Sam Dyson

Samuel Isaac Dyson (born May 7, 1988) is an American professional baseball pitcher who is a free agent. He previously played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Toronto Blue Jays, Miami Marlins, Texas Rangers, San Francisco Giants, and Minnesota Twins. He played college baseball at South Carolina. Dyson is one of the few people to have won both a College World Series and a World Baseball Classic.

Sam Dyson
Dyson with the Texas Rangers in 2016
Free agent
Pitcher
Born: (1988-05-07) May 7, 1988
Tampa, Florida
Bats: Right Throws: Right
MLB debut
July 5, 2012, for the Toronto Blue Jays
MLB statistics
(through 2019 season)
Win–loss record24–23
Earned run average3.40
Strikeouts310
Saves59
Teams
Medals
Men's baseball
Representing  United States
World Baseball Classic
2017 Los AngelesTeam

Early life and education

Dyson was born in Tampa, Florida, to Sid and Gwenn Dyson.[1] He attended Tampa Jesuit High School,[2][3] pitching all four years on the school's baseball team and finishing with a 10-1 record in his senior year.[1] He was selected by the Washington Nationals in the 19th round of the 2006 MLB draft, but elected to attend college instead.[4]

At the University of South Carolina, he was sidelined with an injury in his freshman year and received a medical redshirt.[1] He posted an 8-0 record with a 4.09 ERA in 2008.[1] At the end of his sophomore year, he was selected in the 10th round of the 2009 Major League Baseball Draft, but decided to continue in college.[4] Following his senior year, in which he posted a 6-5 record with a 4.25 ERA,[1] he was drafted by the Toronto Blue Jays in the fourth round of the 2010 MLB draft.[4]

Minor League career

Dyson did not pitch professionally in 2010 after undergoing labrum repair surgery, and he missed the entire 2011 season recovering from Tommy John surgery on his right elbow.[5] In 2+ seasons in the minor leagues, Dyson posted a 2-0 record with 3 saves, a 2.56 ERA, 13 walks, and 24 strikeouts over 52.2 innings.[6]

Major League career

Toronto Blue Jays
Dyson pitching for the Toronto Blue Jays in 2012

Dyson was called up to the MLB on July 5, 2012.[6] He was the first Blue Jays player from the 2010 draft to reach the MLB.[7] He made his MLB debut later that day to get the final out in the 7th inning. After walking Billy Butler, Dyson struck out Yuniesky Betancourt. On July 19, Yan Gomes was called up to the Jays, and Dyson was sent back to Double-A New Hampshire after making 2 appearances over 2 weeks. In ​2⁄3 of an inning, Dyson allowed 3 earned runs and struck out 1.[8] He was designated for assignment on January 22, 2013, to make room on the 40-man roster for Mark DeRosa.[9]

Miami Marlins

On January 30, 2013, Dyson was claimed off waivers by the Miami Marlins.[2] Dyson was assigned to Double-A Jacksonville to begin 2013. On July 7, Dyson was placed on the disabled list with a lower back strain after a start against Chattanooga. Dyson was elected to participate in the Southern League All-Star Game, but didn't play because of the injury. In 16 games (15 starts) before the break, he went 3-7 with a 2.63 ERA, striking out 41 in 75.1 innings. After making one rehab assignment with the GCL Marlins, he was assigned to Triple-A New Orleans, where he made 5 more starts. In the minors in 2013, Dyson went 4-11 with a 2.67 ERA, striking out 62 in 111.1 innings. On August 29, Dyson was recalled by the Marlins, replacing Arquimedes Caminero. He made his Marlins debut that day, pitching 2 innings, while giving up 5 hits and 3 earned runs. After making 2 more relief appearances, Dyson made his first major league start on September 16 against the Phillies, lasting only 2.2 innings, giving up 7 runs on 6 hits and 4 walks, striking out 1. In 5 games (1 start) for the Marlins in 2013, Dyson went 0-2, giving up 11 runs in 11 innings while striking out 5 and walking 5.

Texas Rangers

On July 31, 2015, the Marlins traded Dyson to the Texas Rangers for Tomás Telis and Cody Ege.[10] Dyson would finish his 2015 season with a 3.69 ERA. On October 8, 2015, Dyson made his postseason debut in Game 1 of the ALDS against his former team, the Blue Jays, earning the save. On October 14, Dyson gave up the go-ahead three run homer to José Bautista in the bottom of the 7th inning of the deciding Game 5, which the Rangers lost, 6-3, thus losing the series in 5 games. In that inning he also got into a couple of altercations with Edwin Encarnación and Troy Tulowitzki, which caused both benches to clear. The altercations were a direct reaction to Bautista's go-ahead home run and events that took place in the top of that inning.

Dyson would take over as the Rangers' full-time closer halfway through the 2016 season, after a lackluster performance from Shawn Tolleson. Dyson was pivotal for Texas, as he finished with 38 saves in 43 opportunities and a 2.43 ERA, 55 strikeouts and a 1.22 WHIP.

