Jonathan Trey Brubaker (born November 17, 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

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 ...

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). He made his MLB debut in 2020.

Early life and amateur career

Brubaker attended Tecumseh High School in

New Carlisle, Ohio New Carlisle is a city in Clark County, Ohio, Clark County, Ohio, United States. The population was 5,785 at the United States Census 2010, 2010 census. It is part of the Springfield, Ohio Springfield, Ohio metropolitan area, Metropolitan Statistic ...

, and the

University of Akron The University of Akron is a public research university in Akron, Ohio. It is part of the University System of Ohio. As a STEM-focused institution, it focuses on industries such as polymers, advanced materials, and engineering. It is classified ...

, where he played

college baseball College baseball is baseball that is played on the intercollegiate level at institutions of higher education. In comparison to football and basketball, college competition in the United States plays a smaller role in developing professional pl ...

for the

Akron Zips Akron () is the fifth-largest city in the U.S. state of Ohio and is the county seat of Summit County. It is located on the western edge of the Glaciated Allegheny Plateau, about south of downtown Cleveland. As of the 2020 Census, the city pr ...

. In 2015, his junior year, he had a 5–4

win–loss record In sports, a winning percentage is the fraction of games or matches a team or individual has won. The statistic is commonly used in standings or rankings to compare teams or individuals. It is defined as wins divided by the total number of matc ...

with a 3.63

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) over 15

games started In baseball statistics, games started (denoted by GS) indicates the number of games that a pitcher has started for his team. A pitcher is credited with starting the game if he throws the first pitch to the first opposing batter. If a player is li ...

. He was drafted by the

in the sixth round of the

2015 Major League Baseball draft The 2015 Major League Baseball (MLB) First-Year Player Draft was held from June 8 through June 10, 2015, to assign amateur baseball players to MLB teams. The draft order is the reverse order of the 2014 MLB season standings. As the Diamondbacks ...

Professional career

Brubaker signed with Pittsburgh for a $200,000

signing bonus A signing bonus or sign-on bonus is a sum of money paid to a new employee (including a professional sports person) by a company as an incentive to join that company. They are often given as a way of making a compensation package more attractive ...

and made his professional debut that season with the

West Virginia Black Bears The West Virginia Black Bears are a collegiate summer baseball team of the MLB Draft League. They are located in Granville, West Virginia, and play their home games at Monongalia County Ballpark, which is across the Monongahela River from Morganto ...

, compiling a 6–4 record with a 2.82 ERA over 15 starts. In 2016, he played for the

West Virginia Power The Charleston Dirty Birds are an American professional baseball team based in Charleston, West Virginia. They are a member of the South Division of the Atlantic League of Professional Baseball, a partner league of Major League Baseball. The ...

and the

Bradenton Marauders The Bradenton Marauders are a Minor League Baseball team of the Florida State League and the Single-A affiliate of the Pittsburgh Pirates. They are located in Bradenton, Florida, and play their home games at LECOM Park, which also serves as the ...

where he pitched to a combined 6–11 record with a 4.44 ERA in 26 starts between the two clubs, and in 2017, he pitched with the

Altoona Curve The Altoona Curve are a Minor League Baseball team based in Altoona, Pennsylvania, named after nearby Horseshoe Curve (but also alluding to the curveball, a type of pitch). The team plays in the Eastern League and is the Double-A affiliate of the ...

, going 7–6 with a 4.44 ERA in 26 games (24 starts). Brubaker began 2018 with Altoona and was promoted to the

Indianapolis Indians The Indianapolis Indians are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League (IL) and the Triple-A affiliate of the Pittsburgh Pirates. They are located in Indianapolis, Indiana, and play their home games at Victory Field, which open ...

in May. In 28 starts between both teams, he went 10–6 with a 2.81 ERA and a 1.26 WHIP. After the season, the Pirates named Brubaker their minor league pitcher of the year. The Pirates added him to their 40-man roster after the season. He returned to Indianapolis to begin 2019, but appeared in only six games during the season due to injury. Brubaker made the Opening Day roster in 2020 and made his major league debut on July 26, pitching 2 scoreless innings against the

St. Louis Cardinals The St. Louis Cardinals are an American professional baseball team based in St. Louis. The Cardinals compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) Central division. Since the 2006 season, the Cardinals ha ...

. He finished the shortened 2020 season with a 1–3 record, a 4.94 ERA and 48 strikeouts in innings. In 2021, he went 5–13 with a 5.36 ERA and 129 strikeouts in innings over 24 starts. In 2022, Brubaker made 28 starts for Pittsburgh, logging a 3-12 record and 4.69 ERA with 147 strikeouts in 144.0 innings pitched. On January 13, 2023, Brubaker agreed to a one-year, $2.275 million contract with the Pirates, avoiding salary arbitration. Brubaker was placed on the injured list to begin the 2023 season due to forearm/elbow discomfort. On April 12, Brubaker 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 ...

, ending his season.

Personal life

Brubaker and his wife, Darci, had their first child, a son, in August 2022.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Brubaker, J.T. 1993 births Living people Sportspeople from Springfield, Ohio Baseball players from Ohio Major League Baseball pitchers Pittsburgh Pirates players Akron Zips baseball players West Virginia Black Bears players West Virginia Power players Bradenton Marauders players Altoona Curve players Glendale Desert Dogs players Indianapolis Indians players