Alex James Burnett (born July 26, 1987) is an American former professional

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball sport played between two team sport, teams of nine players each, taking turns batting (baseball), batting and Fielding (baseball), fielding. The game occurs over the course of several Pitch ...

right-handed relief

pitcher In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throws ("Pitch (baseball), pitches") the Baseball (ball), baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of out (baseball), retiring a batter (baseball), batter, ...

. He is tall and weighs . He was drafted in the 12th round of the

2005 Major League Baseball draft The 2005 Major League Baseball draft, was held on June 7 and 8. It was conducted via conference call with representatives from each of the league's 30 teams. It is widely considered to be one of the best drafts in recent memory. ''SourceMajor L ...

by the

Minnesota Twins The Minnesota Twins are an American professional baseball team based in Minneapolis. The Twins compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League Central, Central Division. The team is named afte ...

Minor league career

In 2007, Burnett was selected to

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 while playing with the Twins' low A affiliate, the

Beloit Snappers The Beloit Sky Carp are a Minor League Baseball team of the Midwest League and the High-A affiliate of the Miami Marlins. They are located in Beloit, Wisconsin, and play their home games at ABC Supply Stadium. They previously played at Harry C ...

. He ended the season with a 3.02

earned run average In baseball statistics, earned run average (ERA) is the average of earned runs allowed by a pitcher per nine innings pitched (i.e. the traditional length of a game). It is determined by dividing the number of earned runs allowed by the number ...

, which was fifth best in the league. Burnett compiled a 5 – 2 record with a 3.36 ERA over 14 appearances (12 starts) in the first half of the 2008 season—helping his team capture the

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 following ...

first-half West Division title. Scout.com called him one of the best right-handed pitchers in the Twins' organization. On August 21, 2008, in only six

inning In baseball, softball, and similar games, an inning is the basic unit of play, consisting of two halves or frames, the "top" (first half) and the "bottom" (second half). In each half, one team bats until three outs are made, with the other tea ...

s, Burnett struck out a career best ten

Lakeland Flying Tigers The Lakeland Flying Tigers are a Minor League Baseball team of the Florida State League and the Single-A affiliate of the Detroit Tigers. They are located in Lakeland, Florida, and play their home games at Publix Field at Joker Marchant Stadium. ...

in the Miracle's 8–1 win at

Joker Marchant Stadium Publix Field at Joker Marchant Stadium is a baseball field in Lakeland, Florida. The 8,500-seat stadium was opened in 1966 and has had multiple renovations, most recently in 2017. It was named after local resident and former Lakeland Parks and R ...

in Lakeland. Burnett, Carlos Gutiérrez and Anthony Slama combined on a new season-high 17 strikeouts on the night. His best pitching performance of the season, however, may have been his last. With the Miracle already leading their first round playoff series against the

Dunedin Blue Jays The Dunedin Blue Jays are a Minor League Baseball team of the Florida State League and are the Single-A affiliate of the Toronto Blue Jays Major League Baseball club. They are located in Dunedin, Florida, and play their home games at TD Ballpark, ...

1–0, Burnett pitched six innings of

shutout In team sports, a shutout (North American English, US) or clean sheet (Commonwealth English, UK) is a game in which the losing team fails to score. While possible in most major sports, they are highly improbable in some sports, such as basketba ...

ball, giving up only two hits against the second half division winners. The Miracle went on to win the game 3–1 to advance to the second round of the playoffs for the first time since 1995.

MLB career

Minnesota Twins

He was converted to a

reliever In baseball and softball, a relief pitcher or reliever is a pitcher who pitches in the game after the starting pitcher or another relief pitcher has been removed from the game due to fatigue (medical), fatigue, injury, ineffectiveness, ejection ...

in 2009, and combined to go 3–3 with a 1.85 ERA, thirteen saves and 78

strikeout In baseball or softball, a strikeout (or strike-out) occurs when a batter accumulates three strikes during a time at bat. It means the batter is out, unless the third strike is not caught by the catcher and the batter reaches first base safe ...

s in 78 innings for the

Fort Myers Miracle The Fort Myers Mighty Mussels are a Minor League Baseball team of the Florida State League and the Single-A affiliate of the Minnesota Twins. They are located in Fort Myers, Florida, and play their home games at the Lee County Sports Complex at ...

and the Twins' Double-A affiliate, the

New Britain Rock Cats The New Britain Rock Cats were a minor league baseball team that competed in the Eastern League (1938–2020), Eastern League. They were the Double-A affiliate of the Boston Red Sox for 12 years, the Minnesota Twins for 20 years and the Colorado ...

. He made the Twins out of

Spring training Spring training, also called spring camp, is the preseason of the Summer Professional Baseball Leagues, such as Major League Baseball (MLB), and it is a series of practices and exhibition games preceding the start of the regular season. Spri ...

2010 without having ever played at the triple-A level. Burnett made his major league debut on April 8, 2010, retiring all three batters he faced in a 10–1 win over the

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

. On April 15, 2010, the Twins sent Burnett to their triple-A affiliate, the

Rochester Red Wings The Rochester Red Wings are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League and the Triple-A (baseball), Triple-A affiliate of the Washington Nationals. They are located in Rochester, New York, and play their home games at Innovative Fie ...

