Justin Knoedler

Infobox MLB player


width = 150
name=Justin Knoedler
position=Catcher
team=Oakland Athletics
number=60
bats=Right
throws=Right
birthdate=birth date and age|1980|7|7
debutdate=October 3
debutyear=2004
debutteam=San Francisco Giants
statyear=2006
stat1label=Hits
stat1value=2
stat2label=Home runs
stat2value=0
stat3label=Batting average
stat3value=.111
teams=
* San Francisco Giants (2004-2006)

Justin Joseph Knoedler (born July 17, 1980 in Springfield, Illinois) is a Major League Baseball catcher for the Oakland Athletics.

Knoedler was originally drafted by the St. Louis Cardinals in the 41st round (1218th overall) in the 1998 Major League Baseball draft but did not sign with them. He entered the draft again in 2000, being taken in the 13th round (391st overall) by the San Francisco Giants. Once again, he did not sign. He entered the draft again in 2001, being taken by the Giants again, this time as a higher overall pick (166th overall in the 5th round). This time he signed to a contract.

Knoedler began his professional career in 2001 as a pitcher for the Low Single-A Salem-Keizer Volcanoes. He appeared in 13 games, all in relief, and had a 1-1 record with a 1.26 ERA. He did long relief, pitching 28 2/3 inning with 38 strikeouts and only walked 9.

In 2002, Knoedler converted to catcher. He played for the Single-A Hagerstown Suns and in his first year as a catcher, he batted .257 with 5 home runs in 86 games. Knoedler was promoted to the High Single-A San Jose Giants in 2003. His batting average was the same from the previous year but he doubled his home run total to 10.

Knoedler began the 2004 season with the Double-A Norwich Navigators. He played the full minor league season as he appeared in 115 games. He batted .274 with 9 home runs. He earned a September callup to the major leagues on September 6. He did not make his major league debut until the last game of the season on October 3 against the Los Angeles Dodgers. He entered the game as a defensive replacement for A.J. Pierzynski and he had one at bat, flying out to center field.

Knoedler played in Double-A in 2005 for 4 games and mainly played for the Triple-A Fresno Grizzlies. He was with the major league club from August 2 to August 3 while Mike Matheny was on the bereavement list. The Giants called him back up in September. On September 12, against the San Diego Padres, he got his first big league hit, a pinch hit single off Akinori Otsuka.

He appeared in 5 major league games for the Giants in 2006. Since then, he hasn't appeared in a major league game after spending the entire 2007 season in Triple-A.

Following the 2007 season, he became a minor league free agent. He signed a minor league contract with the Oakland Athletics on November 21, 2007. He was also invited to Spring Training.

Personal

He has a twin brother, Jason, who was also drafted in 2001. Drafted by the Detroit Tigers, he spent his entire minor league career with them from 2001 to 2005 as a first baseman and outfielder.

External links

*espn mlb|id=7451| name=Justin Knoedler
* [http://www.thebaseballcube.com/players/K/Justin-Knoedler.shtml The Baseball Cube Player Profile]
* [http://mlb.mlb.com/team/player.jsp?player_id=430653 MLB.com Player Profile]