Dallas Braden
Dallas Braden played just five seasons in the majors but in the course of that time he made some serious history. He also incurred some serious injuries that eventually led to early retirement.
Not many thought the soft-throwing left-hander would be more than another reliever in the A’s bullpen however, the A’s 24th round draft pick in the 2004 MLB Amateur Draft dominated the minor leagues just after signing with the club.
He began his professional career with short-season Vancouver and became one of the only players to move onto pitch a full-season with Kane County that same year. While with Kane County, Braden struck out 33 batters in just 23 innings, mostly due to the use of his screwball.
He spent the first part of 2005 playing in his hometown for the A’s High-A affiliate Stockton Ports but quickly advanced to Double-A Midland at the young age of just 21 and was named the A’s Minor League Pitcher of the Year.
Unfortunately the year ended poorly for Braden who suffered from shoulder soreness and ended up having to have surgery to repair it in February 2006, causing him to miss the majority of the season. He returned in 2007 and made his MLB debut on April 24. However, he didn’t look like the same pitcher he once was going 1-8 with a 6.72 ERA in 20 starts for the Oakland Athletics.
He missed more significant amounts of time again in both 2008 and 2009 with the same shoulder injury that had already threatened his career. Still, he managed to make 41 appearances (32 starts) over those two seasons while posting a combined ERA of 3.97.
The following season was Braden’s time to shine. He was the Opening Day starter for Oakland but two instances that happened later in the season truly defined his career as both historic and entertaining. Braden showed personality and perseverance.
In mid-April 2010 he got into a shouting match with the New York Yankees’ third baseman Alex Rodriguez who apparently walked across the mound while Braden was still standing on it after ending the inning with a double play, telling A-Rod to “get off my mound.”
Rodriguez found it funny, but Braden replied, ” I don’t care if I’m Cy Young or the 25th man on the roster, if I’ve got the ball in my hand and I’m on that mound, that’s my mound.”
Just a couple weeks later Braden had THE moment of his career. On May 9, 2010 Braden pitched a MLB’s 19th perfect game at home in Oakland against the Tampa Bay Rays.
To make the moment even more incredible, it was mother’s day and he was able to celebrate his historic achievement with his grandmother Peggy Lindsey. Lindsey raised Braden after he lost his mother to cancer as a teenager.
The 2010 season was by far the best in his five big league seasons. Besides pitching two complete game shutouts (including the perfecto), he posted a 3.50 ERA and finished the season having thrown a total of five complete games.
He started only three games for the A’s in 2011 before being sidelined again with the same shoulder injury. It required more surgery and although Braden had wanted to attempt a comeback, he admitted that his shoulder was “just shredded,” when he formally announced his retirement from baseball at the age of 30 in 2014.
He currently works as a broadcaster on the A’s pre-game and post-game shows and is a staple character at Stockton Ports games at Banner Island Ballpark.