Robert Andrew Stubbs (born October 4, 1984) is an American former

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 ...

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 c ...

. He 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 Cincinnati Reds,

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) Central division. Since , they have played at Progressive Fi ...

, Colorado Rockies,

Atlanta Braves The Atlanta Braves are an American professional baseball team based in the Atlanta metropolitan area. The Braves compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) East division. The Braves were founded in Bos ...

, Texas Rangers,

Baltimore Orioles The Baltimore Orioles are an American professional baseball team based in Baltimore. The Orioles compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. As one of the American League's eight charter ...

and the

San Francisco Giants The San Francisco Giants are an American professional baseball team based in San Francisco, California. The Giants compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Founded in 1883 as the New Y ...

Before professional baseball

Drew Stubbs graduated from Atlanta High School in 2003. He was a three-time All-American in baseball and two-time academic All-American at the

University of Texas The University of Texas at Austin (UT Austin, UT, or Texas) is a public research university in Austin, Texas. It was founded in 1883 and is the oldest institution in the University of Texas System. With 40,916 undergraduate students, 11,075 ...

. He hit a game-winning triple for

Team USA The United States national team or Team USA may refer to any of a number of sports team representing the United States in international competitions. Olympic teams Additionally, these teams may compete in other international competitions such as ...

in the gold medal game against Japan at the 2004 FISU II

World University Baseball Championship The World University Baseball Championship is an under-23 international college baseball competition sponsored by the International University Sports Federation (FISU) and was first held in 2002 in Italy. Until 2013, it was sanctioned by the then- ...

Taiwan Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the nort ...

. Stubbs was the Longhorns' co-MVP, named Big 12 co-Player of the Year, and one of five finalists for the

Golden Spikes Award The Golden Spikes Award is bestowed annually to the best amateur baseball player in the United States. The award, created by USA Baseball and sponsored by the Major League Baseball Players Association, was first presented in 1978. It is given to ...

in 2006.

Professional career

Draft and Minors

Stubbs was the first round pick (8th overall) of the Cincinnati Reds in the 2006 draft. In his 2006 season at the rookie class

Billings Mustangs The Billings Mustangs are an independent baseball team of the Pioneer League, which is not affiliated with Major League Baseball (MLB) but is an MLB Partner League. They are located in Billings, Montana, and have played their home games at Dehler ...

, Stubbs batted .256 with six home runs and 24 RBIs in 56 games, including three triples, in 210 at-bats. Earning a promotion to the Class A

Dayton Dragons The Dayton Dragons are a Minor League Baseball team of the Midwest League and the High-A affiliate of the Cincinnati Reds. They are located in Dayton, Ohio, and play their home games at Day Air Ballpark, formerly known as Fifth Third Field. I ...

(the low A team), he batted .270 with 12 home runs, 43 RBIs, and 23 stolen bases in 129 games, including an 11-game hit streak to start the year. His performance earned him a spot in the

Midwest League The Midwest League is a Minor League Baseball league established in 1947 and based in the Midwestern United States. A Class A league for most of its history, the league was promoted to High-A as part of Major League Baseball's 2021 reorganizat ...

All-Star Game. After the season, he was named the tenth-best prospect in the Midwest League and the fifth-best in the Reds' organization by Baseball America. In the 2008 season Stubbs started with the Single-A

Sarasota Reds The Sarasota Reds were a professional minor league baseball team, located in Sarasota, Florida, as a member of the Florida State League. However team originally started play in Sarasota as the Sarasota White Sox in 1989. They remained in the city ...

(the high A team), then was promoted to the Double-A

Chattanooga Lookouts The Chattanooga Lookouts are a Minor League Baseball team of the Southern League and the Double-A affiliate of the Cincinnati Reds. They are located in Chattanooga, Tennessee, and are named for nearby Lookout Mountain. The team plays its home g ...

, and finally to the Triple-A Louisville Bats. In a combined 131 plate appearances, he batted .277 with 7 home runs, 57 RBIs, and 33 stolen bases. His 33 steals led all Reds minor leaguers. Stubbs represented the U.S. in the 2009 All-Star Futures Game. As of 2009, he was ranked as the Reds' third best prospect behind first baseman

Yonder Alonso Yonder Alonso (born April 8, 1987) is a Cuban former professional baseball first baseman and current MLB Network analyst. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Cincinnati Reds, San Diego Padres, Oakland Athletics, Seattle Mariners, Cl ...

and shortstop

Todd Frazier Todd Brian Frazier (born February 12, 1986), nicknamed "The Toddfather", is an American former professional baseball third baseman. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Cincinnati Reds, Chicago White Sox, New York Yankees, Texas Rang ...