. Twins manager

Ron Gardenhire Ronald Clyde Gardenhire (born October 24, 1957) is an American former professional baseball player, coach, and manager. He played as a shortstop in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the New York Mets from 1981 to 1985. After another year playing i ...

said the move was partly so Burnett could get more regular playing time. He was recalled to the Twins just two days later, when they placed reliever

José Mijares José Manuel Mijares (born October 29, 1984) is a Venezuelan former professional baseball pitcher. Mijares pitched in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Minnesota Twins, Kansas City Royals, and San Francisco Giants. Professional career Minne ...

on the

disabled list In Major League Baseball (MLB), the injured list (IL) is a method for teams to remove their injured players from the roster in order to summon healthy players. Before the 2019 Major League Baseball season, 2019 season, it was known as the disabl ...

. Burnett continued to pitch regularly for the Twins, and remained on the roster when Mijares was reactivated. Burnett earned his first major league win on June 5, 2010, over the

Oakland A's Oakland is a city in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area in the U.S. state of California. It is the county seat and most populous city in Alameda County, California, Alameda County, with a population of 440,646 in 2020. A major We ...

. On July 19, the Twins optioned Burnett to Rochester and recalled pitcher Anthony Slama. He remained in Rochester until he was recalled on September 3, earning a win in his first appearance back in the majors.

Toronto Blue Jays

On March 29, 2013, Burnett was claimed by 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) American League East, East Division. Since 1989, the team has p ...

, and optioned to their new Triple-A affiliate

Buffalo Bisons The Buffalo Bisons (known colloquially as the Herd) are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League and the Triple-A affiliate of the Toronto Blue Jays. Located in Buffalo, New York, the team plays their home games at Sahlen Fiel ...

. On April 10, Burnett was designated for assignment by the Blue Jays to make room for waiver claim

Casper Wells Casper Charles Wells V (born November 23, 1984) is an American former professional baseball outfielder. He played in Major League Baseball for the Detroit Tigers, Seattle Mariners, Oakland Athletics, Chicago White Sox, and Philadelphia Phillies f ...

. He was claimed off waivers by the

Baltimore Orioles The Baltimore Orioles (also known as the O's) 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 America ...

on April 12, and sent to the Triple-A

Norfolk Tides The Norfolk Tides are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League and the Triple-A (baseball), Triple-A affiliate of the Baltimore Orioles. They are located in Norfolk, Virginia, and are named in nautical reference to the city's loc ...

. He was called up by the Orioles on April 22, and sent back to Norfolk on April 24. Burnett was called up again on May 9 when Miguel González was placed on the 15-day disabled list. He was optioned back to Norfolk on May 11, and recalled again on May 14 when

Wei-Yin Chen Wei-Yin Chen (; born July 21, 1985) is a Taiwanese former professional baseball pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Baltimore Orioles and Miami Marlins, and in Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) for the Chunichi Dragons, Ch ...

was placed on the disabled list. He was optioned back to Norfolk again on May 18, but was designated for assignment on May 23 to make room on the roster for Kevin Gausman.

Chicago Cubs

On May 27, 2013, Burnett was claimed off waivers by the

Chicago Cubs The Chicago Cubs are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The Cubs compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League Central, Central Division. Th ...

. The Cubs optioned him to the Triple-A

Iowa Cubs The Iowa Cubs are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League and the Triple-A (baseball), Triple-A affiliate of the Chicago Cubs. They are located in Des Moines, Iowa, and are named for their Major League Baseball (MLB) affiliate. T ...

on May 30. He was designated for assignment on June 1, 2013, and sent back to the Iowa Cubs on June 3. He elected free agency on November 14, 2013.

Sioux City Explorers

On June 13, 2014, Burnett signed with the

Sioux City Explorers The Sioux City Explorers are a professional baseball team based in Sioux City, Iowa, in the United States. The Explorers are inaugural members of the American Association of Professional Baseball, an official Partner League of Major League Baseba ...

of the

American Association of Independent 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 ...

. He became a free agent after the season. In 28 games 54 innings of relief he went 6-1 with a 2.17 ERA with 50 strikeouts and 3 saves.

Guerreros de Oaxaca

On April 1, 2015, he signed with the

Guerreros de Oaxaca The Guerreros de Oaxaca (English: Oaxaca Warriors) are a professional baseball team in the Mexican League based in Oaxaca City, Oaxaca, Mexico. Their home field is Estadio Eduardo Vasconcelos. History In October 1995, a group of businessmen, ...

of the

Mexican Baseball League The Mexican Baseball League (, or LMB, ) is a professional baseball league in Mexico. It is the oldest running professional sports league in the country. The league has 20 teams organized in two divisions, North and South. Teams play 114 games ...

. He was released on April 20, 2015. In 7 games 8.2 innings of relief he struggled going 1-0 with a 6.23 ERA with 12 strikeouts.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Burnett, Alex 1987 births Living people American expatriate baseball players in Mexico Baltimore Orioles players Baseball players from Anaheim, California Beloit Snappers players Buffalo Bisons (minor league) players Chicago Cubs players Elizabethton Twins players Fort Myers Miracle players Guerreros de Oaxaca players Gulf Coast Twins players Iowa Cubs players Major League Baseball pitchers Mesa Solar Sox players Mexican League baseball pitchers Minnesota Twins players Navegantes del Magallanes players American expatriate baseball players in Venezuela New Britain Rock Cats players Norfolk Tides players Baseball players from Westminster, California Rochester Red Wings players Sioux City Explorers players