Brian Alexander Stokes (born September 7, 1979) is an American former professional

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding t ...

pitcher In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throws ("pitches") the baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of retiring a batter, who attempts to either make contact with the pitched ball or draw ...

. He played for the

Tampa Bay Devil 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 ve ...

New York Mets The New York Mets are an American professional baseball team based in the New York City borough of Queens. The Mets compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the National League (NL) East division. They are one of two major league ...

, and

Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim The Los Angeles Angels are an American professional baseball team based in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. The Angels compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West division. Since 1966, the team h ...

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), ...

Early life

Stokes was born in

Montclair, California Montclair is a city in the Pomona Valley, in southwestern San Bernardino County, California. The population was 36,664 in the 2010 United States Census. History The earliest known inhabitants of the area were from the Serrano tribe of Nativ ...

, and graduated from Jurupa Valley High School. He played

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 p ...

Riverside Community College Riverside City College (RCC) is a public community college in Riverside, California. The college is part of the Riverside Community College District, as well as the larger California Community Colleges System. History RCC first opened in 1916 at ...

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...

Career

On October 2, 1998, Stokes was signed as an amateur

free agent In professional sports, a free agent is a player who is eligible to sign with other clubs or franchises; i.e., not under contract to any specific team. The term is also used in reference to a player who is under contract at present but who is a ...

by the

. He spent his first professional season with the Princeton Devil Rays in . While with Princeton, he led the Appalachian League in games finished with 35. He pitched for Charleston (Single-A) in , allowing one

home run In baseball, a home run (abbreviated HR) is scored when the ball is hit in such a way that the batter is able to circle the bases and reach home plate safely in one play without any errors being committed by the defensive team. A home run i ...

in 70.1 innings pitched. Stokes pitched his first complete game at Mudville on June 23, 2001, but

lost Lost may refer to getting lost, or to: Geography *Lost, Aberdeenshire, a hamlet in Scotland * Lake Okeechobee Scenic Trail, or LOST, a hiking and cycling trail in Florida, US History *Abbreviation of lost work, any work which is known to have bee ...

the game. He played for Bakersfield during the season, leading the team in wins (10) and strikeouts (154). He threw his first professional

shutout In team sports, a shutout ( US) or clean sheet ( UK) is a game in which one team prevents the other from scoring any points. While possible in most major sports, they are highly improbable in some sports, such as basketball. Shutouts are usuall ...

on July 14 against San Jose. Stokes started ten games for

Orlando Orlando () is a city in the U.S. state of Florida and is the county seat of Orange County. In Central Florida, it is the center of the Orlando metropolitan area, which had a population of 2,509,831, according to U.S. Census Bureau figures re ...

(Double-A) before undergoing Tommy John surgery in , resulting in his missing the entire season. In , Stokes pitched for both

Visalia Visalia ( ) is a city in the agricultural San Joaquin Valley of California. The population was 141,384 as per the 2020 census. Visalia is the fifth-largest city in the San Joaquin Valley, the 42nd most populous in California, and 192nd in ...

(Single-A) and Montgomery (Double-A). A

hamstring In human anatomy, a hamstring () is any one of the three posterior thigh muscles in between the hip and the knee (from medial to lateral: semimembranosus, semitendinosus and biceps femoris). The hamstrings are susceptible to injury. In quadrupe ...

injury sidelined him for the month of July. He was recalled from

Durham Durham most commonly refers to: *Durham, England, a cathedral city and the county town of County Durham *County Durham, an English county * Durham County, North Carolina, a county in North Carolina, United States *Durham, North Carolina, a city in N ...

( Triple-A) on September 2, 2005. Stokes made his major league debut on September 3, 2006. In 2007, Brian's 59 appearances were fourth among American League

rookie A rookie is a person new to an occupation, profession, or hobby. In sports, a ''rookie'' is a professional athlete in their first season (or year). In contrast with a veteran who has experience and expertise, a rookie is usually inexperienced ...

New York Mets

On November 28, 2007, Stokes was sent from Tampa Bay to the

for cash considerations and was added to the Mets' 40-man roster. During spring training on the last day, he was

designated for assignment Designated for assignment (DFA) is a contractual term used in Major League Baseball (MLB). A player who is designated for assignment is immediately removed from the team's 40-man roster, after which the team must within seven days, return the pla ...

. He started the season with the Mets Triple-A affiliate, the New Orleans Zephyrs. He was called up to the Mets on August 9, 2008, to start in place of injured starting pitcher,

John Maine John Kevin Maine (born May 8, 1981) is an American former professional baseball pitcher. He has played for the Baltimore Orioles, New York Mets and Miami Marlins of Major League Baseball (MLB). He batted and threw right-handed. Early life and co ...

Los Angeles Angels

On January 22, 2010, Stokes was traded to the

for Gary Matthews, Jr. He was released by the Angels on September 7, 2010 after making 16 appearances with an 8.10 ERA.

Toronto Blue Jays

On December 21, 2010, Stokes signed a minor league contract with an invitation to spring training with the

Toronto Blue Jays The Toronto Blue Jays are a Canadian professional baseball team based in Toronto. The Blue Jays compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. Since 1989, the team has played its home games ...

. On February 14, 2011, Stokes' contract was voided by the Blue Jays "due to the results of his physical".http://gregorchisholm.mlblogs.com/archives/2011/02/updated-list-of-players-attending-camp.html

Arizona Diamondbacks

Stokes signed a minor league contract with 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 ...

on August 1, 2011, 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 affiliate of the Arizona Diamondbacks. They are located in Reno, Nevada, and play their home games at Greater Nevada Field, which opened in 2009. ...

References

External links

Baseball Almanac

{{DEFAULTSORT:Stokes, Brian Jurupa Valley, California 1979 births Living people Baseball players from California Major League Baseball pitchers Tampa Bay Devil Rays players New York Mets players Los Angeles Angels players Princeton Devil Rays players Charleston RiverDogs players Bakersfield Blaze players Orlando Rays players Visalia Oaks players Montgomery Biscuits players Riverside City Tigers baseball players Durham Bulls players New Orleans Zephyrs players Salt Lake Bees players Sportspeople from San Bernardino County, California Rancho Cucamonga Quakes players Camden Riversharks players Reno Aces players People from Montclair, California