After starting the 2017 season with a 10.80 ERA over 17 appearances, Dyson was designated for assignment on June 2.[11]

San Francisco Giants

On June 6, 2017, the San Francisco Giants announced they had acquired Dyson from the Texas Rangers for a player to be named later.[12] With Mark Melancon heading to the disabled list, Dyson became the new closer.[13]

Minnesota Twins

On July 31, 2019, the Giants traded Dyson to the Minnesota Twins in exchange for Jaylin Davis, Prelander Berroa, and Kai-Wei Teng.[14] Dyson underwent surgery to repair a torn capsule in his right shoulder at the end of the 2019 season.[15] Dyson elected free agency following the 2019 season.

International career

Dyson pitched for the United States team in the 2017 World Baseball Classic. He helped the U.S. win the tournament by pitching six perfect innings.[12]

Controversy

While playing for the Pacific Coast League's New Orleans Zephyrs, Dyson was involved in a fight with Zephyrs' teammate Chris Hatcher at a Nashville bar on April 29, 2014. Dyson's jaw was broken by Hatcher in the fight, resulting in surgery which put him on the injured list for six weeks and a 5-game suspension for Hatcher for conduct detrimental to the team.[16]

After giving up the series-clinching home run to Toronto Blue Jays' right fielder José Bautista in game 5 of the 2015 American League Division Series, Dyson confronted Edwin Encarnación of the Blue Jays and informed him that he did not approve of Bautista's subsequent bat flip. Dyson also became involved in a confrontation with Blue Jays' shortstop Troy Tulowitzki over his displeasure. The exchanges led to both dugouts emptying and a long delay in completing the game. In explaining his actions afterwards, Dyson told reporters, "(Bautista)'s a huge role model for the younger generation that's coming up and playing this game. He's doing stuff that kids do in whiffle ball games and backyard baseball."[17]

On November 26, 2019, Dyson was accused of domestic violence by an ex-girlfriend, prompting an investigation by Major League Baseball. The alleged victim, Alexis Blackburn, said in two lengthy Instagram posts that Dyson had bullied her and was violent towards both her and her cat during the time they were a couple.[18][19]

References
  1. "20 Sam Dyson". Gamecocks Online. Retrieved May 2, 2015.
  2. Rodriguez, Juan C. (January 30, 2013). "Miami Marlins claim RHP Sam Dyson off waivers from Blue Jays". Sun-Sentinel. Retrieved May 2, 2015.
  3. Encina, Eduardo A. (June 8, 2010). "MLB Draft: Former Jesuit pitcher Sam Dyson first local selected". Tampa Bay Times. Retrieved May 2, 2015.
  4. Evans, Sam (January 31, 2013). "Miami Marlins Claim Minor Leauger Sam Dyson From Toronto Blue Jays". SB Nation. Retrieved May 2, 2015.
  5. Davis, Craig (August 29, 2013). "Dyson took rough path to Marlins". Sun-Sentinel.
  6. "Jays bring up RHP Dyson from Double-A, option Richmond". tsn.ca. Archived from the original on July 8, 2012.
  7. "Blue Jays promote Sam Dyson to Toronto (press release)". MLB.com. July 5, 2012.
  8. Chisholm, Gregor (July 19, 2012). "Gomes called back up to Blue Jays". MLB.com.
  9. Blontz, Blaine (January 22, 2013). "Toronto Blue Jays sign Mark DeRosa; Designate Sam Dyson". MLBDailyDish.com. Retrieved January 22, 2013.
  10. "Reliever Sam Dyson sent to Rangers by Marlins". usatoday.com. July 31, 2015. Retrieved July 31, 2015.
  11. http://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/19519434/texas-rangers-designate-ex-closer-sam-dyson-assignment
  12. "Reliever Sam Dyson seeks rebound with Giants". SFGate. Retrieved June 16, 2017.
  13. http://www.cbssports.com/fantasy/baseball/news/giants-sam-dyson-moves-to-closer/
  14. Park, Do-Hyoung (July 31, 2019). "Twins get reliever Dyson from Giants". MLB.com.
  15. Do-Hyoung Park (September 25, 2019). "Sam Dyson out for '19, maybe '20, after surgery". MLB.com. Retrieved November 2, 2019.
  16. Williams, Darrell (June 1, 2014). "Zephyrs' Chris Hatcher suspended five games after fight". The New Orleans Advocate.
  17. "Sam Dyson fired up over Jose Bautista bat flip: 'He's doing stuff kids do'". espn.com. October 15, 2015. Retrieved November 27, 2019.
  18. "Sam Dyson MLB Investigating Pitcher Over Dom. Violence Allegations". tmz.com. November 26, 2019. Retrieved November 27, 2019.
  19. Katie Strang; Ken Rosenthal (October 7, 2020). "Alexis Blackburn speaks out about abuse allegations against pitcher Sam Dyson". The Athletic. Retrieved October 11, 2020.


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