William Bentley Inman (born February 6, 1987 in
Danville, Virginia
Danville is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States, located in the Southside Virginia region and on the fall line of the Dan River. It was a center of tobacco production and was an area of Confederate activity ...
) 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 leagues and associated farm teams throughout the world.
Modern professional ...
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 ...
.
Career
Inman is from
Danville, Virginia
Danville is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States, located in the Southside Virginia region and on the fall line of the Dan River. It was a center of tobacco production and was an area of Confederate activity ...
. Prior to playing professionally, he attended
Tunstall High School in
Dry Fork, Virginia. He received a scholarship to attend
Auburn University.
Inman was drafted in the third round of the 2005 amateur draft by the
Milwaukee Brewers,
[ beginning his professional career that season. He split the year between the ]Helena Brewers
The Helena Brewers were a Minor League Baseball team in the Pioneer League located in Helena, Montana, from 1978 to 2018. The team played their home games at Kindrick Legion Field, which was built in 1939. They were affiliated with the Milwauke ...
and AZL Brewers, going a combined 6–0 with a 1.91 ERA in 14 games (five starts). He struck out 59 batters in 47 innings of work. In 2006, he pitched 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 ...
, going 10–2 with a 1.71 ERA in 23 games (20 starts) and striking out 134 batters in 110 innings of work. His 134 strikeouts were the most strikeouts in a single season in 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 ...
history, until Tyler Glasnow
Tyler Allen Glasnow (born August 23, 1993) is an American professional baseball pitcher for the Tampa Bay Rays of Major League Baseball (MLB). He previously played in MLB for the Pittsburgh Pirates.
Early life
Glasnow was born on August 23, 199 ...
broke his record in 2013.
Before the 2007 season, '' Baseball America'' named Inman the 91st best baseball prospect. He began the season in the Brewers organization, playing for the Brevard County Manatees
The Brevard County Manatees were a minor league baseball team of the Class A-Advanced Florida State League from 1994 to 2016. They were based in Viera, Florida, and played their home games at Space Coast Stadium. The team left Brevard County af ...
and Huntsville Stars
The Huntsville Stars were a Minor League Baseball team that played in Huntsville, Alabama, from 1985 to 2014. They competed in the Southern League as the Double-A affiliate of Major League Baseball's Oakland Athletics from 1985 to 1998 and Mil ...
. However, on July 25, he was traded with Joe Thatcher
Joseph Andrew Thatcher (born October 4, 1981) is an American college baseball coach and former professional baseball pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the San Diego Padres, Arizona Diamondbacks, Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim an ...
and minor leaguer Steve Garrison for relief pitcher Scott Linebrink
Scott Cameron Linebrink (born August 4, 1976) is an American former professional baseball pitcher. He attended Texas State University before getting drafted, but finished his degree after his retirement at Concordia University (Texas) in Austin.
...
.[ He finished the season with the San Antonio Missions in the Padres system. Overall, he went 8–11 with a 3.28 ERA in 28 games started, striking out 180 batters in 159 innings.
He pitched for the Missions again in 2008, going 9–8 with a 3.52 ERA in 28 starts, striking out 140 batters in 135 innings. He appeared in 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 ...
All-Star Game and All-Star Futures Game that season. His 2009 season was split between the Missions and Portland Beavers
The Portland Beavers was the name of separate minor league baseball teams, which represented Portland, Oregon, in the Pacific Coast League (PCL). The team was established in 1903, the first year of the PCL.
Franchise history
Many baseball teams ...
, and he went a combined 7–9 with a 4.79 ERA in 27 starts. He began the 2010 season with the Portland Beavers, but underwent ulnar nerve transposition during the season.
On November 22, 2011, Inman signed a minor league contract with 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 eigh ...
. After pitching for the Pawtucket Red Sox
The Pawtucket Red Sox, known colloquially as the PawSox, were a professional minor league baseball club based in Pawtucket, Rhode Island. From 1973 to 2020, the team was a member of the International League and served as the Triple-A affiliate ...
during the 2012 season, he became a free agent, and signed with the Tampa Bay Rays
The Tampa Bay Rays are an American professional baseball team based in St. Petersburg, Florida. The Rays compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. Since its inception, the team's home v ...
for the 2013 season, receiving a non-roster invitation to spring training. On July 1, 2013, Inman was released by the Rays. He went 0–2 with a 6.47 ERA in 21 appearances covering 32 innings, striking out 25 for Triple-A Durham Durham most commonly refers to:
*Durham, England, a cathedral city and the county town of County Durham
*County Durham, an English county
* Durham County, North Carolina, a county in North Carolina, United States
*Durham, North Carolina, a city in N ...
.
References
External links
{{DEFAULTSORT:Inman, Will
1987 births
Living people
Sportspeople from Danville, Virginia
Baseball players from Virginia
Baseball pitchers
Arizona League Brewers players
Helena Brewers players
West Virginia Power players
Brevard County Manatees players
Huntsville Stars players
San Antonio Missions players
Tucson Padres players
Portland Beavers players
Pawtucket Red Sox players
Durham Bulls players