Blake William Beavan (born January 17, 1989) 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 professiona ...

pitcher In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throws ("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, who attempts to e ...

. A first-round draft pick in the

2007 MLB Draft The 2007 Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft was Major League Baseball's annual amateur draft of high school and college baseball players and was held on June 7, 2007 and June 8, 2007. The first day session of the draft included the fir ...

by the Texas Rangers, Beavan was traded to the

Seattle Mariners The Seattle Mariners are an American professional baseball team based in Seattle. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West division. The team joined the American League as an expansion team ...

in 2010 in a package of prospects for Cliff Lee. In 2011, he made his

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) debut with the Mariners.

Early life

Beavan began playing baseball at the age of 5 in the Irving Boys Baseball Association.

Career

Amateur career

Beavan attended

Irving High School Irving High School is a public high school in Irving, Texas Irving is a city in the U.S. state of Texas. Located in Dallas County, it is also an inner ring suburb of Dallas. The city of Irving is part of the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. Acc ...

Irving, Texas Irving is a city in the U.S. state of Texas. Located in Dallas County, it is also an inner ring suburb of Dallas. The city of Irving is part of the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. According to a 2019 estimate from the United States Census Bur ...

. He was voted the district's freshman of the year in 2004. In 2006, his junior season, he led Irving to the playoffs for the first time since 1999. He had the lowest

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 numb ...

(ERA), 0.36, in Class 5A. That year, he played for the United States junior national baseball team and competed in the 2006 World Junior Baseball Championship. He also won ''

Baseball America ''Baseball America'' is a sports enterprise that covers baseball at every level, including MLB, with a particular focus on up-and-coming players in the MiLB, college, high school, and international leagues. It is currently published in the form ...

''s 2006 Youth Player of the Year award, as the United States won the

silver medal A silver medal in sports and other similar areas involving competition is a medal made of, or plated with, silver awarded to the second-place finisher, or runner-up, of contests or competitions such as the Olympic Games, Commonwealth Games, e ...

. In 2007, his senior season in high school, Beavan compiled a 9–2

win–loss record In sports, a winning percentage is the fraction of games or matches a team or individual has won. The statistic is commonly used in standings or rankings to compare teams or individuals. It is defined as wins divided by the total number of match ...

, a 0.19 ERA, and 139 strikeouts in 73

innings pitched In baseball, innings pitched (IP) are the number of innings a pitcher has completed, measured by the number of batters and baserunners that are put out while the pitcher is on the pitching mound in a game. Three outs made is equal to one inning ...

, allowing only two

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 in 11 starts. He threw a perfect game in March 2007. In recognition of his achievements, Beavan was named 2007 Texas high school player of the year. Beavan committed to attend Navarro College, a junior college in

Corsicana, Texas Corsicana is a city in Navarro County, Texas, United States. It is located on Interstate 45, 56 miles northeast of Waco, Texas. The population was 23,770 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Navarro County, and an important Agri-busin ...

, where he intended to play

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 pl ...

Texas Rangers

Heading into the 2007 Major League Baseball Draft, Beavan was considered a top prospect, with the ability to throw his

fastball The fastball is the most common type of pitch thrown by pitchers in baseball and softball. " Power pitchers," such as former American major leaguers Nolan Ryan and Roger Clemens, rely on speed to prevent the ball from being hit, and have t ...

at consistently, and as fast as . The Texas Rangers selected Beavan in the first round, with the 17th overall selection. He was one of three high school pitchers chosen by the Rangers in the first round of the draft. Beavan signed with the Rangers, foregoing college, for a

signing bonus A signing bonus or sign-on bonus is a sum of money paid to a new employee (including a professional sports person) by a company as an incentive to join that company. They are often given as a way of making a compensation package more attractive ...

of $1.5 million. In his first professional season, Beavan had a 10–6 record and a 2.37 ERA in 23 games started for the Clinton LumberKings of the Class-A

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 reorganiza ...

. By 2009, Beavan pitched for the Bakersfield Blaze of the Class-A Advanced California League. He was promoted to the

Frisco RoughRiders The Frisco RoughRiders (often shortened to 'Riders) are a Minor League Baseball team of the Texas League and the Double-A affiliate of the Texas Rangers. They are located in Frisco, Texas, and are named for the 1st U.S. Volunteer Cavalry Regim ...

of the Class-AA

Texas League The Texas League is a Minor League Baseball league which has operated in the South Central United States since 1902. It is classified as a Double-A league. Despite the league's name, only its five South Division teams are actually based in the ...

in June 2009. In 2010, Beavan had a 10–5 record and a 2.78 ERA in 17 games started at for Frisco, where he was named the Rangers' Minor League Pitcher of the Month for May. He received a promotion to the Oklahoma City RedHawks of the Class-AAA

Pacific Coast League The Pacific Coast League (PCL) is a Minor League Baseball league that operates in the Western United States. Along with the International League, it is one of two leagues playing at the Triple-A level, which is one grade below Major League Bas ...

