Jeffrey Robert Hoffman (born January 8, 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 ...

who is a free agent. He previously played for the

Colorado Rockies The Colorado Rockies are an American professional baseball team based in Denver. The Rockies compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. The team plays its home baseball games at Coors Fie ...

and

Cincinnati Reds The Cincinnati Reds are an American professional baseball team based in Cincinnati. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) National League Central, Central division and were a charter member of ...

. Hoffman 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 ...

East Carolina University East Carolina University (ECU) is a public university, public research university in Greenville, North Carolina. It is the fourth largest university in North Carolina. Founded on March 8, 1907, as a Normal school, teacher training school, East ...

Early career

High school

Hoffman attended

Shaker High School Shaker High School, is a public high school in Latham, Albany County, New York, United States, and is the only high school operated by the North Colonie Central School District. The school's Science Bowl team finished first in their regional co ...

Latham, New York Latham is a hamlet (and census-designated place) in Albany County, New York, United States. It is located along U.S. Route 9 in the town of Colonie, a dense suburb north of Albany. As of the 2010 census, the population was 20,736. Latham was ...

, and played for their baseball team as a pitcher. In his junior year, he pitched to a 7–0

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 match ...

. In Hoffman's senior year, he led Shaker High School to their first Section II Class AA title game since 2002 against town rival Colonie High School. Hoffman pitched seven shutout innings, 101 pitches and struck out nine. He struggled to be noticed by

programs in the

National Collegiate Athletic Association The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico. It also organizes the athletic programs of colleges an ...

's Division I, as his

fastball The fastball is the most common type of pitch thrown by pitchers in baseball and softball. "Power pitchers," such as former American major leaguers Nolan Ryan and Roger Clemens, rely on speed to prevent the ball from being hit, and have thro ...

averaged . Hoffman pitched in Connie Mack Baseball during the offseason to attract attention from college programs, where his fastball improved to . This led to his signing a

letter of intent A letter of intent (LOI or LoI, or Letter of Intent) is a document outlining the understanding between two or more parties which they intend to formalize in a contract, legally binding agreement. The concept is similar to a Heads of agreement ( ...

with

(ECU), a Division I school in

Conference USA Conference USA (C-USA or CUSA) is an intercollegiate athletic conference whose current member institutions are located within the Southern United States. The conference participates in the NCAA's Division I in all sports. C-USA's offices are l ...

College

During his freshman year with the

East Carolina Pirates baseball The East Carolina Pirates baseball team is an intercollegiate baseball team representing East Carolina University in NCAA Division I college baseball and participates as a full member of the American Athletic Conference. The Pirates have made reg ...

team in 2012, Hoffman started 10 of the 19 games in which he appeared, posting a 3–2 record, one save, a 3.67

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), and

struck out In baseball or softball, a strikeout (or strike-out) occurs when a batter accumulates three strikes during a time at bat. It usually means that the batter is out. A strikeout is a statistic recorded for both pitchers and batters, and is denot ...

55 batters in

innings pitched In baseball, innings pitched (IP) are the number of innings a pitcher has completed, measured by the number of batters and baserunners that are put out while the pitcher is on the pitching mound in a game. Three outs made is equal to one innin ...

. East Carolina reached the National Collegiate Athletic Association Division I baseball tournament. During the 2013 season Hoffman posted a 6–7 record, a 3.20 ERA, led the Pirates with innings pitched and 84 strikeouts, was named to the All-Conference USA second team, and was added to the

Golden Spikes Award The Golden Spikes Award is bestowed annually to the best amateur baseball player in the United States. The award, created by USA Baseball and sponsored by the Major League Baseball Players Association, was first presented in 1978. It is given to ...

watch list. In his junior year at ECU, Hoffman went 3–3 with a 2.94 ERA before suffering a torn

ulnar collateral ligament Ulnar collateral ligament (or UCL), may refer to: * Ulnar carpal collateral ligament * Ulnar collateral ligament of elbow joint The ulnar collateral ligament (UCL) or internal lateral ligament is a thick triangular ligament at the medial aspec ...

in his right elbow injury that required

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 2012 and 2013, Hoffman 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 ...

for the

Hyannis Harbor Hawks The Hyannis Harbor Hawks, formerly the Hyannis Mets, are a collegiate summer baseball team based in Hyannis, Massachusetts. The team is a member of the Cape Cod Baseball League (CCBL) and plays in the league's West Division. The Harbor Hawks play ...

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 ...

(CCBL), where he was named a league all-star in 2012, and received the league's Outstanding Pro Prospect award in 2013.

Professional career

Toronto Blue Jays

Hoffman was considered to be one of the best prospects available in the

2014 Major League Baseball Draft The 2014 Major League Baseball (MLB) First-Year Player Draft was held from June 5 through June 7, 2014, to assign amateur baseball players to MLB teams. The first two rounds were conducted on June 5, followed by rounds three through ten on June ...

, with the potential to be selected first overall, before his injury lowered his draft stock. The

Toronto Blue Jays The Toronto Blue Jays are a Canadian professional baseball team based in Toronto. The Blue Jays compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. Since 1989, the team has played its home games ...

selected Hoffman in the first round, with the ninth overall selection, and he signed with Toronto on July 2 for the full bonus slot value of $3.1 million. Though unable to pitch, Hoffman was assigned to the

Rookie A rookie is a person new to an occupation, profession, or hobby. In sports, a ''rookie'' is a professional athlete in their first season (or year). In contrast with a veteran who has experience and expertise, a rookie is usually inexperienced ...

