Benjamin Joseph Gamel (born May 17, 1992) 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 professiona ...

outfielder An outfielder is a person playing in one of the three defensive positions in baseball or softball, farthest from the batter. These defenders are the left fielder, the center fielder, and the right fielder. As an outfielder, their duty is to cat ...

for 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 ...

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 (A ...

(MLB). He has previously played in MLB for the

New York 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 ...

Seattle Mariners The Seattle Mariners are an American professional baseball team based in Seattle. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West division. The team joined the American League as an expansion ...

Milwaukee Brewers The Milwaukee Brewers are an American professional baseball team based in Milwaukee. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) National League Central, Central division. The Brewers are named for t ...

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) American League Central, Central division. Since , they have ...

, and

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 (NL) Central division. Founded as part of the American Associati ...

Career

Early life

Gamel attended

Bishop Kenny High School Bishop Kenny High School (commonly referred to as Bishop Kenny or BKHS) is a private, college-preparatory, coeducational Catholic high school in Jacksonville, Florida. It is located in and administered by the Roman Catholic Diocese of St. Augusti ...

Jacksonville, Florida Jacksonville is a city located on the Atlantic coast of northeast Florida, the most populous city proper in the state and is the largest city by area in the contiguous United States as of 2020. It is the seat of Duval County, with which th ...

. He committed to play

college baseball College baseball is baseball that is played on the intercollegiate level at institutions of higher education. In comparison to football and basketball, college competition in the United States plays a smaller role in developing professional pl ...

Florida State University Florida State University (FSU) is a public university, public research university in Tallahassee, Florida. It is a senior member of the State University System of Florida. Founded in 1851, it is located on the oldest continuous site of higher e ...

New York Yankees

The

selected Gamel in the 10th round of the

2010 Major League Baseball draft The 2010 Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft was held on June 7–9, 2010 at the MLB Network Studios in Secaucus, New Jersey. First-round selections The draft order was determined based on the 2009 MLB standings, with the worst team pi ...

. He signed with the Yankees and made his professional debut with 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 baseba ...

of the Rookie-level

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 l ...

. He played in 2011 for the

Staten Island Yankees The Staten Island Yankees were a minor league baseball team located in the New York City borough of Staten Island from 1999 to 2020. Nicknamed the "Baby Bombers", the Yankees were the Class A Short Season affiliate of the New York Yankees and pla ...

of the

Class A-Short Season Class A Short Season (officially Short-Season A) was a level of play in Minor League Baseball in the United States from 1965 through 2020. In the hierarchy of minor league classifications, it was below Triple-A, Double-A, Class A-Advanced (cre ...

New York-Penn League New is an adjective referring to something recently made, discovered, or created. New or NEW may refer to: Music * New, singer of K-pop group The Boyz Albums and EPs * ''New'' (album), by Paul McCartney, 2013 * ''New'' (EP), by Regurgitator ...

and in 2012 with the

Charleston RiverDogs The Charleston RiverDogs are a Minor League Baseball team of the Carolina League. They are located in Charleston, South Carolina, and are the Single-A affiliate of the Tampa Bay Rays. The RiverDogs' home stadium is Joseph P. Riley Jr. Park. Hi ...

of the Class A

South Atlantic League The South Atlantic League, often informally called the Sally League, is a Minor League Baseball league with teams predominantly in states along the Atlantic coast of the United States from New York to Georgia. A Class A league for most of its ...

. He began the 2013 season with the

Tampa Yankees Tampa () is a city on the Gulf Coast of the U.S. state of Florida. The city'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 seat of Hillsborough ...

of the

Class A-Advanced High-A (officially Class High-A, formerly known as Class A-Advanced, and sometimes abbreviated "A+" in writing) is the third-highest level of play in Minor League Baseball in the United States and Canada, below Triple-A and Double-A, and abov ...

Florida State League The Florida State League (FSL) is a Minor League Baseball league based in the state of Florida. Having been classified at various levels throughout its existence, it operated at Class A-Advanced from 1990 until its demotion to Single-A followi ...

before being promoted to the

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 ...

of the

Class AA Double-A (officially Class AA) is the second-highest level of play in Minor League Baseball in the United States since 1946, below only Triple-A. There are currently 30 teams classified at the Double-A level, one for each team in Major League ...

Eastern League Eastern League may refer to: Baseball in the United States ''Most recent leagues listed first'' * Eastern League (1938–present), a minor league established in 1923 and renamed Eastern League in 1938, at the Double-A level * Eastern League (1916� ...