(PCL).

Seattle Mariners

Soon after the promotion, on July 9, 2010, Beavan was traded to the

along with Justin Smoak and fellow prospects Matt Lawson and Josh Lueke for Cliff Lee and Mark Lowe. The Mariners assigned Beavan to the

West Tenn Diamond Jaxx The Jackson Generals were a professional baseball team located in Jackson, Tennessee. From 1998 to 2020, they were a part of Minor League Baseball's Southern League (SL) as the Double-A affiliate of the Chicago Cubs (1998–2006), Seattle Mari ...

of the Class-AA Southern League. Beavan started the 2011 season with the Tacoma Rainers of the Class-AAA PCL. He pitched to a 5–3 record and a 4.45 ERA with Tacoma. On July 2, 2011, the Mariners announced that Beavan would be making his Major League debut on July 3 against the

San Diego Padres The San Diego Padres are an American professional baseball team based in San Diego. The Padres compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Founded in 1969, the club has won two NL penna ...

. The Seattle Mariners beat the Padres 3–1 with Beavan going 7 innings and giving up 1 earned run on 3 hits. Beavan entered the 2012 season in contention for a spot in the Mariners' starting rotation. He won a spot in the rotation for Opening Day. Beavan threw a

quality start In baseball, a quality start is a statistic for a starting pitcher defined as a game in which the pitcher completes at least six innings and permits no more than three earned runs. The quality start has effectively replaced the 'complete game' as ...

opposing Philip Humber during Humber's perfect game on April 21, 2012. On August 2, 2014, the Mariners outrighted Beavan off of the 40-man roster.

Arizona Diamondbacks

On December 4, 2014, the Arizona Diamondbacks signed Beavan to a minor league deal. He was released on July 13, 2015.

Bridgeport Bluefish

On May 18, 2016, Beavan signed with the Bridgeport Bluefish of the

Atlantic League of Professional Baseball The Atlantic League of Professional Baseball (ALPB) is a professional independent baseball league based in the United States. It is an official MLB Partner League based in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern United States. The Atlantic League's ...

Pericos De Puebla

On March 10, 2017, Beavan signed with the Pericos de Puebla of the

Liga Mexicana de Beisbol The Mexican League (, ) is a professional baseball league based in Mexico and the oldest running professional league in the country. The league has 18 teams organized in two divisions, North and South. Teams play 114 games each season. Five te ...

New York Mets

On May 4, 2017, Beavan signed with 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 leagu ...

on a minor league deal and was assigned to Las Vegas 51s. He elected free agency on November 6, 2017.

Pitching style

Beavan threw five pitches. His primary pitch was a four-seam fastball at 90–93 mph, and he had a two-seam fastball with similar velocity that was used frequently against left-handed hitters (less so against righties). His main off-speed pitch was a

curveball In baseball and softball, the curveball is a type of pitch thrown with a characteristic grip and hand movement that imparts forward spin to the ball, causing it to dive as it approaches the plate. Varieties of curveball include the 12–6 curv ...

in the mid-to-upper 70s, although he also threw a

changeup A changeup is a type of pitch in baseball and fastpitch softball. The changeup is a staple off-speed pitch often used in a pitcher's arsenal, usually thrown to look like a fastball but arriving much more slowly to the plate. Its reduced speed ...

to lefties and a slider to righties (each in the low 80s).

Personal life / Post playing career

Beavan is the youngest of three children. His elder brothers are 13 and 11 years older than him. Both of his brothers played college baseball, but neither played professionally. Beavan's wife, Allison, is a cyclist. The two rode together in an effort to help Beavan lose weight during the 2011–12 offseason. As of 2019, Beaven was a youth baseball coach for Dallas Tigers WEST.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Beavan, Blake 1989 births Living people American expatriate baseball players in Mexico Bakersfield Blaze players Baseball players from Texas Binghamton Rumble Ponies players Bridgeport Bluefish players Clinton LumberKings players Frisco RoughRiders players High Desert Mavericks players Las Vegas 51s players Major League Baseball pitchers Mexican League baseball pitchers People from Irving, Texas Pericos de Puebla players Reno Aces players Seattle Mariners players Tacoma Rainiers players West Tennessee Diamond Jaxx players Yaquis de Obregón players