Tyler Clippard

[William Malone]

Tyler Lee Clippard was born on February 14, 1985 in Lexington, Kentucky.

The New York Yankees drafted him in round nine of the 2003 MLB Draft. He debuted for them in 2007, making six starts and posting a 6.33 ERA that season. They traded him to the Washington Nationals in the off-season. Clippard was eventually moved to the bullpen, and appeared in over 800 games during a 16-year Major League career.

He pitched for the Yankees (2007 and 2016-17), Nationals (2008-14 and 2022), Oakland Athletics (2015), New York Mets (2015), Arizona Diamondbacks (2016 and 2021), Chicago White Sox (2017), Houston Astros (2017), Toronto Blue Jays (2018), Cleveland Indians (2019) and Minnesota Twins (2020). Clippard was an All-Star in 2011 and 2014. He reached the World Series as a member of the Mets in 2015. Clippard received a World Series ring with the Astros in 2017, but was left off their playoff roster after posting a 6.43 ERA in 16 post-deadline appearances.

The Minnesota Twins signed him to a one year contract for the 2020 campaign. That season was ultimately shortened to 60 games as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. Clippard went 2-1 with eight holds in 26 appearances, recording a 2.77 ERA with a stellar 0.885 WHIP. His season also included two starts as the Twins "opener."  One of his only blemishes of the year was giving away a seventh inning lead during the regular season finale. This wound up costing Minnesota the second seed in the American League postseason, which had been expanded to eight teams that fall. He made the team's playoff roster, but did not appear in any of their two games in the 2020 Wild Card Round against the Houston Astros.

Internationally, Clippard competed for Team USA in the 2017 World Baseball Classic. He pitched 4.1 innings during the tournament, allowing only one run. The Americans wound up winning a gold medal.

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