Cincinnati Reds

Stubbs made his Major League debut on August 19, 2009. In his second game, he hit a game-winning home run to beat the

. He finished the season with a .267 average while hitting eight home runs during the last five-plus weeks of that season. He hit his first career grand slam on April 9, 2010, against the Chicago Cubs. On July 4, 2010, he hit three home runs against the Cubs. On July 24, 2011, Stubbs hit a leadoff walk-off home run on the first pitch from

reliever

Scott Linebrink Scott Cameron Linebrink (born August 4, 1976) is an American former professional baseball pitcher. He attended Texas State University before getting drafted, but finished his degree after his retirement at Concordia University (Texas) in Austin. ...

to give the Reds a 4–3 win. During the 2011 season, Stubbs had a .243 batting average, 15 homers, and 40 RBI. He led the Major Leagues with number of times striking out, totaling 205 times. He became only the 2nd player to strike out 200 or more times in a season. He was second in the league in stolen bases, with 40. On September 15, 2012, Stubbs was involved in MLB history when his batted groundball was bobbled by Marlins SS Jose Reyes; that would turn out to be MLB's 500,000th

error An error (from the Latin ''error'', meaning "wandering") is an action which is inaccurate or incorrect. In some usages, an error is synonymous with a mistake. The etymology derives from the Latin term 'errare', meaning 'to stray'. In statistics ...

Cleveland Indians

Stubbs was traded to the

, along with

Trevor Bauer Trevor Andrew Bauer (born January 17, 1991) is an American professional baseball pitcher for the Los Angeles Dodgers of Major League Baseball (MLB). He previously played for the Arizona Diamondbacks, Cleveland Indians, and Cincinnati Reds. Af ...

of 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 ...

in a three-team deal that sent

Shin-Soo Choo Shin-Soo Choo (; ; born July 13, 1982) is a South Korean professional baseball outfielder and designated hitter for the SSG Landers of the KBO League. He has played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Seattle Mariners, Cleveland Indians, C ...

to the Reds, among other players. On January 17, 2013, Stubbs avoided arbitration with the Indians by signing a one-year, $2.825 million deal with $50,000 in performance bonuses.

Colorado Rockies

On December 18, 2013, Stubbs was traded to the Colorado Rockies for

Josh Outman Joshua Stephen Outman (born September 14, 1984) is an American former professional baseball pitcher. He pitched in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Oakland Athletics (2008-2009, 2011), Colorado Rockies (2012-2013), Cleveland Indians (2014), ...

. On August 17, 2014 Stubbs hit a walk-off, three-run home run against Cincinnati Reds pitcher J. J. Hoover, in game one of their double header. On January 14, 2015 Stubbs and the Rockies avoided arbitration by agreeing to a one-year deal worth $5.825 million. He was designated for assignment on August 12, 2015, and released on August 23.

Texas Rangers

On August 24, 2015, Stubbs signed a minor league deal with the Texas Rangers. On September 1, he was called up to the majors. For the season, he had the highest strikeout percentage against left-handed pitchers (45.3%). On March 29, 2016, Stubbs was released.

Atlanta Braves

The

signed Stubbs to a minor league contract on March 30, 2016. The team purchased his contract on April 2. He was designated for assignment on May 2.

Second stint with Texas Rangers

Stubbs signed with the Texas Rangers on May 7, 2016. He was designated for assignment on August 25. Stubbs rejected an outright assignment and was released.

Baltimore Orioles

On August 31, 2016, Stubbs was claimed off of release waivers by the

. He elected free agency after the season on November 3.

San Francisco Giants

On April 24, 2017, Stubbs' contract was purchased by the Giants and was later promoted to the active roster. Stubbs was designated for assignment on May 6, 2017.

Third stint with Texas

On May 16, 2017, Stubbs signed a minor league deal with the Rangers. He was immediately assigned to the

Round Rock Express The Round Rock Express are a Minor League Baseball team of the Pacific Coast League (PCL) and the Triple-A affiliate of the Texas Rangers. They are located in Round Rock, Texas, and play their home games at the Dell Diamond. The team is named ...

. He was released on August 30.

Personal life

Stubbs and his wife, Brooke, reside in

Austin, Texas Austin is the capital city of the U.S. state of Texas, as well as the seat and largest city of Travis County, with portions extending into Hays and Williamson counties. Incorporated on December 27, 1839, it is the 11th-most-populous city ...

with their two children. He works for an insurance company in the city.

References

External links

MILB.com
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Stubbs, Drew 1984 births Living people People from Atlanta, Texas Baseball players from Texas Major League Baseball outfielders Cincinnati Reds players Cleveland Indians players Colorado Rockies players Texas Rangers players Atlanta Braves players Baltimore Orioles players San Francisco Giants players Texas Longhorns baseball players Billings Mustangs players Dayton Dragons players Louisville Bats players Sarasota Reds players Peoria Javelinas players Chattanooga Lookouts players Albuquerque Isotopes players Round Rock Express players Sacramento River Cats players