Daniel Chris Putnam (born September 17, 1982) is an American former professional baseball

outfielder An outfielder is a person playing in one of the three defensive positions in baseball or softball, farthest from the batter. These defenders are the left fielder, the center fielder, and the right fielder. As an outfielder, their duty is to catch ...

. He played in

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(MLB) for 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 ...

Career

Amateur

As a student at

Rancho Bernardo High School Rancho Bernardo High School (RBHS) is a public high school in San Diego County, California. It is part of Poway Unified School District. The school was opened in 1991 as the district's third high school. Enrollment For the 2019-2020 school ...

in 2001, he was named the ''

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High School Player of the Year. He attended

Stanford University Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University, is a Private university, private research university in Stanford, California, United States. It was founded in 1885 by railroad magnate Leland Stanford (the eighth ...

, and in 2002 he played

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with the

Hyannis Mets The Hyannis Harbor Hawks, formerly the Hyannis Mets, are a collegiate summer baseball team based in Hyannis, Massachusetts. The team is a member of the Cape Cod Baseball League (CCBL) and plays in the league's West Division. The Harbor Hawks play ...

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 1,000 forme ...

where he was named a league all-star. He was selected by the A's in the first round of the 2004 MLB Draft.

Oakland Athletics

He played parts of three seasons in the minors for the Athletics. In 2004 he played for the Low-A

Vancouver Canadians The Vancouver Canadians are a Minor League Baseball (MiLB) team located in Vancouver, British Columbia. They are members of the Northwest League and the High-A affiliate of the Toronto Blue Jays. The Canadians play their home games at Nat Bail ...

and the Single-A

Kane County Cougars The Kane County Cougars are a professional baseball team located in Geneva, Illinois, and are members of the American Association of Professional Baseball, an official Partner League of Major League Baseball (MLB). They play their home games a ...

. In 2005 he played for High-A

Stockton Ports The Stockton Ports are a Minor League Baseball team of the California League and the Single-A affiliate of the Athletics. They are located in Stockton, California, and are named for the city's seaport. The team plays its home games at Banner I ...

and in 2006 he played for Stockton and the Double-A

Midland RockHounds The Midland RockHounds are a Minor League Baseball team based in Midland, Texas. The team, which plays in the Texas League, is the Double-A affiliate of the Athletics major league club. The RockHounds play in Momentum Bank Ballpark, which ope ...

. He was called up to the majors in April . He made his major league debut on April 23, 2007 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 ...

, and got his first major league hit the same day. Putnam returned to the minors in May when

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returned from an injury. May 10, would be his final major league appearance. Putnam 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 ...

on January 11, 2008, and started the year playing for their Triple-A affiliate, the

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

and would end up playing 89 games for Sacramento during the season. In 2009, Putnam played for Sacramento and Midland for the Athletics organization.

San Diego Padres

On July 8, 2009, Putnam was traded to 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 (baseball), National League (NL) National League West, West Division. ...

as the player to be named later in the Chad Reineke trade that had occurred on April 2. He would finish the 2009 season with the Padres Triple-A affiliate, the

Portland Beavers The Portland Beavers was the name of separate minor league baseball teams, which represented Portland, Oregon, in the Pacific Coast League (PCL). The team was established in 1903, the first year of the PCL. Franchise history Many baseball teams h ...

. Putnam was released by the Padres organization on March 25, 2010.

Bridgeport Bluefish

Following his release from the Padres, Putnam signed with the

Bridgeport Bluefish The Bridgeport Bluefish were an American minor league baseball team based in Bridgeport, Connecticut. The team was a member of the Liberty Division of the Atlantic League of Professional Baseball, which was not affiliated with Major League Baseb ...

of the independent

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

for the 2010 season. He played in 108 games for Bridgeport, hitting .272/.367/.448 to go along with 11 homers and 56 runs batted in. In 2011 for the Bluefish, Putnam slashed .270/.331/.420 over 105 games. He became a free agent after the season.

References

External links

1982 births Living people American expatriate baseball players in Canada Arizona League Athletics players Baseball players at the 2003 Pan American Games Bridgeport Bluefish players Hyannis Harbor Hawks players Kane County Cougars players Major League Baseball outfielders Midland RockHounds players Oakland Athletics players Baseball players from St. Clair County, Illinois Portland Beavers players Sacramento River Cats players Stanford Cardinal baseball players Stockton Ports players United States national baseball team players Vancouver Canadians players Medalists at the 2003 Pan American Games Pan American Games silver medalists for the United States in baseball Rancho Bernardo High School alumni Águilas de Mexicali players American expatriate baseball players in Mexico {{US-baseball-outfielder-1980s-stub