Brett Gray

Brett Churchill Gray

• Bats Right, Throws Right
• Height 6' 0", Weight 190 lb.

• Born August 19, 1976 in Petrolia, ON Canada

Minors BR page

Pitcher Brett Gray played minor league ball for several years, including four seasons in the Cincinnati Reds organization, reaching as high as the AA level. He also represented Canada in international competition.

Gray began his pro career in 1998 with the independent Kalamazoo Kodiaks, going an unimpressive 6-7 with a 4.55 ERA, though he walked only 23 in 114 2/3 IP. In 1999, he was 9-5 with a 4.18 ERA for the London Werewolves. He was third in the Frontier League in wins and helped his team take the title.

Brett allowed one run in nine innings in his 2000 debut with London then was signed by Cincinnati. He went 5-3 with a 3.02 ERA that year for their Dayton Dragons affiliate. In '01, Gray was 10-4 with a 2.42 ERA for the Mudville Nine, walking only 37 in 141 1/3 IP. He finished second in the California League in ERA behind Craig Anderson yet was not one of the five pitchers chosen for the Cal League All-Star team.

Brett starred for Team Canada in the 2001 Baseball World Cup, allowing only two runs (both unearned) and 7 hits in 13 innings while whiffing 13; amazingly, he went 0-1 despite his 0.00 ERA. He tied Jose Contreras, Samuel Meurant, Chung-Nan Tsai and Jose Colon for the Cup lead in ERA. Most surprising is that most of his work came against the Cuban national team - he held them to 3 hits (2 by Luis Ulacia) in 8 innings while whiffing 8 but his defense allowed one unearned run and he lost a 1-0 duel to Contreras.

Gray had a 6-6, 2.78 record for the 2002 Chattanooga Lookouts with a team-high 48 appearances. Despite having one of the club's lowest ERAs, he would not advance any higher in the Cincinnati chain. In '03, the Ontario native split time between Chattanooga (5-3, Sv, 3.94) and the Potomac Cannons (1-0, 0.96 in 2 G).

Gray was back on the independent circuit with the 2004 Schaumburg Flyers, going just 2-2 with a 6.61 ERA. He suffered his first injury that year, one so bad it required Tommy John surgery. Prior to the injury, he was being considered for the Canadian 2004 Olympics team. and he was 0-1 with a 4.64 ERA for Schaumburg in '05.

Brett was back with Team Canada for the 2005 Baseball World Cup. He allowed five runs in 6 1/3 IP but they were all unearned; he got the win with five hitless relief innings versus Brazil. His 0.00 ERA tied Dong-yol Son for the best of any hurler who appeared in multiple Baseball World Cups from 1982-2006, .23 ahead of Contreras.

He had a 1-1, 1.38 record for Canada in the 2006 Americas Olympic Qualifier, better than his three teammates with major league experience (Eric Cyr, Aaron Myette, Mike Johnson). Canada did not win a spot in the Beijing Games but did advance to the 2008 Final Olympic Qualification Tournament.

In the '08 Olympic Qualifier, Gray tossed four shutout innings in his lone start, a victory for Canada over South Africa. They would win a spot in the 2008 Olympics during the tourney. He was battling a shoulder injury at the time, making his feat more impressive.