Brock James Stassi ( ; born August 7, 1989) 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 professiona ...

first baseman A first baseman, abbreviated 1B, is the player on a baseball or softball team who fields the area nearest first base, the first of four bases a baserunner must touch in succession to score a run. The first baseman is responsible for the major ...

who is a free agent. Selected by the

Philadelphia Phillies The Philadelphia Phillies are an American professional baseball team based in Philadelphia. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the National League (NL) East division. Since 2004, the team's home stadium has been Citize ...

in the 33rd round of the

2011 Major League Baseball draft The 2011 Major League Baseball draft was held from June 6 through June 8, 2011, from Studio 42 of the MLB Network in Secaucus, New Jersey. The Pittsburgh Pirates selected Gerrit Cole out of the University of California, Los Angeles, with the firs ...

out of

University of Nevada, Reno The University of Nevada, Reno (Nevada, the University of Nevada, or UNR) is a public land-grant research university in Reno, Nevada. It is the state's flagship public university and primary land grant institution. It was founded on October 12 ...

, Stassi 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 for the club on April 3, 2017.

Early life

From

Northern California Northern California (colloquially known as NorCal) is a geographic and cultural region that generally comprises the northern portion of the U.S. state of California. Spanning the state's northernmost 48 counties, its main population centers incl ...

, Stassi attended Barry Elementary School, after which he attended

Yuba City High School Yuba City High School is a public secondary school in Yuba City, California. It had roughly 3,000 students before River Valley High School opened in 2005. The school colors are brown and gold. Its mascot is the "Honker", a nickname for Cana ...

, for which his father was the baseball coach.

Career

Amateur

In 2009, he played

collegiate summer baseball Collegiate summer baseball leagues are amateur baseball leagues in the United States and Canada featuring players who have attended at least one year of college and have at least one year of athletic eligibility remaining. Generally, they operate ...

with the

Orleans Firebirds The Orleans Firebirds, formerly the Orleans Cardinals, are a collegiate summer baseball team based in Orleans, Massachusetts. The team is a member of the Cape Cod Baseball League (CCBL) and plays in the league's East Division. The Firebirds play t ...

of the

Cape Cod Baseball League The Cape Cod Baseball League (CCBL or Cape League) is a collegiate summer baseball wooden bat league located on Cape Cod in the U.S. state of Massachusetts. One of the nation's premier collegiate summer leagues, the league boasts over one thous ...

. Stassi was drafted by the Cleveland Indians in 2010, but decided to stay at school. Stassi was a two-way player in his final three years at

. In 2010, Stassi was named the

Western Athletic Conference The Western Athletic Conference (WAC) is an NCAA Division I conference. The WAC covers a broad expanse of the western United States with member institutions located in Arizona, California, New Mexico, Utah, Washington, and Texas. Due to most of ...

Pitcher of the Year and also earned second-team All-WAC utility honors. He hit 360 with 19 doubles, driving in 34 runs and scoring 29 times in 55 games for the

Nevada Wolf Pack The Nevada Wolf Pack are the athletic teams that represent the University of Nevada, Reno. They are part of NCAA's Division I's Mountain West Conference. It was founded on October 24, 1896 with football as the Sagebrushers in Reno, Nevada. Hi ...

, earning First Team All-WAC honors as a first baseman during his senior season.Brock Stassi biography, news and statistics
''MiLB.com.'' Retrieved on October 30, 2015.

Philadelphia Phillies

The Phillies selected Stassi in the 33rd round of the

2011 MLB Draft The 2011 Major League Baseball draft was held from June 6 through June 8, 2011, from Studio 42 of the MLB Network in Secaucus, New Jersey. The Pittsburgh Pirates selected Gerrit Cole out of the University of California, Los Angeles, with the first ...

out of

. Stassi debuted with the Low-A

Williamsport Crosscutters The Williamsport Crosscutters are a collegiate summer baseball team of the MLB Draft League. They are located in Williamsport, Pennsylvania, and play their home games at Muncy Bank Ballpark at Historic Bowman Field. From 1994 to 2020, they were ...

in 2011, slashing .200/.291/.233 in 50 games. He split the next season between Williamsport, the Single-A

Lakewood BlueClaws The Jersey Shore BlueClaws (formerly Lakewood BlueClaws) are a Minor League Baseball team of the South Atlantic League and the High-A affiliate of the Philadelphia Phillies. They are located in Lakewood, New Jersey, and are named for their locati ...

