John Edward Barbato ( ; born July 11, 1992) is an American former professional

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding t ...

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 ...

. He pitched 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 Pittsburgh Pirates,

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

, and Detroit Tigers, and also played in

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) for the

Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters The are a Japanese professional Baseball in Japan, baseball team based in Kitahiroshima, Hokkaidō. They compete in the Pacific League of Nippon Professional Baseball, playing the majority of their home games at ES CON Field Hokkaido. The Figh ...

Career

Amateur draft

Barbato attended Felix Varela High School in

Miami Miami ( ), officially the City of Miami, known as "the 305", "The Magic City", and "Gateway to the Americas", is a coastal metropolis and the county seat of Miami-Dade County in South Florida, United States. With a population of 442,241 at ...

Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...

. He received a scholarship from the

University of Florida The University of Florida (Florida or UF) is a public land-grant research university in Gainesville, Florida. It is a senior member of the State University System of Florida, traces its origins to 1853, and has operated continuously on its ...

. The

San Diego Padres The San Diego Padres are an American professional baseball team based in San Diego. The Padres compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Founded in 1969, the club has won two NL penn ...

selected him in the sixth 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 pi ...

, and he signed with San Diego rather than attend college.

New York Yankees

The Padres traded Barbato to the

for

Shawn Kelley Shawn Andrew Kelley (born April 26, 1984) is an American former professional baseball pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Seattle Mariners from 2009 to 2012, New York Yankees from 2013 to 2014, San Diego Padres in 2015, Was ...

on December 29, 2014. The Yankees added him to their 40-man roster after the 2015 season. He made his major league debut on April 5, 2016. He was optioned to the AAA

Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders The Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders (often abbreviated to SWB RailRiders) are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League (IL) and the Triple-A affiliate of the New York Yankees. They are located in Moosic, Pennsylvania, in the ...

on May 9, 2016, recalled on August 4, and sent back again on August 6. In 13 games with the Yankees in 2016, Barbato had a 1–2 record with a 7.62 ERA.

Pittsburgh Pirates

Barbato was

designated for assignment Designated for assignment (DFA) is a contractual term used in Major League Baseball (MLB). A player who is designated for assignment is immediately removed from the team's 40-man roster, after which the team must within seven days, return the pla ...

by the Yankees at the start of the 2017 season and sent to Scranton/Wilkes-Barre. He was subsequently traded to the Pittsburgh Pirates on April 17, 2017, in exchange for Matt Frawley. In 24 relief appearances for the Pirates, Barbato posted a 4.08 ERA with 23 strikeouts in innings.

Detroit Tigers

On January 11, 2018, Barbato was claimed off waivers by the Detroit Tigers. After starting the season with the AAA

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 Mud Hens team has played in ...

, Barbato was called up on April 26 and made his Tigers debut the following night against the

Baltimore Orioles The Baltimore Orioles are an American professional baseball team based in Baltimore. The Orioles compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. As one of the American League's eight charter ...

. Barbato was next called up on May 30, 2018. He was called up again on June 20, 2018. After giving up five earned runs in less than an inning two days later, Barbato was placed on the 10-day disabled list with shoulder tightness. He failed to mention previously that the injury had been bothering him all season, which left manager Rod Gardenhire somewhat perplexed since he asked to throw a light bullpen session earlier that day. He was designated for assignment on September 11, 2018. He was sent outright to the Toledo Mud Hens after clearing waivers two days later. Barbato elected free agency on November 2, 2018.

Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters

On December 20, 2018, Barbato signed with the

. He was released on October 18, 2019. On October 11, 2019, Fighters announced that team will not sign with Barbato for next season. On October 18, 2019, he become free agent.

Somerset Patriots

On January 27, 2020, Barbato signed with the

Somerset Patriots The Somerset Patriots are an American Minor League Baseball team based in Bridgewater Township, New Jersey, that is the Double-A affiliate of the New York Yankees. They compete in the Eastern League, known as the Double-A Northeast in 2021, and w ...

of the Atlantic League of Professional Baseball. Barbato did not appear for the club in 2020 due to the cancellation of the ALPB season because to the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identi ...

. In July 2020, Barbato signed on to play for the Sugar Land Lightning Sloths of the

Constellation Energy League The Constellation Energy League was an independent baseball league that operated in Texas during 2020 because of COVID-19 restrictions limiting travel, and as a way to create opportunities for minor league players. History The league consisted of ...

(a makeshift 4-team independent league created as a result of the

) for the 2020 season. Barbato became a free agent after the year.

Lincoln Saltdogs

On January 27, 2021, Barbato signed with the

Lincoln Saltdogs The Lincoln Saltdogs are a professional baseball team based in Lincoln, Nebraska, in the United States. The Saltdogs are in the American Association of Professional Baseball, an official Partner League of Major League Baseball. Since the 2001 sea ...

of the

American Association of Professional Baseball The American Association of Professional Baseball is an independent professional baseball league founded in 2005. It operates in the central United States and Canada, mostly in cities not served by Major League Baseball teams or their minor lea ...

. Barbato recorded a 0.90 ERA in 2 appearances for the Saltdogs, striking out 12 in 10.0 innings of work.

Toronto Blue Jays

On June 1, 2021, Barbato's contract was purchased by 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 ...

organization.

High Point Rockers

On April 21, 2022, Barbato signed with the

High Point Rockers The High Point Rockers are an American professional baseball team based at Truist Point ballpark in High Point, North Carolina, which is part of the Piedmont Triad region. They are members of the South Division of the Atlantic League of Profession ...

of the Atlantic League of Professional Baseball. Barbato did not make an appearance for the Rockers before retiring from professional baseball on July 24.https://www.atlanticleague.com/stats/transactions/

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Barbato, Johnny 1992 births Living people American expatriate baseball players in Japan Baseball players from Miami Detroit Tigers players Eugene Emeralds players Fort Wayne TinCaps players Gulf Coast Tigers players Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters players Indianapolis Indians players Lake Elsinore Storm players Lakeland Flying Tigers players Major League Baseball pitchers New York Yankees players Nippon Professional Baseball pitchers Pittsburgh Pirates players Peoria Javelinas players San Antonio Missions players Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders players Toledo Mud Hens players Trenton Thunder players