Brent Abernathy

Michael Brent Abernathy was born on September 23, 1977.

The Toronto Blue Jays draft him in round two of the 1996 MLB Draft. While still a prospect, he was traded to the Tampa Bay Devil Rays at the deadline in 2000 for Steve Trachsel and Mark Guthrie. Shortly after the trade, Abernathy won gold at the 2000 Olympics with Team USA. He hit .385 during the nine game tournament, and lead the Americans with six doubles.

He hit .270 with five home runs and 33 RBI as a rookie for the Devil Rays in 2001. Abernathy followed that up by hitting .242 with two home runs and 40 RBI during the next year. Tampa Bay placed him on waivers after a slow start in 2003, and he was claimed by the Kansas City Royals. Abernathy spent all of 2004 in the Cleveland Indians minor league system.

The Minnesota Twins signed Abernathy to a minor league deal in 2005. He hit .326 in 56 games with the Triple-A Rochester Red Wings, while also having a few cups of coffee at the big league level. Abernathy homered against Hall of Fame starter Mike Mussina in a 6-3 win over the New York Yankees on June 3rd. This was his eighth, and final, Major League home run. He also had a four game hit streak in early August, which was part of a seven game Twins win streak. Abernathy finished the year with a .239 average in 24 games, driving in six runs and stealing two bases.

He continued to play professionally until 2009, but never played in the Majors after his time with the Twins.

• 2000 gold medal
• Spoiled a perfect game bid for Derek Lowe with a walk on April 27, 2002
  • Lowe still threw a no-hitter