Dakota John Bacus (born April 2, 1991) 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 ...

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 played in

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball league composed of 30 teams, divided equally between the National League (baseball), National League (NL) and the American League (AL), with 29 in the United States and 1 in Canada. MLB i ...

(MLB) for the

Washington Nationals The Washington Nationals are an American professional baseball team based in Washington, D.C. The Nationals compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) East Division. They play their home games at Na ...

during the 2020 season.

Career

Oakland Athletics

Drafted out of

Indiana State University Indiana State University (ISU) is a public university in Terre Haute, Indiana, United States. It was founded in 1865 and offers over 100 undergraduate majors and more than 75 graduate and professional programs. Indiana State is classified ...

by the

Oakland Athletics The Oakland Athletics (frequently referred to as the Oakland A's) were an American Major League Baseball (MLB) team based in Oakland, California from 1968 to 2024. The Athletics were a member club of the American League (AL) American League We ...

in the

2012 Major League Baseball draft The 2012 Major League Baseball draft was held from June 4 through June 6, 2012, from Studio 42 of the MLB Network in Secaucus, New Jersey. The Houston Astros, with the first overall pick, selected Carlos Correa from the Puerto Rico Baseball Ac ...

's ninth round, Bacus pitched mostly as a starter for the Single–A

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 ...

in his first full professional season in 2013. Bacus gained some media notoriety for a recurring on-field stunt in 2013 with Beloit, in which he would dress in all-white and stand on the warning track with his back to the white outfield wall during home games. "The Whitewall Ninja" would remain on the field, even when balls were put in play into the outfield, until he was noticed and told to go back to the bullpen. The Athletics' minor league coordinator ultimately stepped in to put a stop to the gag.

Washington Nationals

Bacus was traded to the

in exchange for catcher

Kurt Suzuki Kurtis Kiyoshi Suzuki (, born October 4, 1983) is an American former professional baseball catcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Oakland Athletics, Washington Nationals, Minnesota Twins, Atlanta Braves, and Los Angeles Angels ...

on August 23, 2013. In the Nationals system over the next few years, Bacus made slow progress, briefly reaching the Triple–A

Syracuse Chiefs Syracuse most commonly refers to: * Syracuse, Sicily, Italy; in the province of Syracuse * Syracuse, New York, USA; in the Syracuse metropolitan area Syracuse may also refer to: Places * Syracuse railway station (disambiguation) Italy * Provi ...

, the Nationals' top minor league affiliate, in 2015. After an injury-marred 2016 season in which he didn't make it back to Triple–A, Bacus considered retiring from professional baseball. In 2017, Bacus experienced a marked jump in performance, pitching to a 1.80 ERA out of the High–A

Potomac Nationals The Potomac Nationals were a Minor League Baseball team of the Carolina League. They were situated in Woodbridge, Virginia, and played their home games at Northwest Federal Field at Pfitzner Stadium. After the 2019 season, the team relocated to ...

and Double–A

Harrisburg Senators The Harrisburg Senators are a Minor League Baseball team who play in the Eastern League, and are the Double-A affiliate of the Washington Nationals. The team is based in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, and play their home games at FNB Field on Cit ...

bullpen In baseball, the bullpen (or simply the pen) is the area where relief pitchers warm up before entering a game. A team's roster of relief pitchers is also metonymically referred to as "the bullpen". These pitchers usually wait in the bullpen if ...

s. He was invited to pitch in the

Arizona Fall League The Arizona Fall League (AFL) is an off-season baseball league owned and operated by Major League Baseball (MLB) which operates during autumn in Arizona, United States, at six different baseball complexes. Arizona Fall League rosters are filled ...

after the 2017 season, appearing with the

Mesa Solar Sox The Mesa Solar Sox are a baseball team that plays in the East Division of the Arizona Fall League. They play their home games in Mesa, Arizona, at Sloan Park, which is also the spring training facility of the Chicago Cubs. The team was establi ...

. Bacus later told his hometown paper, '' The Rock Island Dispatch-Argus'', that he had rediscovered what made baseball fun for him in 2017. After spending the 2018 season with the Senators, Bacus was promoted in April 2019 to the Triple–A

Fresno Grizzlies The Fresno Grizzlies are a Minor League Baseball team of the California League and the Single-A affiliate of the Colorado Rockies. They are located in Fresno, California, and play their home games at Chukchansi Park, which was opened in 2002 in ...

, his first return to the level in nearly four years. He was named a

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 (baseball), Triple-A level, which is one grade bel ...

All-Star in 2019, alongside teammate

Yadiel Hernández Yadiel Hernández (born October 9, 1987) is a Cuban professional baseball outfielder for the Tecolotes de los Dos Laredos of the Mexican League. After playing in the Cuban National Series for Cocodrilos de Matanzas, he played in Major League Bas ...

. By late June 2019, Bacus was being mentioned as a candidate for a promotion to the Nationals' major league bullpen by media outlets covering Washington baseball. Bacus did not end up contributing to the Nationals' championship season in 2019, playing out the year with the Grizzlies. He became a minor league free agent after the season's end. On February 12, 2020, Bacus re-signed with the Nationals on a minor league contract. The Nationals promoted Bacus to the major leagues for the first time on August 14, 2020 and he made his major league debut that day against 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 March 28, 2021, Bacus was

designated for assignment Designated for assignment (DFA) is a contractual term used in Major League Baseball (MLB). A player who is designated for assignment is immediately removed from the team's 40-man roster, after which the team must, within seven days, return the pla ...

after

Luis Avilán Luis Armando Avilán (born July 19, 1989) is a Venezuelan former professional baseball pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Atlanta Braves, Los Angeles Dodgers, Chicago White Sox, Philadelphia Phillies, New York Mets, New Yor ...

was added to the roster. On March 30, he cleared waivers and was sent outright 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 (baseball), Triple-A affiliate of the Washington Nationals. They are located in Rochester, New York, and play their home games at Innovative Fie ...

. Bacus retired after the 2021 season.

Pitching style

Bacus, a right-hander, threw a fastball in the low to mid-90s and offset it with a breaking ball.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bacus, Dakota 1991 births Living people Sportspeople from Moline, Illinois Baseball players from Rock Island County, Illinois Major League Baseball pitchers Washington Nationals players 21st-century American sportsmen Indiana State Sycamores baseball players Arizona League Athletics players Beloit Snappers players Hagerstown Suns players Potomac Nationals players Harrisburg Senators players Syracuse Chiefs players Fresno Grizzlies players Salt River Rafters players Mesa Solar Sox players Rochester Red Wings players Waterloo Bucks players