| Brad Lincoln | |||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Lincoln with the Toronto Blue Jays | |||||||||||||||
| Pitcher | |||||||||||||||
| Born: (1985-05-25)May 25, 1985 (age 40) Lake Jackson, Texas, U.S. | |||||||||||||||
Batted: Left Threw: Right | |||||||||||||||
| MLB debut | |||||||||||||||
| June 9, 2010, for the Pittsburgh Pirates | |||||||||||||||
| Last MLB appearance | |||||||||||||||
| April 8, 2014, for the Philadelphia Phillies | |||||||||||||||
| MLB statistics | |||||||||||||||
| Win–loss record | 9–11 | ||||||||||||||
| Earned run average | 4.74 | ||||||||||||||
| Strikeouts | 169 | ||||||||||||||
Stats atBaseball Reference  | |||||||||||||||
| Teams | |||||||||||||||
| Career highlights and awards | |||||||||||||||
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Medals
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Brad Eric Lincoln (born May 25, 1985) is an American former professionalbaseballpitcher. He played inMajor League Baseball (MLB) for thePittsburgh Pirates,Toronto Blue Jays, andPhiladelphia Phillies. Prior to playing professionally, he attended theUniversity of Houston, where he playedcollege baseball for theHouston Cougars.
Lincoln played baseball forBrazoswood High School ofClute, Texas, though he also played on the football team, and did not concentrate exclusively on baseball until after his sophomore year.[1] After his senior season, theTexas Rangers selected him in the 28th round of the 2003 draft, but he elected to attend college rather than turning pro at that time.
He matriculated at theUniversity of Houston, where he playedcollege baseball for theHouston Cougars baseball team. In 2005, he playedcollegiate summer baseball in theCape Cod Baseball League for theBourne Braves, where he was named anall-star, and received the league's 10th Player award.[2][3]
He began the 2006 season by being named the Most Outstanding Player of theHouston College Classic.[4] For the season, he posted a 12–2 win–loss record and a 1.69earned run average (ERA), with 152strikeouts in127+2⁄3innings pitched, and also excelled with the bat, achieving a .295batting average with 14home runs and a team-leading 53RBI.[5] At the end of the season, he was named to theConference USA All-Tournament Team,[6] recognized as the Conference USA Pitcher of the Year, and won several major national awards, including theDick Howser Trophy[7] and theBrooks Wallace Award.[5] He was also one of four finalists for theRoger Clemens Award, but lost out toAndrew Miller of theUniversity of North Carolina.[8]
Scouts regarded Lincoln as one of the best players eligible for the 2006 draft, and the Pittsburgh Pirates chose him with the fourth overall selection of the first round, with the intention of advancing him through their system quickly.[9] Lincoln received $2.75 million to sign with the Pirates, and almost immediately encountered injury problems. Anoblique strain limited him to 24 innings in 2006, and then he hadTommy John surgery on his right arm in April 2007, which sidelined him for the entire year.[10] He first experienced elbow pain while pitching in the Florida Instructional League in late 2006,[11] and then the pain recurred in spring training in 2007,[11] leading to the discovery of the injury and the subsequent operation, performed by Dr.James Andrews inBirmingham, Alabama.[11]
Lincoln returned with theClass AHickory Crawdads of theSouth Atlantic League in 2008, and was promoted to theClass A-AdvancedLynchburg Hillcats of theCarolina League at midseason. In 2009, he started 13 games for the Double-AAltoona Curve of theEastern League with a 1–5win–loss record and a 2.28earned run average (ERA).[12] before moving up to theIndianapolis Indians, the Pirates' Triple-A affiliate in theInternational League in June, 2009. Lincoln started 12 games, compiled a 6–2 record with a 4.70 ERA.[13]
Lincoln made his MLB debut on the mound on June 9, 2010 against theWashington Nationals. He went 6 innings giving up 5 earned runs allowing 2 walks and recording 3 strikeouts. His first strikeout was againstJohn Lannan. He was 6–2 with a 3.16 ERA in 11 starts for Indianapolis prior to that point.[13] Lincoln earned his first Major League victory on June 30, 2010 by pitching a shutout against theChicago Cubs atWrigley Field. He pitched seven innings, striking out six and walking just one as the Pirates won 2–0.[14]
Lincoln was demoted back to Triple-A after his fourth loss of the season on July 25, 2010 against theSan Diego Padres.[15] It marked the third time in four July starts where he allowed 5 or more earned runs, including a night where he was spotted a 9–0 lead to work with after the 1st inning against theMilwaukee Brewers yet failed to get out of the 3rd inning. Pirates General ManagerNeal Huntington cited a drop in Lincoln's velocity since he was promoted and that he had strayed from his mechanics.[15]
Lincoln was called back to the majors on July 2, 2011 to pitch in a Game 2 of a Pirates doubleheader against the Nationals. During the game, he pitched six innings and gave Pittsburgh a chance to sweep the doubleheader in front of 39,638 atNationals Park. However the Pirates bullpen failed to hold on to game allowing the Nationals to a 4–3 rally. The Pirates optioned Lincoln back to Indianapolis the next day, when they recalledChris Leroux to add depth to the bullpen.[16]
Lincoln started the 2012 season at Triple-A Indianapolis. Lincoln was recalled April 18. For the 2012 season, Lincoln was being used by the Pirates as a long relief or a spot starter. On July 30, 2012, he was traded to theToronto Blue Jays forTravis Snider.[17]
Lincoln made his Blue Jay debut on August 1, 2012, against theSeattle Mariners and threw 1.1 innings without yielding a hit.
Lincoln started the 2013 season with the Triple-ABuffalo Bisons until he was called up by the Blue Jays on April 25.[18] Lincoln was optioned back to the Bisons on April 28 whenAdam Lind returned from paternity leave. Lincoln was recalled by the Blue Jays on May 2 whenJosh Johnson was placed on the disabled list.[19] On June 8, after pitching four scoreless innings in an 18 inning victory over theTexas Rangers, Lincoln was optioned back to the Buffalo Bisons.[20] Lincoln was recalled on August 3,[21] and optioned back to the Bisons on August 24.
On December 3, 2013, Lincoln was traded to thePhiladelphia Phillies for catcherErik Kratz and pitcherRob Rasmussen.[22] Lincoln was outrighted to the minors on April 12, 2014, to make room on the active roster forJonathan Pettibone.[23]
On November 18, 2014, Lincoln signed a minor league contract with the Pittsburgh Pirates.[24]
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