. He returned to Trenton in 2014 and played for the

Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders The Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders (often abbreviated to SWB RailRiders) are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League (IL) and the Triple-A affiliate of the New York Yankees. They are located in Moosic, Pennsylvania, in the ...

of the

Class AAA Triple-A (officially Class AAA) has been the highest level of play in Minor League Baseball in the United States since 1946. Currently, two leagues operate at the Triple-A level, the International League (IL) and the Pacific Coast League (PCL). ...

International League The International League (IL) is a Minor League Baseball league that operates in the United States. Along with the Pacific Coast League, it is one of two leagues playing at the Triple-A level, which is one grade below Major League Baseball ( ...

in 2015. The Yankees added him to their

40-man roster A Major League Baseball roster is a list of players who are allowed, by league agreement, to play for a Major League Baseball (MLB) team. Each MLB team maintains two rosters: an active roster of players eligible to participate in an MLB game, an ...

after the 2015 season. After attending

spring training Spring training is the preseason in Major League Baseball (MLB), a series of practices and exhibition games preceding the start of the regular season. Spring training allows new players to try out for roster and position spots, and gives estab ...

, Gamel began the 2016 season with Scranton/Wilkes-Barre. The Yankees promoted Gamel to the major leagues on May 5, and he made his major league debut as a defensive replacement on May 6. He spent the majority of the 2016 season with Scranton/Wilkes-Barre, and won the International League Most Valuable Player Award.

Seattle Mariners

On August 31, 2016, the

acquired Gamel from the Yankees for minor league pitchers Jio Orozco and Juan De Paula. In 2017, Gamel played in 134 contests for Seattle, slashing .275/.322/.413 with 11 home runs and 59 RBI over 509 at-bats. Gamel hit .272/.358/.370 with one homer and 19 RBI over 257 at-bats in 101 games for the Mariners in 2018.

Milwaukee Brewers

On December 21, 2018, the Mariners traded Gamel and

Noah Zavolas Noah Zavolas (born May 11, 1996) is an American professional baseball pitcher for the Milwaukee Brewers organization. Amateur career Zavolas attended Acton-Boxborough Regional High School in Acton, Massachusetts. He enrolled at Harvard Universi ...

to the

for

Domingo Santana Domingo Alberto Santana (born August 5, 1992) is a Dominican professional baseball outfielder for the Tokyo Yakult Swallows of Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB). He has played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Houston Astros, Milwaukee Bre ...

. Gamel played in 134 games for the Brewers in 2019, slashing .248/.337/.373 with 7 home runs and 33 RBI over 311 at-bats. In 2020, Gamel appeared in 40 contests, hitting .237/.315/.404 with 3 home runs and 10 RBI in 114 at-bats. On December 2, 2020, Gamel was non tendered by the Brewers, making him a free agent.

Cleveland Indians

On February 11, 2021, Gamel signed a minor league contract with the

organization that included an invitation to Spring Training. The Indians selected Gamel's contract on March 27, 2021. Gamel was designated for assignment on May 5, 2021.

Pittsburgh Pirates

On May 9, 2021, Gamel was claimed off waivers by the

. In 111 games for the Pirates, Gamel batted .255/.352/.399 with 8 home runs and 26 RBI.

Tampa Bay Rays

On February 22, 2023, Gamel signed a minor league contract 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 ...

organization. In 59 games for the Triple–A

Durham Bulls The Durham Bulls are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League and the Triple-A affiliate of the Tampa Bay Rays. They are located in Durham, North Carolina, and play their home games at Durham Bulls Athletic Park, which opened ...

, Gamel hit .276/.402/.463 with 8 home runs and 31 RBI.

San Diego Padres

On July 13, 2023, Gamel was traded to the

. In 18 games for the Triple–A

El Paso Chihuahuas The El Paso Chihuahuas are a Minor League Baseball team of the Pacific Coast League (PCL) and the Triple-A affiliate of the San Diego Padres. They are located in El Paso, Texas, and play their home games at Southwest University Park, which opened ...

, he batted .314/.402/.600 with 5 home runs and 13 RBI. On August 14, the Padres selected Gamel's contract, adding him to the major league roster.

Personal life

His brother, Mat Gamel played

for the Milwaukee Brewers. Gamel and his wife Lauren had their first child, a daughter, in March 2022.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gamel, Ben 1992 births Living people American expatriate baseball players in Venezuela Baseball players from Jacksonville, Florida Bishop Kenny High School alumni Charleston RiverDogs players Cleveland Indians players Durham Bulls players El Paso Chihuahuas players Gulf Coast Yankees players Leones del Caracas players Major League Baseball outfielders Milwaukee Brewers players Modesto Nuts players New York Yankees players Pittsburgh Pirates players San Diego Padres players Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders players Seattle Mariners players Staten Island Yankees players Tacoma Rainiers players Tampa Yankees players Trenton Thunder players