Yhency José Brazobán (born 11 June 1980) is a Dominican former professional

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball sport played between two team sport, teams of nine players each, taking turns batting (baseball), batting and Fielding (baseball), fielding. The game occurs over the course of several Pitch ...

pitcher In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throws ("Pitch (baseball), pitches") the Baseball (ball), baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of out (baseball), retiring a batter (baseball), batter, ...

. He pitched in

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball league composed of 30 teams, divided equally between the National League (baseball), National League (NL) and the American League (AL), with 29 in the United States and 1 in Canada. MLB i ...

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 (baseball), National League (NL) National League West, West Div ...

and

Arizona Diamondbacks The Arizona Diamondbacks are an American professional baseball team based in Phoenix, Arizona. The Diamondbacks compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West Division. The franchise was established ...

and in

Nippon Professional Baseball is a professional baseball league and the highest level of baseball in Japan. Locally, it is often called , meaning simply ''Professional Baseball''; outside of Japan, NPB is often referred to as "Japanese baseball". The roots of the league ...

for the

Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks The are a Japanese professional baseball team based in Fukuoka, Fukuoka Prefecture. They compete in Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) as a member of the Pacific League. Founded on February 22, 1938, as the Nankai Club, being the first Kansai t ...

. He throws and bats right-handed.

Professional career

New York Yankees

Brazobán was signed as an undrafted free agent by the

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

on 10 July 1997, and proceeded to hit .319 as an outfielder for the Yankees Dominican Summer League, earning a spot on the Dominican League All-Star Team. In 1999–2000 he made the

Gulf Coast League The Florida Complex League (FCL) is a rookie-level Minor League Baseball league that operates in Florida, United States. Before 2021, it was known as the Gulf Coast League (GCL). Together with the Arizona Complex League (ACL), it forms the low ...

All-Star team, hitting .320 and .303, earning a promotion to Single-A

Greensboro Greensboro (; ) is a city in Guilford County, North Carolina, United States, and its county seat. At the 2020 census, its population was 299,035; it was estimated to be 307,381 in 2024. It is the third-most populous city in North Carolina, af ...

in 2000 and playing there through 2002. The Yankees converted Brazobán from an outfielder to a pitcher in 2003, sending him to three different minor league levels to work on his pitching: the

Gulf Coast Yankees The Florida Complex League Yankees are a Rookie-level affiliate of the New York Yankees, competing in the Florida Complex League of Minor League Baseball. The team is composed mainly of players who are in their first year of professional baseball ...

Tampa Yankees Tampa ( ) is a city on the Gulf Coast of the U.S. state of Florida. Tampa's borders include the north shore of Tampa Bay and the east shore of Old Tampa Bay. Tampa is the largest city in the Tampa Bay area and the county seat of Hillsborough C ...

and

Trenton Thunder The Trenton Thunder are a collegiate summer baseball team of the MLB Draft League. They are located in Trenton, New Jersey, and play their home games at Trenton Thunder Ballpark. From 1994 to 2020, it was a Minor League Baseball team of the D ...

. Combined he was 2–4 with 18 saves in 47 relief appearances.

Los Angeles Dodgers

He was acquired by the

from the

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 ...

on 13 December 2003, along with

Jeff Weaver Jeffrey Charles Weaver (born August 22, 1976) is an American former right-handed Major League Baseball pitcher. During his career, he pitched for the Detroit Tigers, New York Yankees, Los Angeles Dodgers, Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, St. Loui ...

and Brandon Weeden in exchange for right-hander Kevin Brown. He earned a call-up to the Dodgers in 2004 after a sensational year at Class AA

Jacksonville Jacksonville ( ) is the most populous city proper in the U.S. state of Florida, located on the Atlantic coast of North Florida, northeastern Florida. It is the county seat of Duval County, Florida, Duval County, with which the City of Jacksonv ...

and Class AAA

Las Vegas Las Vegas, colloquially referred to as Vegas, is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Nevada and the county seat of Clark County. The Las Vegas Valley metropolitan area is the largest within the greater Mojave Desert, and second-l ...

. Brazobán made his major league debut with the

on 5 August 2004, working one scoreless inning of relief against the

Pittsburgh Pirates The Pittsburgh Pirates are an American professional baseball team based in Pittsburgh. The Pirates compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League Central, Central ...

. Primarily a setup man for

Éric Gagné Éric Serge Gagné (; born January 7, 1976) is a Canadian former professional baseball pitcher who played 10 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB), most notably for the Los Angeles Dodgers. After signing with the Dodgers as a free agent in 1995 ...

during the 2004 season, he became the Dodgers closer for a brief time in 2005 after Gagné was lost for the season with an injury. He established new Dodgers rookie records by appearing in 75 games and recording 21 saves. Brazoban entered the 2006 season as a member of a strong Dodgers bullpen. He and

Danys Báez Danys Báez González (; ; born September 10, 1977) is a Cuban-American former professional baseball pitcher. Báez played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Cleveland Indians, Tampa Bay Devil Rays, Los Angeles Dodgers, Atlanta Braves, Balt ...