, and the High-A

Clearwater Threshers The Clearwater Threshers are a Minor League Baseball team of the Florida State League and the Single-A affiliate of the Philadelphia Phillies. They are located in Clearwater, Florida, and have played their home games at BayCare Ballpark since 20 ...

, posting a .243/.329/.358 slash line with 3 home runs and 33 RBI. He returned to Clearwater for the 2013 season, slashing .295/.347/.399 with 3 home runs and 32 RBI in 89 games. In 2014, Stassi played for the Double-A

Reading Fightin Phils The Reading Fightin Phils (also called the Reading Fightins) are a Minor League Baseball team based in Reading, Pennsylvania, playing in the Northeast Division of the Eastern League. The team plays their home games at FirstEnergy Stadium. The Re ...

, hitting .232/.302/.327 with 8 home runs and 44 RBI. His breakout season came with Reading in 2015, when he posted a .300/.394/.470

slash line S sabermetrics :Sabermetrics is the analysis of baseball through objective evidence, especially baseball statistics. The term is derived from the SABR – the Society for American Baseball Research. The term was coined by Bill James, an e ...

with career-highs in

home run In baseball, a home run (abbreviated HR) is scored when the ball is hit in such a way that the batter is able to circle the bases and reach home plate safely in one play without any errors being committed by the defensive team. A home run is ...

s (15) and RBI (90) in 133 games, helping lead Reading to first place in the Eastern League Division standings while earning an All-Star berth. Additionally, Stassi led the league in RBI and doubles (32), ending second in

total bases In baseball statistics, total bases is the number of bases a player gains with hits. It is a weighted sum with values of 1 for a single, 2 for a double, 3 for a triple and 4 for a home run. For example, three singles is three total bases, whil ...

(225) and walks (77), third in on OBP and runs scored (76), fifth in hits (140), and sixth in home runs. In addition to his offensive contributions, Stassi led Eastern League first baseman with a .995

fielding percentage In baseball statistics, fielding percentage, also known as fielding average, is a measure that reflects the percentage of times a defensive player properly handles a batted or thrown ball. It is calculated by the sum of putouts and assists, div ...

, making five errors in 112 games. At the end of the season, he was selected as the winner of the 2015 Eastern League Most Valuable Player Award. In 2016, playing for the Triple-A

Lehigh Valley IronPigs The Lehigh Valley IronPigs are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League (IL) and the Triple-A affiliate of the Philadelphia Phillies. They are located in Allentown, Pennsylvania, and are named in reference to pig iron, used in th ...

in 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 ( ...

, he hit .267/.369/.437 with 12 home runs and 58 RBI. Stassi made the Phillies'

Opening Day Opening Day is the day on which professional baseball leagues begin their regular season. For Major League Baseball (MLB) and most of the American minor leagues, this day typically falls during the first week of April, although in recent years ...

roster in 2017. He made his major league debut on Opening Day. In 51 games for Philadelphia, he batted .167/.278/.295 with 2 home runs and 7 RBI. Stassi was designated for assignment on August 31, 2017, to make room for newly-acquired

Juan Nicasio Juan Ramón Nicasio (born August 31, 1986) is a Dominican former professional baseball pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Colorado Rockies, Los Angeles Dodgers, Pittsburgh Pirates, St. Louis Cardinals, Seattle Mariners, Ph ...

on the 40-man roster. Stassi elected free agency on November 6, 2017.

Minnesota Twins

On December 8, 2017, Stassi signed a minor league contract with 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) Central Division. The team is named after the Twin Cities area ...

. He was assigned to the Triple-A

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

to begin the 2018 season. After hitting .315/.412/.452 with 2 home runs and 10 RBI, Stassi was released from the organization on May 25, 2018.

