Troy Neiman

Troy Davenport Neiman (born November 13, 1990) is an American former professional baseball relief pitcher. He is 6' 6", and weighs 230 pounds.^[1]

Troy Neiman
Free agent
Pitcher
Born: (1990-11-13) November 13, 1990 (age 34) Castaic, California, U.S.
Bats: Right Throws: Right

Neiman pitched in college for the Chico State Wildcats, finishing his career there with the second-lowest ERA in university history (1.89), and the 10th-best career winning percentage (.722) and number of strikeouts (126). In July 2013 the Colorado Rockies signed him as a free agent to a minor league contract. Through 2017, in his minor league career—exclusively as a relief pitcher—he was 23-10 with a 3.34 ERA, had struck out 304 batters in 301.2 innings, and kept opposing batters to a batting average of .230.

Neiman pitched for Team Israel at the 2017 World Baseball Classic.

Early life

Neiman was born in Castaic, California, and is Jewish.^[1][2] His paternal grandfather is a sound technician who has won an Academy Award for technical innovation and two Emmy Awards.^[3] He pitched for Valencia High School in Santa Clarita, California.^[1]

College

Neiman pitched in college for the Chico State Wildcats, finishing his career there with the second-lowest ERA in university history (1.89), and the 10th-best career winning percentage (.722) and number of strikeouts (126).^[4][3] In February 2013 he pitched the first six innings of the first no-hitter in team history, and was only removed because he was on a strict pitch count.^[5] For February 4–10, 2013, he was named Rawlings/California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) Baseball Pitcher of the Week.^[6][7] He was voted to the 2013 National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association (NCBWA) All-West-Region Second Team and the 2013 All-CCAA Baseball Second Team.^[8][9]

Minor leagues

Neiman was undrafted out of Chico State University in the 2013 Major League Baseball draft.^[10][11] In July 2013 the Colorado Rockies signed him as a free agent to a minor league contract.^[12]

He began his professional career in 2013 with the Tri-City Dust Devils of the A− Northwest League.^[13] In 12 games he was 2-1 with a 3.86 ERA.^[1]

In 2014 Neiman pitched for the Asheville Tourists of the A South Atlantic League.^[13] In 47 games he was 7-1 with a 1.59 ERA, and in 79 innings he struck out 89 batters.^[1] In 2015 and 2016 he pitched for the Modesto Nuts of the A+ California League.^[14][13] In 2015, in 40 games he was 3-2 with a 4.76 ERA, and in 2016 in 45 games he was 7-4 with a 3.55 ERA and struck out 83 batters in 71 innings.^[1][3]

In 2017 he pitched for the Hartford Yard Goats of the Double-A Eastern League, again playing for Manager Jerry Weinstein who had managed him months earlier as manager of Team Israel in the World Baseball Classic.^[3] In 35 relief appearances he was 4-2 with a 3.66 ERA.^[1][3]

Through 2017, in his minor league career—exclusively as a relief pitcher—he was 23-10 with a 3.34 ERA, had struck out 304 batters in 301.2 innings, and kept opposing batters to a batting average of .230.^[15][3] On December 19, 2017, Neiman was released by the Rockies.

Team Israel

Neiman was on the roster for Israel at the 2017 World Baseball Classic qualifier,^[16] but he did not make an appearance during the tournament.

He pitched for Team Israel at the 2017 World Baseball Classic, in March 2017.^[17][18] Neiman pitched against Chinese-Taipei and the Netherlands.^[3]