| Brandon Kintzler | |
|---|---|
_(cropped).jpg) Kintzler with the Chicago Cubs in 2018 | |
| Pitcher | |
| Born: August 1, 1984 Las Vegas, Nevada, U.S. | |
Batted: Right Threw: Right | |
| MLB debut | |
| September 10, 2010, for the Milwaukee Brewers | |
| Last MLB appearance | |
| July 29, 2021, for the Philadelphia Phillies | |
| MLB statistics | |
| Win–loss record | 24–24 |
| Earned run average | 3.50 |
| Strikeouts | 335 |
| Saves | 61 |
| Stats at Baseball Reference | |
| Managerial record at Baseball Reference | |
| Teams | |
| Career highlights and awards | |
Brandon Lee Kintzler[1] (born August 1, 1984) is an American former professional baseball relief pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Milwaukee Brewers, Minnesota Twins, Washington Nationals, Chicago Cubs, Miami Marlins, and Philadelphia Phillies.
Kintzler was born in Las Vegas, Nevada, and began playing baseball with a traveling youth team. After going undrafted out of Palo Verde High School, he spent one year apiece at Pasadena City College and Dixie State College, leading the latter to a national championship in 2004. The Padres selected Kintzler in the 40th round of the 2004 MLB Draft, and he spent two years in the team's farm system before sustaining a season-ending shoulder injury. Joyce took one year off from baseball and moved back home to undergo shoulder surgery before he was recruited to the independent Winnipeg Goldeyes in 2007. Two years later, Kintzler requested a trade to the St. Paul Saints, believing it would give him a better opportunity to reach MLB.
The Brewers offered Kintzler a contract in 2009 after watching him pitch at the American Association All-Star Game for the Saints, and he made his MLB debut in September 2010. Kintzler's five-season tenure with the Brewers was hindered by injury, first a stress fracture in his elbow in 2011, followed by a patellar tendon rupture in 2014, and he became a free agent at the conclusion of the 2015 season. Kintzler accepted a minor league contract with the Twins that December, and became the team's closer in 2016 after the departure of Kevin Jepsen. Kintzler continued to close for the team in 2017 after Glen Perkins experienced a shoulder injury, and he received an All-Star selection in 2017.
Kintzler joined the Nationals in 2017, where he served as the seventh-inning reliever before suffering a forearm flexor strain in June 2018. The Nationals traded him to the Cubs, and, after a disappointing 2018, he tweaked his pitching delivery and improved in 2019. Kintzler signed a one-year contract with the Marlins in 2020, and helped lead the team to the postseason by throwing shutout final innings in both Wild Card Games against the Cubs. In 2021, Kintzler signed a contract with the Phillies.
Kintzler is considered by baseball journalists to be the most successful 40th-round draft pick in MLB history. His signature pitch is a sinker that he developed after shoulder surgery limited the speed of his four-seam fastball.
- ^ "Brandon Kintzler Stats, Fantasy & News". MLB.com. Archived from the original on March 17, 2021. Retrieved April 2, 2021.