Andrew Bellatti

Andrew James Bellatti

• Bats Right, Throws Right
• Height 6' 1", Weight 190 lb.
• High School Steele Canyon High School
• Debut May 9, 2015

• Born August 5, 1991 in San Diego, CA USA

BR page

Biographical Information

Pitcher Andrew Bellatti played in the Tampa Bay Rays farm system beginning in 2009, but his career advancement stalled due to his involvement in a fatal car accident.

After attending Steele Canyon High School, Bellatti was selected by the Rays in the 12th round of the 2009 amateur draft. Turning down a scholarship to Cal State Fullerton, he signed with the Rays and made his pro debut with the GCL Rays that summer, going 1-0 with a 3.38 ERA in a dozen outings. On January 22, 2010, Bellatti was involved in a car accident that killed the driver of another vehicle and injured a passenger. Prosecutors determined Bellatti was driving his car at approximately 80 miles per hour before he lost control. That November, he was sentenced to eight months in jail and placed on probation for five years. He actually spent three months in a California jail and was released early after expressing sorrow and showing good behavior. In the midst of his legal troubles, Bellatti returned to the diamond that summer, going 2-5 with a 4.04 ERA in 13 starts for the Princeton Rays. In 2012, he was converted to a reliever with the Bowling Green Hot Rods, spending three seasons essentially as a middle reliever. He spent the second half of 2013 and all of 2014 with the Montgomery Biscuits of the AA Southern League in that role. His ERA was 7.09 the first season, but a solid 3.68 in 71 innings the second one, with 6 saves and 80 strikeouts. He returned to the starting rotation as he began the 2015 season in AAA for the first time, with the Durham Bulls. He did well, going 2-0, 2.11 in 5 games before getting his first shot at The Show.

Making the most of his second chance, he made his major league debut on May 9, 2015 for the Rays against the Texas Rangers. He arrived at the ballpark just a couple of hours before the game but gave up only a hit and a walk in 3 1/3 scoreless innings as his team's fourth pitcher that day to be credited with a 7-2 win. He loaded the bases after one out in the 9th inning, his fourth inning of work, after breezing through his first three frames with only a hit batsman; ironically, the three runners who got on board with the hit, the walk, and an error by second baseman Tim Beckham, allowed Brad Boxberger to qualify for a save by getting the final two outs in what would otherwise not have been a save situation. The Rays were already leading when Andrew came to the mound, but he was credited with the victory at the official scorer's discretion because starter Matt Andriese failed to pitch five innings in making an emergency start in place of an ill Jake Odorizzi, and he had been his team's most efficient pitcher that day. Andrew made 17 appearances in the bigs with the Rays in 2015. In 23 1/3 innings, he crafted a 2.31 ERA with a 10/18 K/BB ratio.

He was designated for assignment in June 2016 without a return engagement to the big leagues, spending time in the minor leagues with the Baltimore Orioles and New York Yankees over the ensuing years. He was out of organized baseball until 2019, when he resurfaced for one game with the independent Sugar Land Skeeters before being signed by the New York Yankees organization and spending time in Class A and AA. He was then forced into idleness by the Coronavirus pandemic in 2020, until getting another shot in 2021, this time with the Miami Marlins. He went 0-1, 2.70 in 4 games for the AA Pensacola Blue Wahoos and 1-2, 1.52 with 11 saves in AAA with the Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp. This earned him a second chance in the Show, six years after his first opportunity, and he appeared in three games with Miami, with no record and an ERA of 13.50 in 3 1/3 innings.

Related Sites

• Andrew Bellatti on mlb.com
• BR Minors page