| Drew Naylor | |
|---|---|
 Naylor with the Chunichi Dragons | |
| Pitcher | |
| Born: (1986-05-31)31 May 1986 (age 38) Brisbane,Queensland,Australia | |
Batted: Right Threw: Right | |
| NPB debut | |
| 1 August, 2015, for the Chunichi Dragons | |
| Last MLB appearance | |
| 6 May, 2016, for the Chunichi Dragons | |
| NPB statistics | |
| Win–loss record | 5-5 |
| ERA | 4.15 |
| Strikeouts | 75 |
| Teams | |
Drew Roy Naylor (born 31 May 1986) is an Australian formerprofessional baseballpitcher. Naylor pitched inNippon Professional Baseball (NPB) for theChunichi Dragons from 2015 to 2016. He played in theminor league system of thePhiladelphia Phillies, as well as stints with theBrisbane Bandits in theAustralian Baseball League and theKagawa Olive Guyners in the independentShikoku Island League Plus. He was also selected to representAustralia at the2009 World Baseball Classic.
Naylor was educated atAnglican Church Grammar School inEast Brisbane,Queensland.[1]
Naylor made his affiliated debut in 2006 and then spent 2006 and 2007 with theGulf Coast League Phillies and theWilliamsport Crosscutters.
He spent the 2008 season with two teams, playing for theLakewood BlueClaws and theClearwater Threshers, going 5–3 in 14 games in Lakewood.
Naylor was also on the2009 World Baseball Classic roster forAustralia.
In late 2010 Naylor played the second half of the season in theAustralian Baseball League, making his debut on 22 December 2010 in Melbourne where he gave up a two-run home run in two innings of relief at the batter-friendlyMelbourne Showgrounds. He finished the season with a 3.21 ERA over 14 innings including two starts. In 2011, he started a Phillies spring training game againstFlorida State University, picking up the win in a scoreless outing.[2]
He missed the entire 2011 season after undergoingTommy John surgery, and wasdesignated for assignment by the Phillies on 16 September 2011.[3] He was then released from the Phillies as a free agent in November 2012.
In 2014, Naylor returned toBrisbane Bandits and pitched in three games, with 13 strikeouts in 13.2 innings earning a 7.24ERA. He finished his tenure in the ABL with a 0–2 record.[4]
On 2 March 2015, it was announced that Naylor had signed forKagawa Olive Guyners in the independentShikoku Island League Plus in Japan.[5]
Naylor made his debut in Japan in an inter-league match againstIshikawa Million Stars where he threw 6 innings allowing only 3 hits and 0 runs.[6] He was largely used as starting pitcher for the remainder of his tenure and recorded 4 wins, 1 loss, and 2 saves with an ERA of 1.37 and 55 strikeouts.[7]
He was selected and pitched for theShikoku Island All-Stars in a tour of theCan-Am League,[8] and was then subsequently signed for theChunichi Dragons in theNippon Professional Baseball.[9]
In his second start for the Dragons, Naylor threw 8 innings to register his first win as well as contributing with the bat by hitting a solohomer in the bottom of the 4th inning against theYakult Swallows.[10]
After starting his second year with the Dragons in the starting rotation, his season was interrupted by elbow soreness when pitching against theYomiuri Giants on 6 May 2016 ruling him out for an unspecified amount of time.[11] He attempted to get back to fitness with the DragonsWestern League team but ultimately to no avail as a niggling shoulder issue ruled him out of the season.[12] Naylor remained in Nagoya to undergo treatment with a view to staying with the Dragons through the 2017 season to help in the lead-up to the2017 World Baseball Classic in March where he would be expected to representAustralia at the tournament.[12]
On 5 October 2016, it was reported new managerShigekazu Mori had told Naylor that the team would not be renewing his contract.[13] On 29 October, it was confirmed that Naylor would be released from the team along withRicardo Nanita,Juan Jaime,Leyson Septimo, andAnderson Hernandez.[14][15]
Following his release from the Dragons, Naylor teamed up once more with his hometown team theBrisbane Bandits in December 2016.[16] He re-signed with the team for the 2018/19 season.