Bryce Everett Brentz (born December 30, 1988) 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 professional ...

left fielder In baseball, a left fielder, abbreviated LF, is an outfielder who plays defense in left field. Left field is the area of the outfield to the left of a person standing at home plate and facing towards the pitcher's mound. In the numbering system ...

who is a free agent. He has played in

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), ...

(MLB) for the

Boston Red Sox The Boston Red Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Boston. The Red Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. Founded in as one of the American League's eigh ...

. During the 2014 and 2016 seasons, he appeared in a total of 34 MLB games with Boston. He bats and throws right-handed, and is listed at and .

Amateur career

Brentz attended South-Doyle High School in

Knoxville, Tennessee Knoxville is a city in and the county seat of Knox County in the U.S. state of Tennessee. As of the 2020 United States census, Knoxville's population was 190,740, making it the largest city in the East Tennessee Grand Division and the state' ...

. He then enrolled at

Middle Tennessee State University Middle Tennessee State University (MTSU or MT) is a public university in Murfreesboro, Tennessee. Founded in 1911 as a normal school, the university consists of eight Undergraduate education, undergraduate colleges as well as a college of Postgr ...

, where 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 ...

for the

Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders The Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders are the men's and women's athletic teams at Middle Tennessee State University, in Murfreesboro, Tennessee. MT athletic teams participate in NCAA Division I ( Bowl Subdivision in football) in Conference USA. MT ...

as a pitcher and an outfielder. He was a consensus

All-America The All-America designation is an annual honor bestowed upon an amateur sports person from the United States who is considered to be one of the best amateurs in their sport. Individuals receiving this distinction are typically added to an All-Am ...

n in 2009.

Professional career

Boston Red Sox

Brentz was drafted by the

in the first 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 ...

. Entering 2013, Brentz was ranked as the sixth best prospect in the Red Sox minor league system. He was preparing to participate in spring training of 2013 until he accidentally shot himself in the leg while cleaning his handgun during the offseason. Brentz returned to the

Pawtucket Red Sox The Pawtucket Red Sox, known colloquially as the PawSox, were a professional minor league baseball club based in Pawtucket, Rhode Island. From 1973 to 2020, the team was a member of the International League and served as the Triple-A affiliate ...

of the Triple-A International League, but missed time in July and August due to a torn meniscus. He posted a .262 average with 19 home runs and 64 RBIs in 88 games between Pawtucket and the Gulf Coast Red Sox, where he completed a rehab assignment, while tying with David Chester for the most home runs in the system. Brentz was added to the Red Sox'

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 ...

on November 20, 2013. He played for Pawtucket in 2014 and was part of the team that won the International League Governors' Cup. After Pawtucket lost the one-game

Triple-A World Series The Triple-A World Series was an interleague postseason championship series between the league champions of the affiliated Triple-A leagues of Minor League Baseball to determine an overall champion of the classification held in 1983 and from 199 ...

to the

Omaha Storm Chasers The Omaha Storm Chasers are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League and the Triple-A affiliate of the Kansas City Royals. They are located in Papillion, Nebraska, a suburb southwest of Omaha, and play their home games at We ...

of the Pacific Coast League, the Red Sox promoted Brentz to the major leagues, and he made his major league debut on September 17. He recorded a double off Pittsburgh Pirates pitcher

Francisco Liriano Francisco Liriano Casillas (born October 26, 1983) is a Dominican former professional baseball pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Minnesota Twins, Chicago White Sox, Pittsburgh Pirates, Toronto Blue Jays, Houston Astros, ...

in his first game for his first Major League hit. In 2015, Brentz missed time from May 20 through August 2 with a right hamstring strain. In 59 games with the PawSox that year, he hit .232 with 8 HR and 26 RBI. In 2016, Brentz missed the beginning of the season, from April 6 to May 6, with an oblique injury. In 54 games with Pawtucket and 12 games of rehab for the

Portland Sea Dogs The Portland Sea Dogs are a Minor League Baseball team based in Portland, Maine, playing in the Eastern League. Established in 1994, the Sea Dogs are the Double-A affiliate of the Boston Red Sox. The Sea Dogs became part of the Red Sox syst ...

, he hit a combined .242 with 5 HR and 24 RBI. He also had a stint with the Red Sox that year, hitting .279 with 1 HR and 7 RBI in 25 games. Brentz hit his first MLB home run on June 26, 2016, off Rangers pitcher Martin Pérez. On March 31, 2017, Brentz was outrighted off Boston's 40-man roster, and he accepted the assignment to Pawtucket. He is out of options. He was named International League Player of the Week for the week of June 18. He was also named an IL Mid-Season All-Star and a

Triple-A Home Run Derby The Triple-A All-Star Game was an annual baseball game held from 1988 to 2019 between professional players from the affiliated Triple-A leagues of Minor League Baseball. These leagues were the International League (IL) and Pacific Coast League ( ...

participant. Brentz, who hit a total of 38 home runs in the derby, defeated Dan Vogelbach in the final round to win the derby title. On November 2, 2017, Brentz had his contract purchased from Triple-A.

New York Mets

On February 20, 2018, Brentz was traded to the Pittsburgh Pirates in exchange for cash considerations. He was placed on outright waivers on March 24. He did not play for the Pirates organization, as on March 26, he was claimed off waivers by the

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 was outrighted to Triple-A on March 28. Overall during 2018, Brentz batted .263 in 57 minor league games. He declared free agency on October 5.

Return to Boston

On December 23, 2018, Brentz signed a minor league deal to return to the Red Sox, and was assigned to Triple-A Pawtucket. He appeared in 95 games with Pawtucket during the 2019 season, batting .216 with 18 home runs and 50 RBIs.

Somerset Patriots

On January 31, 2020, Brentz signed with the

Somerset Patriots The Somerset Patriots are an American Minor League Baseball team based in Bridgewater Township, New Jersey, that is the Double-A affiliate of the New York Yankees. They compete in the Eastern League, known as the Double-A Northeast in 2021, and w ...

of the Atlantic League of Professional Baseball. He did not play a game for the team due to the cancellation of the ALPB season because of the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identi ...

and became a free agent after the season.

Kane County Cougars

On November 17, 2021, Brentz signed with the

Kane County Cougars The Kane County Cougars are an independent professional baseball team located in Geneva, Illinois and are members of the American Association of Professional Baseball, an official Partner League of Major League Baseball (MLB). They play thei ...

of the

American Association of 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 ...

. Brentz played 7 games for the Cougars, during which he hit .222 with 1 Home Run and 1 RBI. On July 31, 2022, Brentz was released by the Cougars.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Brentz, Bryce 1988 births Baseball players from Knoxville, Tennessee Boston Red Sox players Greenville Drive players Gulf Coast Red Sox players Leones del Escogido players American expatriate baseball players in the Dominican Republic Living people Lowell Spinners players Major League Baseball left fielders Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders baseball players Naranjeros de Hermosillo players American expatriate baseball players in Mexico Pawtucket Red Sox players Portland Sea Dogs players Salem Red Sox players Surprise Saguaros players Criollos de Caguas players All-American college baseball players Liga de Béisbol Profesional Roberto Clemente outfielders