland Athletics

On December 9, 2015, Wendelken was traded to the Oakland Athletics, along with Zachary Erwin, for infielder

Brett Lawrie Brett Russell Lawrie (born January 18, 1990) is a Canadian former professional baseball third baseman. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Toronto Blue Jays, Oakland Athletics, and Chicago White Sox. Amateur career While playing hi ...

. In 2016, he was assigned to the Triple-A

Nashville Sounds The Nashville Sounds are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League and the Triple-A (baseball), Triple-A affiliate of the Milwaukee Brewers. They are located in Nashville, Tennessee, Nashville, Tennessee, and are named for the ci ...

to begin the season. On May 8, 2016, he was recalled by the Athletics and made his MLB debut that night. He went back and forth between Nashville and Oakland for the rest of the season before being outrighted to Triple-A on October 6, 2016. Wendelken did not play in a game in 2017 after he underwent

Tommy John surgery Ulnar collateral ligament reconstruction, colloquially known as Tommy John surgery (TJS), is a surgical graft procedure where the ulnar collateral ligament in the medial elbow is replaced with either a tendon from elsewhere in the patient's bo ...

. In 2018, he began the season at Triple-A. His contract was purchased by the Athletics on July 14, 2018. In 2019, Wendelken was one of four Athletics pitchers to throw 30 innings with a sub 4.00 ERA, joining

Liam Hendriks Liam Johnson Hendriks (born 10 February 1989), nicknamed "Slydah", is an Australian professional baseball pitcher for the Chicago White Sox of Major League Baseball (MLB). He previously played for the Minnesota Twins, Kansas City Royals, Toront ...

Yusmeiro Petit Yusmeiro Alberto Petit (; born November 22, 1984) is a Venezuelan professional baseball pitcher who is currently a free agent. He has played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Florida Marlins, Arizona Diamondbacks, San Francisco Giants, Washi ...

, and

Ryan Buchter Ryan James Buchter (born February 13, 1987) is an American professional baseball pitcher who is a free agent. He previously played in MLB for the Atlanta Braves, San Diego Padres, Kansas City Royals, Oakland Athletics, Los Angeles Angels, and Ariz ...

. In 2020, Wendelken recorded 31 strikeouts in 25 innings and an ERA of 1.80 in 21 games. In 26 appearances for the Athletics is 2021, Wendelken posted a 4.32 ERA with 26 strikeouts. On August 10, 2021, Wendelken was designated for assignment by the Athletics.

Arizona Diamondbacks

On August 11, 2021, Wendelken was claimed off of waivers by the

. In 20 appearances down the stretch, he registered a 4.34 ERA with 13 strikeouts and 2 saves in 18.2 innings of work. In 2022, Wendelken made 29 appearances for Arizona, but struggled to a 5.28 ERA with 21 strikeouts in 29.0 innings pitched. On July 5, 2022, the Diamondbacks designated Wendelken for assignment. He cleared waivers and was sent outright to the Triple-A

Reno Aces The Reno Aces are a Minor League Baseball team of the Pacific Coast League (PCL) and the Triple-A affiliate of the Arizona Diamondbacks. They are located in Reno, Nevada, and play their home games at Greater Nevada Field, which opened in 2009. ...

on July 11. After spending the rest of the season in Reno, Wendelken elected free agency on October 13.

Yokohama DeNA BayStars

On November 27, 2022, Wendelken signed with the

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Wendelken, J. B. 1993 births Living people Arizona Diamondbacks players Baseball players from Savannah, Georgia Birmingham Barons players Charlotte Knights players Glendale Desert Dogs players Greenville Drive players Gulf Coast Red Sox players Kannapolis Intimidators players Major League Baseball pitchers Middle Georgia Warriors baseball players Nashville Sounds players Oakland Athletics players Reno Aces players United States national baseball team players Winston-Salem Dash players Yokohama DeNA BayStars players