Justin Ryan Sellers (born February 1, 1986) is an American former

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 ...

infielder. 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

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 ...

and

Cleveland Indians The Cleveland Guardians are an American professional baseball team based in Cleveland. The Guardians compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. Since , they have played at Progressive Fi ...

. Primarily a

shortstop Shortstop, abbreviated SS, is the baseball or softball fielding position between second and third base, which is considered to be among the most demanding defensive positions. Historically the position was assigned to defensive specialists wh ...

, Sellers also played second base and

third base A third baseman, abbreviated 3B, is the player in baseball or softball whose responsibility is to defend the area nearest to third base — the third of four bases a baserunner must touch in succession to score a run. In the scoring system us ...

Professional career

Oakland Athletics

Sellers was drafted by the Oakland Athletics in the 6th round of the

2005 MLB Draft The 2005 First-Year Player Draft, Major League Baseball's annual amateur draft, was held on June 7 and 8. It was conducted via conference call with representatives from each of the league's 30 teams. It is widely considered to be one of the bes ...

out of high school. He played with the

Vancouver Canadians The Vancouver Canadians are a Minor League Baseball team located in Vancouver, British Columbia. They are members of the Northwest League and are affiliated with the Toronto Blue Jays. The Canadians play their home games at Nat Bailey Stadiu ...

in 2005 and the

Kane County Cougars The Kane County Cougars are an independent professional baseball team located in Geneva, Illinois and are members of the American Association of Professional Baseball, an official Partner League of Major League Baseball (MLB). They play thei ...

in 2006. He then split 2007 between the Stockton Ports and

Midland RockHounds The Midland RockHounds are a Minor League Baseball team based in Midland, Texas. The team, which plays in the Texas League, is the Double-A affiliate of the Oakland Athletics major league club. The RockHounds play in Momentum Bank Ballpark, w ...

. In the Hawaii Winter Baseball League, he was voted the 2007 Defensive Player of the Year. In 2008 at Midland, he hit .255 in 123 games. He was traded to the Chicago Cubs on February 2, 2009, along with Richie Robnett, for

Michael Wuertz Michael James Wuertz (born December 15, 1978) is an American former professional baseball pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Chicago Cubs and Oakland Athletics. He was known for his slider, which generated the most misses ...

Los Angeles Dodgers

The Cubs traded him to the

on April 2, 2009, for future considerations. In 2009, he was selected to the Southern League all-star team, while hitting .280 with the Double-A

Chattanooga Lookouts The Chattanooga Lookouts are a Minor League Baseball team of the Southern League and the Double-A affiliate of the Cincinnati Reds. They are located in Chattanooga, Tennessee, and are named for nearby Lookout Mountain. The team plays its home g ...

. He spent most of 2010 with the Triple-A

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 e ...

, hitting .285 in 90 games. In 2011, with the Isotopes, he was in 89 games and hit .304 with 14 home runs. On August 12, 2011, he was called up to the Dodgers, replacing the injured

Dee Gordon Devaris "Dee" Strange-Gordon (born April 22, 1988) is an American professional baseball second baseman, shortstop, and center fielder who is currently a free agent. He has played Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Los Angeles Dodgers, Miami Mar ...

on the active roster. He was hitless in three at-bats as the starting shortstop against the Houston Astros in his debut that night. He collected his first hit the following day against Wandy Rodríguez and his first home run on the 14th against

Jordan Lyles Jordan Horton Lyles (born October 19, 1990) is an American professional baseball pitcher for the Kansas City Royals. He previously played for the Houston Astros, Colorado Rockies, San Diego Padres, Pittsburgh Pirates, Milwaukee Brewers, Texas Ran ...

. He appeared in 36 games for the Dodgers, split between second base and shortstop, and hit .203. Sellers began 2012 as a utility infielder for the Dodgers, appearing in 19 games and hitting .205. However, he experienced numbness in his right leg on May 24. He said that he thought the injury had originally occurred when he crashed into the stands to make a catch against the

Arizona Diamondbacks The Arizona Diamondbacks (colloquially known as the D-backs) are an American professional baseball team based in Phoenix. The Diamondbacks compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. The ...

the week before. He was placed on the disabled list the following day. After a lengthy period, he played some rehab games with Class-A

Rancho Cucamonga Rancho Cucamonga was a Mexican land grant in present-day San Bernardino County, California, given in 1839 to the dedicated soldier, smuggler and politician Tiburcio Tapia by Mexican governor Juan Bautista Alvarado. The grant formed parts of pr ...

in early August but it was shut down after a few games due to lower back pain. It was determined that Sellers would need surgery on his lower back and that he would not be able to play again during the 2012 season. On January 19, 2013, Sellers was arrested in West Sacramento after police found him driving recklessly on his motorcycle. After a short chase, he turned himself in. Sellers became the Dodgers opening day starter at shortstop in 2013 after

Hanley Ramírez Hanley Ramírez (born December 23, 1983) is a Dominican-American former professional baseball shortstop. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Boston Red Sox, Florida / Miami Marlins, Los Angeles Dodgers, and Cleveland Indians. Ram� ...

was injured during the

2013 World Baseball Classic The 2013 World Baseball Classic (WBC) was an international professional baseball competition, held from March 2 to March 19, 2013. This was the third iteration of the WBC, following the two previous tournaments, held in 2006 and 2009. Unlike t ...

. He hit only .188 in 27 games and was optioned back to AAA. In 89 games with the Isotopes, he hit .270. Sellers was designated for assignment by the Dodgers on February 22, 2014, and removed from the 40-man roster.

Cleveland Indians

Sellers was traded to the

in exchange for cash considerations on March 2, 2014.

Pittsburgh Pirates

On October 25, 2014, he was traded to the Pittsburgh Pirates for cash considerations.

Chicago White Sox

On July 30, 2015, Sellers was traded to the

Chicago White Sox The Chicago White Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The White Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. The team is owned by Jerry Reinsdorf, and ...

for a player to be named or cash considerations.

San Diego Padres

On March 7, 2016, Sellers signed a minor league deal with 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 ...

. He was released on March 28.

Personal

Sellers is the son of former

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 ...

pitcher

Jeff Sellers Jeffrey Doyle Sellers (born May 11, 1964) is a former professional baseball pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Boston Red Sox. Biography Sellers played high school baseball for Paramount High School in California, and was d ...

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Sellers, Justin 1986 births Living people Albuquerque Isotopes players American expatriate baseball players in Canada Baseball players from Bellflower, California Bradenton Marauders players Charlotte Knights players Chattanooga Lookouts players Cleveland Indians players Columbus Clippers players Gigantes de Carolina players Gulf Coast Pirates players Indianapolis Indians players Inland Empire 66ers players Kane County Cougars players Los Angeles Dodgers players Major League Baseball shortstops Midland RockHounds players Peoria Javelinas players Rancho Cucamonga Quakes players Stockton Ports players Tigres del Licey players American expatriate baseball players in the Dominican Republic Tomateros de Culiacán players Vancouver Canadians players Waikiki Beach Boys players Yaquis de Obregón players American expatriate baseball players in Mexico