Alex Joseph Graman (born November 17, 1977) is former

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. He bats and throws left-handed. He retired (as a player) in 2014.

College career

Graman was a three-time letterman for coach

Bob Warn Bob Warn is a former Indiana State Sycamores baseball coach. While coaching Indiana State University's Baseball team, he led the Sycamores to six Missouri Valley Conference (1979, 1983, 1984, 1986, 1989, 1995) championships, seven NCAA Tournamen ...

Indiana State University Indiana State University (ISU) is a public university in Terre Haute, Indiana. It was founded in 1865 and offers over 100 undergraduate majors and more than 75 graduate and professional programs. Indiana State is classified among "D/PU: Doctor ...

from 1997 to 1999. He finished his career as a second team All- MVC in 1998. Graman ranks fourth in Indiana State history with five games of 10+ strikeouts in a career and is seventh on the school's single season strikeout list with 112. He was drafted in the third round by 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 o ...

Minor league career

Graman spent 6 seasons in the

system; 1999 with 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 pl ...

, where he went 6-3 and was named the Top Prospect in the

New York–Penn League The New York–Penn League (NYPL) was a Minor League Baseball league that operated in the northeastern United States from 1939 to 2020. Classified as a Class A Short Season league, its season started in June, after major-league teams signed th ...

. In 2000, he was 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 Coun ...

of 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 follow ...

, compiled a record of 8-9 and was promoted to Double A with the Norwich Navigators of the Eastern League. he spent 2001 and part of 2002 with the Navigators as he went 17-11 and earned another promotion to Triple A with the

Columbus Clippers The Columbus Clippers are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League (IL) and the Triple-A affiliate of the Cleveland Guardians. They are located in Columbus, Ohio, and are named for speedy merchant sailing vessels known as clipp ...

of the

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 2002. He spent the next four seasons (2002–2005) in Columbus, going 31-31, and New York. In 2004, he led the

in strikeouts (129) and was selected as an All-Star for the Clippers. He finished the 2005 season with the

Louisville Bats The Louisville Bats are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League (IL) and the Triple-A affiliate of the Cincinnati Reds. They are located in Louisville, Kentucky, and are named in dual reference to the winged mammal and baseball ...

, the top farm club of the

Cincinnati Reds The Cincinnati Reds are an American professional baseball team based in Cincinnati. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) National League Central, Central division and were a charter member of ...

, where he compiled a record of 2-1.

Major League career

Graman made his debut in Major League Baseball with the

in , after six seasons in the Yankee farm system. In his first start against the

Chicago White Sox The Chicago White Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The White Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. The team is owned by Jerry Reinsdorf, and ...

, he gave up 5 runs in 2 innings pitched. In his next start against 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 ...

, he only lasted a third of an inning, giving up five

earned run In baseball, an earned run is any run that was fully enabled by the offensive team's production in the face of competent play from the defensive team. Conversely, an unearned run is a run that would not have been scored without the aid of an err ...

s, but avoided a

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in both appearances. He was outrighted to the Yankee Triple-A club in

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after the game with the Tampa Bay squad. He finished the year with a 19.80

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. In , he fared only slightly better, giving up 2 earned runs in one and a third innings before being designated for assignment by the Yankees and later released. On August 10, 2005, Graman signed with the

. He pitched in 5 games for their Triple-A affiliate, the

, but despite having a 3.09 ERA, he was released on September 12, 2005. In 5 Major League games, all with the Yankees, he has pitched in 6 innings and given up 17

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and 13 runs all earned for an ERA of 18.47.

Japan

On January 15, 2006, Graman signed a one-year, 50 million yen (about US$467,000) contract with the Seibu Lions. Graman re-signed with the Lions after the season. Beginning in , he replaced Chikara Onodera as the closer. Graman came into his own as a closer, finishing with a 3-3 record, 31 saves, and a 1.42 ERA. He helped the Lions win the

Pacific League The or is one of the two professional baseball leagues constituting Nippon Professional Baseball in Japan. The winner of the league championship competes against the winner in the Central League for the annual Japan Series. It currently consi ...

championship and the Climax Series before saving Games 1 and 7 of the

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as Seibu beat the

Yomiuri Giants The are a Japanese professional baseball team competing in Nippon Professional Baseball's Central League. Based in Bunkyo, Tokyo, they are one of two professional baseball teams based in Tokyo, the other being the Tokyo Yakult Swallows. They ...

4 games to 3. Graman tossed the final two innings of Game 7, allowing no hits or walks while

striking out ''Striking Out'' is an Irish television legal drama series, broadcast on RTÉ, that first aired on 1 January 2017. Produced by Bl!nder F!lms for RTÉ Television, ''Striking Out'' stars Amy Huberman as Dublin-based solicitor Tara Rafferty, who i ...

two. He finished the postseason by allowing two earned runs in five innings, but did not allow a run in three Japan Series frames. Opening day 2009 found Alex with the defending champions, the

Saitama Seibu Lions The are a professional baseball team in Japan's Pacific League based north of Tokyo in Tokorozawa, Saitama Prefecture. Before 1979, they were based in Fukuoka, Fukuoka Prefecture in Kyushu. The team is owned by a subsidiary of Seibu Railway, ...

for his fourth season in the Japanese

. Graman's development as a pitcher while in Japan, led many in baseball to believe he would return to the Major Leagues as a set-up man or long reliever.

Korea

On January 16, 2012, Graman signed a contract with a bonus of $50,000 with

Kia Tigers Kia Tigers ( ko, KIA 타이거즈) are a South Korean professional baseball team founded in 1982 and based in the southwestern city of Gwangju. Until 2001, they were known as the Haitai Tigers. The Tigers are a members of the KBO League and are ...

of the Korea Baseball Organization. However, he failed the medical test and the pitching workout. Tigers decided not to sign Graman on February 5, 2012.

Coaching Career

Following his retirement, Graman began a career in youth baseball; spending 4 years with the Indiana Bulls travel team and a similar tenure with Zionsville High School. He is also an instructor at a sports development academy near Indianapolis.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Graman, Alex 1977 births Living people Major League Baseball pitchers Baseball players from Indiana New York Yankees players Indiana State Sycamores baseball players American expatriate baseball players in Japan Nippon Professional Baseball pitchers Seibu Lions players Saitama Seibu Lions players Staten Island Yankees players Tampa Yankees players Norwich Navigators players Columbus Clippers players Louisville Bats players People from Huntingburg, Indiana People from Dubois County, Indiana