Brian Friday

Brian David Friday

• Bats Right, Throws Right
• Height 5' 11", Weight 190 lb.
• School Rice University
• High School Bellaire Episcopal High School

• Born December 16, 1985 in Houston, TX USA

BR minors page

Biographical Information

Brian Friday reached AAA in 2010.

Friday hit .420 in high school. As a college freshman, he was the Opening Day starter at shortstop and went on to bat .256/.340/.326 while fielding .876. He improved significantly in 2006, hitting .353/.437/.558. He was among the Conference USA leaders in hits (95, 2nd to Greg Buchanan), runs (66, 2nd to Tyler Henley) and average (tied for 5th). He stole 17 bases and fielded .954. He hit .317 against nationally ranked opponents and reached base in 58 straight games at one point. Friday was named a Baseball America All-American and was easily an All-Conference pick. He helped Rice make it to the 2006 College World Series. He played for the Duncanville Deputies of the Texas Collegiate League; Baseball America rated him the league's #3 prospect.

Friday hit .336/.418/.486 as a junior and fielded .946. He hit 29 doubles, third in NCAA Division I. He had the second-best average and most runs (62) on the #3 ranked team in the country, which reached the 2007 College World Series. Brian led the Conference in doubles and at-bats (280) and was again an All-Conference selection. The Pittsburgh Pirates chose Friday with their third pick in the 2007 amateur draft, following pitchers Danny Moskos and Duke Welker, both widely panned selections in the Pirate fan community. Friday was signed by scout Everett Russell and began his pro career that summer.

Friday debuted as a pro with the State College Spikes, hitting .295/.371/.410 in 2007. In 2008, he batted .287/.365/.387 for the Lynchburg Hillcats with 16 steals in 27 tries; Brian fielded .962 at shortstop. He moved up to the AA Altoona Curve in 2009 and began with a bang, hitting .431/.517/.725 in his first 14 games, despite missing some time with injury during that period. Overall, he hit .265/.361/.385 with seven home runs and 45 RBI that year. He fielded only .948 at short. He was also involved in a collision with double-play mate Jim Negrych which ended Negrych's season.

In 2010, Friday played for the GCL Pirates (five games), Bradenton Marauders (five games) and Indianapolis Indians (93 games), hitting a combined .261/.354/.383 with three home runs and 32 RBI. With Argenis Diaz and later Pedro Ciriaco at short with Indianapolis, Friday moved to second base, hampering his prospect hopes even more.

Sources

• 2009 Pirates Media Guide
• Rice bio
• 2005-2009 Baseball Almanacs