Pirate pair earn spots on MLB Rosters
COSTA MESA -- A pair of Orange Coast College baseball pitchers -- Kyle Dowdy and Brandon Brennan -- have seen their lifelong dream realized as the former Pirates have earned spots on Major League Baseball rosters to start the 2019 season. Dowdy earned a spot on the Texas Rangers Opening Day Roster, while Brennan opened the season with the Seattle Mariners.
Dowdy, who played for the Pirates in 2013 before moving on for two seasons at the University of Houston, was a 12th round selection by the Detroit Tigers in the 2015 draft. In 2018, he was traded to the Cleveland Indians organization before the New York Mets picked him up off of wavers later that year.
The Rangers picked up Dowdy on Tuesday to fill out their roster and the Pirate alum saw action on Opening Day as the Rangers took on the Chicago Cubs. His career minor league record is 27-27 with a 3.99 ERA, striking out 327 batters over 365 2/3 innings.
As a Pirate, Dowdy went 6-3 with a save and three complete games in 2013, compiling a 2.38 ERA. He allowed 20 earned runs over 75 2/3 innings with 62 strikeouts.
Brennan, who played for the Pirates on their 2012 team, was drafted in the fourth round out of OCC by the Chicago White Sox and after six years in the minors, he became a free agent and was claimed by the Seattle Mariners on Dec. 13, 2018. His Major League Debut came in Japan against the Oakland A's and he played in future Hall of Famer Ichiro Suzuki's final game. Brennan allowed a hit and a walk, but no runs as the Mariners went on to win, 5-4, in 12 innings.
In his minor league career, Brennan went 25-34 with a 4.64 ERA and dealt with some arm troubles early on before becoming a very reliable relief pitcher.
Brennan helped lead OCC to one of the best seasons in school history as the Pirates finished the season 36-7-1, including 18-3 in the Orange Empire Conference. But Coast suffered its only two-game losing streak at the wrong time and were eliminated in the State Final Four that season. On the mound, Brennan went 11-1 with two complete games and a 1.25 ERA, allowing just 15 earned runs over 108 1/3 innings with 72 strikeouts.
