Jordan James Schafer (born September 4, 1986) is a former 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 leagues and associated farm teams throughout the world. Modern professional ...

center fielder. He 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

Atlanta Braves The Atlanta Braves are an American professional baseball team based in the Atlanta metropolitan area. The Braves compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) East division. The Braves were founded in Bos ...

, Houston Astros and Minnesota Twins as a center fielder.

Baseball career

Atlanta Braves

Schafer was drafted by the

in the third round of the 2005 Major League Baseball Draft out of

Winter Haven High School Winter Haven High School is a four-year public high school located in Winter Haven, Florida, a city of 27,855 (2004 census). History The school opened in 1886 on the second floor of Boyd’s Hall, currently where City Hall stands. In 1890, a fr ...

. In April he was suspended 50 games by Major League Baseball after being accused of

HGH Growth hormone (GH) or somatotropin, also known as human growth hormone (hGH or HGH) in its human form, is a peptide hormone that stimulates growth, cell reproduction, and cell regeneration in humans and other animals. It is thus important in h ...

use. He was the first player to be suspended by Major League Baseball's Department of Investigations. Schafer was named the Braves' starting center fielder for the 2009 season on April 3, 2009, despite never having played at a higher level than Double-A. He made his major league debut on April 5, 2009, becoming the 99th player in Major League Baseball history to hit his first career

home run In baseball, a home run (abbreviated HR) is scored when the ball is hit in such a way that the batter is able to circle the bases and reach home plate safely in one play without any errors being committed by the defensive team. A home run i ...

in his first major league at bat, off

Brett Myers Brett Allen Myers (born August 17, 1980) is an American singer and former professional baseball pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Philadelphia Phillies, Houston Astros, Chicago White Sox, and Cleveland Indians. Born and r ...

of the Philadelphia Phillies. He finished the game 2 for 3, with the home run, a

single Single may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * Single (music), a song release Songs * "Single" (Natasha Bedingfield song), 2004 * "Single" (New Kids on the Block and Ne-Yo song), 2008 * "Single" (William Wei song), 2016 * "Single", by ...

, an

intentional walk In baseball, an intentional base on balls, usually referred to as an intentional walk and denoted in baseball scorekeeping by ''IBB'', is a walk issued to a batter by a pitcher with the intent of removing the batter's opportunity to swing at the ...

, and a strikeout. On June 2, 2009, Schafer was optioned to Triple-A

Gwinnett Braves The Gwinnett Stripers are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League (IL) and the Triple-A affiliate of the Atlanta Braves. They play their home games at Coolray Field in unincorporated Gwinnett County, Georgia (with a Lawrencevil ...

after batting only .204 with 63 strikeouts in 167 at-bats. He was called back up to the major league team on May 24, 2011.

Houston Astros

On July 31, 2011, Schafer was traded with Juan Abreu, Paul Clemens, and

Brett Oberholtzer Brett Raymond Oberholtzer (born July 1, 1989) is an American former professional baseball pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Houston Astros, Philadelphia Phillies, and Los Angeles Angels. He also played in the Chinese Profe ...

to the Houston Astros in exchange for

Michael Bourn Michael Ray Bourn (born December 27, 1982) is an American former Major League Baseball (MLB) center fielder who played for the Philadelphia Phillies, Houston Astros, Atlanta Braves, Cleveland Indians, Arizona Diamondbacks, and Baltimore Orioles ...

. On April 29, 2012, Schafer was ejected from a game by umpire

Marvin Hudson Marvin Lee Hudson (born March 3, 1964) is an American Major League Baseball (MLB) umpire who began his career in the National League in . He has officiated in the 2004 All-Star Game, eight Division Series ( 2005, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2015, 2016 ...

after disputing an out call on an attempted steal.

Second stint with Braves

On November 1, 2012, the Atlanta Braves reacquired Jordan Schafer from the Houston Astros on waivers. Schafer was placed on the disabled list on July 4, 2013, with a stress fracture in his ankle. He was designated for assignment by the Braves on August 1, 2014.

Minnesota Twins

Jordan Schafer attempts to rob a home run

Schafer was claimed off waivers by the Minnesota Twins on August 3, 2014. He was named the Twins' 2015 Opening Day center fielder. The team released him on June 18 to make room for an influx of outfield prospects.

Los Angeles Dodgers

Schafer signed a minor league contract with the

Los Angeles Dodgers The Los Angeles Dodgers are an American professional baseball team based in Los Angeles. The Dodgers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Established in 1883 in the city of Brooklyn ...

on January 13, 2016. The Dodgers converted him to a pitcher and assigned him to the Double-A Tulsa Drillers of the

Texas League The Texas League is a Minor League Baseball league which has operated in the South Central United States since 1902. It is classified as a Double-A league. Despite the league's name, only its five South Division teams are actually based in the ...

. He performed well enough that he was selected to participate in the mid-season

All-Star Game. He pitched in 31 games for Tulsa, six for the Triple-A

Oklahoma City Dodgers The Oklahoma City Dodgers are a Minor League Baseball team of the Pacific Coast League (PCL) and the Triple-A affiliate of the Los Angeles Dodgers. They are located in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, and play their home games at Chickasaw Bricktown Ba ...

and another three for the Arizona League Dodgers. Overall, he was 1–1 with a 4.93 ERA in 49 innings.

St. Louis Cardinals

On December 12, 2016, he signed a minor league contract with 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 joined the team for spring training, during which, on March 14, 2017, it was announced that Schafer would undergo surgery on his left elbow. He missed the entire season. Invited to spring training in

2018 File:2018 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2018 Winter Olympics opening ceremony in PyeongChang, South Korea; Protests erupt following the Assassination of Jamal Khashoggi; March for Our Lives protests take place across the Unit ...

, he was among six cut to minor-league camp on March 4. He was released on March 12.

San Francisco Giants

On April 3, 2018, Schafer signed a minor league contract with the

San Francisco Giants The San Francisco Giants are an American professional baseball team based in San Francisco, California. The Giants compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Founded in 1883 as the New Y ...

. He was released on June 9, 2018.

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Schafer, Jordan 1986 births Living people American people of German descent American sportspeople in doping cases Arizona League Dodgers players Atlanta Braves players Baseball pitchers Baseball players from Indiana Gulf Coast Astros players Gulf Coast Braves players Gulf Coast Cardinals players Gwinnett Braves players Houston Astros players Major League Baseball center fielders Mayos de Navojoa players American expatriate baseball players in Mexico Memphis Redbirds players Minnesota Twins players Mississippi Braves players Myrtle Beach Pelicans players Oklahoma City Dodgers players Oklahoma City RedHawks players Peoria Javelinas players Rome Braves players Sacramento River Cats players Sportspeople from Hammond, Indiana Sportspeople from Winter Haven, Florida Tulsa Drillers players