Gulf Coast League Blue Jays The Florida Complex League Blue Jays are a Rookie-level affiliate of the Toronto Blue Jays, competing in the Florida Complex League of Minor League Baseball. Prior to 2021, the team was known as the Gulf Coast League Blue Jays. The team plays it ...

for the 2014 season. He began throwing off a mound in February 2015, and made his professional debut with the

Dunedin Blue Jays The Dunedin Blue Jays are a Minor League Baseball team of the Florida State League and are the Single-A affiliate of the Toronto Blue Jays Major League Baseball club. They are located in Dunedin, Florida, and play their home games at TD Ballpark, ...

of the Advanced-A

Florida State League The Florida State League (FSL) is a Minor League Baseball league based in the state of Florida. Having been classified at various levels throughout its existence, it operated at Class A-Advanced from 1990 until its demotion to Single-A following ...

on May 20. Hoffman's fastball reached during his first start. After making 11 starts with Dunedin, the Blue Jays promoted Hoffman to the

New Hampshire Fisher Cats The New Hampshire Fisher Cats are a Minor League Baseball team based in Manchester, New Hampshire. The team, which plays in the Eastern League, is the Double-A affiliate of the Toronto Blue Jays major league club. During the team's first seas ...

of the Double-A Eastern League. He made his first start for New Hampshire on July 18, pitching a career-high innings and allowing two earned runs.

Colorado Rockies

On July 28, the Blue Jays traded Hoffman, José Reyes,

Miguel Castro Miguel Ángel Castro (born December 24, 1994) is a Dominican professional baseball pitcher for the Arizona Diamondbacks of Major League Baseball (MLB). He has previously played in MLB for the Toronto Blue Jays, Colorado Rockies, Baltimore Oriol ...

, and Jesús Tinoco, to the

for

Troy Tulowitzki Troy Trevor Tulowitzki (born October 10, 1984), nicknamed "Tulo", is an American retired professional baseball shortstop, who played 13 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB), primarily with the Colorado Rockies. He also played for the Toronto B ...

and

LaTroy Hawkins LaTroy Hawkins (born December 21, 1972) is an American former professional baseball pitcher. In his 21-year Major League Baseball (MLB) career, he played for the Minnesota Twins, Chicago Cubs, San Francisco Giants, Baltimore Orioles, Colorado Ro ...

. Hoffman was assigned to the

New Britain Rock Cats The New Britain Rock Cats were a minor league baseball team that competed in the Eastern League. They were the Double-A affiliate of the Boston Red Sox for 12 years, the Minnesota Twins for 20 years and the Colorado Rockies for one. They playe ...

of the Eastern League following the trade. Hoffman began the 2016 season with the

Albuquerque Isotopes The Albuquerque Isotopes are a Minor League Baseball team of the Pacific Coast League and the Triple-A affiliate of the Colorado Rockies. They play home games at Rio Grande Credit Union Field at Isotopes Park in Albuquerque, New Mexico, at an el ...

of the

Class AAA Triple-A (officially Class AAA) has been the highest level of play in Minor League Baseball in the United States since 1946. Currently, two leagues operate at the Triple-A level, the International League (IL) and the Pacific Coast League (PCL ...

Pacific Coast League The Pacific Coast League (PCL) is a Minor League Baseball league that operates in the Western United States. Along with the International League, it is one of two leagues playing at the Triple-A (baseball), Triple-A level, which is one grade bel ...

. He was selected to appear in the 2016

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 ...

. Hoffman made his major league debut for the Rockies on August 20. Hoffman continued to remain in the rotation for the remainder of the season, finishing with a record of 0-4. The following season, he split time between the AAA level and the Rockies rotation. He was 6–5 with an ERA of 5.89 in 23 games, 16 starts. In 2018, Hoffman spent the majority of the season at the AAA level, only making 6 appearances for the Rockies. In 2019, Hoffman was 2–6 with a 6.56 ERA in 15 starts. In 2020, Hoffman was used exclusively out of the bullpen and in the shortened season, he struggled to a career worst 9.28 ERA in 16 games.

Cincinnati Reds

On November 25, 2020, the

traded Hoffman and Case Williams to the

in exchange for Jameson Hannah and

Robert Stephenson Robert Stephenson Fellow of the Royal Society, FRS HFRSE FRSA Doctor of Civil Law, DCL (16 October 1803 – 12 October 1859) was an English civil engineer and designer of locomotives. The only son of George Stephenson, the "Father of Railway ...

. On November 15, 2022, Hoffman was designated for assignment. On November 18, he was non tendered and became a free agent.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Hoffman, Jeff 1993 births Living people People from Latham, New York Baseball players from New York (state) Major League Baseball pitchers Colorado Rockies players Cincinnati Reds players East Carolina Pirates baseball players Dunedin Blue Jays players New Hampshire Fisher Cats players New Britain Rock Cats players Albuquerque Isotopes players Hyannis Harbor Hawks players