New Britain Bees

On June 21, 2018, Stassi signed with the

New Britain Bees The New Britain Bees are an American collegiate summer baseball team based in New Britain, Connecticut. They are a member of the Futures Collegiate Baseball League (FCBL), a wood-bat league with teams in New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Connecticu ...

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 ...

. Stassi played in 40 games for New Britain, posting a .361/.458/.592 slash line with 5 home runs and 36 RBI.

San Francisco Giants

On August 10, 2018, Stassi's contract was purchased by 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 ...

. He finished the season with the Triple-A

Sacramento River Cats The Sacramento River Cats are a Minor League Baseball team of the Pacific Coast League (PCL) and are the Triple-A affiliate of the San Francisco Giants. Prior to 2015, the River Cats were the Triple-A affiliate of the Oakland Athletics for 15 yea ...

, hitting .391/.536/.547 with 11 RBI. He elected free agency after the season, but re-signed with the team on November 9. In 2019 with Sacramento, Stassi went 3-for-13 in 3 games. On Mother's Day, Stassi tore a tendon in his wrist and missed the remainder of the season. On November 4, 2019, he elected free agency.

Oakland Athletics

On February 23, 2020, Stassi signed a minor league contract with the

Oakland Athletics The Oakland Athletics (often referred to as the A's) are an American professional baseball team based in Oakland, California. The Athletics compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West division. The t ...

organization. Stassi was released by the A’s in March prior to the beginning of the season.

Long Island Ducks

On April 10, 2020, Stassi signed with the

Long Island Ducks The Long Island Ducks are an American professional minor-league baseball team based on Long Island in Central Islip, New York. The Ducks compete in the North Division of the Atlantic League of Professional Baseball (ALPB), an independent "part ...

of the

. He did not play a game for the team because of the cancellation of the ALPB season due to 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 identified ...

and became a free agent after the year. On May 17, 2021, Stassi re-signed with the Ducks for the 2021 season. In 14 games for the Ducks, Stassi slashed .191/.309/.298 with 7 RBI.

Philadelphia Phillies (second stint)

On June 14, 2021, Stassi had his contract purchased by the

organization and was assigned to the Double-A

. He elected free agency on November 7, 2021.

Personal life

Stassi's father, grandfather, and great-grandfather played as catchers in the minor leagues. His younger brother,

Max Stassi Max Robert Stassi (born March 15, 1991) is an American professional baseball catcher for the Los Angeles Angels of Major League Baseball (MLB). The Oakland Athletics drafted him in the fourth round of the 2009 MLB draft. In 2013, Stassi made hi ...

, is a catcher who debuted with the

Houston Astros The Houston Astros are an American professional baseball team based in Houston, Texas. The Astros compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West division, having moved to the division in 2013 after ...

in 2013 and currently plays with the

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

. Brock and Max hold an annual charity event that began in 2009 in their hometown of

Yuba City, California Yuba City (Maidu: ''Yubu'') is a city in Northern California and the county seat of Sutter County, California, United States. The population was 70,117 at the 2020 census. Yuba City is the principal city of the Yuba City Metropolitan Statistic ...

; the money collected goes to 12 food banks within a 50-mile radius of Yuba City and Hands of Hope, a charity that offers support to homeless children and their families. The event consists of a home run derby between the brothers at the Yuba City High School field. In 2014, the event was expanded to include a home run derby with one player from each of eight local high schools, taking donations based on the number of homers hit, as well as accepting flat-rate donations.Stassi brothers host Homers for the Hungry
''MLB.com''. Retrieved on October 30, 2015.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Stassi, Brock 1989 births Living people Baseball players from Sacramento, California Major League Baseball first basemen Philadelphia Phillies players Nevada Wolf Pack baseball players Orleans Firebirds players Lakewood BlueClaws players Williamsport Crosscutters players Clearwater Threshers players Reading Fightin Phils players Leones del Caracas players American expatriate baseball players in Venezuela Indios de Mayagüez players Lehigh Valley IronPigs players Long Island Ducks players Charros de Jalisco players Tiburones de La Guaira players New Britain Bees players Sacramento River Cats players Yaquis de Obregón players American expatriate baseball players in Mexico Richmond Flying Squirrels players