, who was acquired for the 2006 season but was later traded, were slotted to work as setup men for closer

. However, early in the year Brazoban went on the disabled list with an elbow injury that cost him the entire season. He underwent

Tommy John surgery Ulnar collateral ligament reconstruction, sometimes referred to as Tommy John surgery 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 body, ...

to repair a torn ligament in his right elbow. He worked his way back from the injury to rejoin the Dodgers' bullpen in May 2007, but after a few appearances he suffered another serious arm injury and was lost for the rest of the 2007 season. After two serious injuries in a row, he opened the 2008 season in the minors with the

Jacksonville Suns The Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League (IL) and the Triple-A affiliate of the Miami Marlins. They are located in Jacksonville, Florida, and are named for shrimp caught in the area. The team pla ...

. He pitched well enough in the minors to earn a return to the Dodgers bullpen, and the Dodgers called him up on 9 May. He appeared in two games with the Dodgers in 2008, allowing two earned runs in three innings while striking out three batters and walking three, before the Dodgers again optioned him to Las Vegas. On 19 July, the Dodgers placed him on the disabled list for the rest of the season with another shoulder injury. He was released after the season but eventually re-signed to a minor league contract with an invitation to spring training. However, he was released again on 19 March 2009.

Mexican League / New York Mets

Brazoban began the 2010 season in the

Mexican League The Mexican Baseball League (, or LMB, ) is a professional baseball league in Mexico. It is the oldest running professional sports league in the country. The league has 20 teams organized in two divisions, North and South. Teams play 114 games ...

, where he was 4–3 with a 2.22 ERA in 52 relief appearances for Minatitlan and Mexico City. On 15 August 2010, he was signed to a minor league deal with the

New York Mets The New York Mets are an American professional baseball team based in the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of Queens. The Mets compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National ...

, and was assigned to Triple-A

Buffalo Buffalo most commonly refers to: * True buffalo or Bubalina, a subtribe of wild cattle, including most "Old World" buffalo, such as water buffalo * Bison, a genus of wild cattle, including the American buffalo * Buffalo, New York, a city in the n ...

. He was in 10 games with Buffalo, with a 6.10 ERA.

Texas Rangers

On 16 December 2010, he was signed to a minor league contract with the Texas Rangers. He played in 16 games with the

Round Rock Express The Round Rock Express are a Minor League Baseball team of the Pacific Coast League (PCL) and the Triple-A (baseball), Triple-A affiliate of the Texas Rangers (baseball), Texas Rangers. They are located in Round Rock, Texas, and play their home ...

and was released on 2 June 2011, with a 3.42 ERA.

Arizona Diamondbacks

Later that day, he signed a minor league contract with the

and was assigned to the Triple-A

Reno Aces The Reno Aces are a Minor League Baseball team of the Pacific Coast League (PCL) and the Triple-A (baseball), Triple-A affiliate of the Arizona Diamondbacks. They are located in Reno, Nevada, and play their home games at Greater Nevada Field, w ...

. After 8 games with the Aces, he had his contract purchased on 28 June. He was outrighted to the minors on 20 July.

Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks

Brazoban was sold to the

in Japan on 29 July 2011.

Vaqueros Laguna

On 14 March 2012, Brazoban signed with the

Vaqueros Laguna The ''vaquero'' (; , ) is a horse-mounted livestock herder of a tradition that has its roots in the Iberian Peninsula and extensively developed in what what is today Mexico (then New Spain) and Spanish Florida from a method brought to the Americ ...

of the

Mexican Baseball League The Mexican Baseball League (, or LMB, ) is a professional baseball league in Mexico. It is the oldest running professional sports league in the country. The league has 20 teams organized in two divisions, North and South. Teams play 114 games ...

. He was released on 22 June.

Rojos del Águila de Veracruz

On 27 June 2012, Brazoban signed with the Rojos del Águila de Veracruz of the

. He was released on 29 June.

Grand Prairie AirHogs

Brazoban signed with the

Grand Prairie AirHogs The Texas AirHogs were a professional baseball team based in Grand Prairie, Texas from 2008 to 2020. The AirHogs were members of the American Association of Independent Professional Baseball, which is not affiliated with Major League Baseball. B ...

of the

American Association of Independent 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 ...

and played for them during the 2014 season.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Brazoban, Yhency 1980 births Living people Arizona Diamondbacks players Bridgeport Bluefish players Buffalo Bisons (minor league) players Columbus Clippers players Diablos Rojos del México players Dominican Republic expatriate baseball players in Japan Dominican Republic expatriate baseball players in Mexico Dominican Republic expatriate baseball players in the United States Dominican Summer League Dodgers players Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks players Grand Prairie AirHogs players Greensboro Bats players Gulf Coast Dodgers players Gulf Coast Yankees players Inland Empire 66ers players Jacksonville Suns players Las Vegas 51s players Los Angeles Dodgers players Major League Baseball pitchers Major League Baseball players from the Dominican Republic 21st-century Dominican Republic sportsmen Mexican League baseball pitchers Nippon Professional Baseball pitchers Petroleros de Minatitlán players Reno Aces players Rojos del Águila de Veracruz players Round Rock Express players Baseball players from Santo Domingo Tampa Yankees players Tigres del Chinandega players Tigres del Licey players Trenton Thunder players Vaqueros Laguna players Dominican Republic expatriate baseball players in Nicaragua