Daniel Berg

Daniel Jack Berg

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

• School Texarkana Junior College
• High School Kingswood College

• Born November 21, 1984 in Melbourne, Victoria Australia

Minors BR page

Biographical Information

Daniel Berg played his fifth minor league season in 2009.

Berg hit .351/.419/.649 with 3 homers, 10 runs and 9 RBI in 8 games in the 2002 World Junior Championship, though he fielded .800 in CF, tying Ian Stewart and others for 7th in homers. He had two dingers in their win over South Korea in the 5th/6th place game. He made his debut in the Claxton Shield in 2003 as a late substitute when Adam Burton retired. Berg was 2 for 13 with 3 walks, 2 errors and 3 steals in 4 tries. He was on the Aussie team that won the 2003 Oceania Championship. He then came to the US for college baseball. The Minnesota Twins drafted him in the 30th round in 2004.

Berg made his pro debut in 2005, hitting .159/.265/.205 in 28 games as a utility infielder for the GCL Twins. He starred in the 2006 Claxton Shield, going 8 for 18 with 2 doubles, a triple, a steal, 6 runs and a tournament-best 11 walks in 7 games for the Victoria Aces. In the minors in 2006, Danny played for the Beloit Snappers (.192/.313/.308 in 9 games) then was demoted to the Elizabethton Twins, where he hit .253/.353/.466 with 35 runs in 51 contests. He led one of the Appalachian League's top offenses in runs scored. He did not have a regular position, playing first base, catcher and third base that season.

In the 2007 Claxton Shield, Berg batted .259/.375/.333 for Victoria to help them win the title. He spent the 2007 minor league season with Beloit, only hitting .214/.298/.291 in 101 games. He played five different positions (1B, 3B, C, RF and LF) in addition to DH. He struck out 98 times in 323 AB.

Berg starred in the Claxton Shield in 2008, hitting .400/.429/.750 with 3 home runs, second to only former Olympic Silver Medalist Tom Brice. Daniel was picked for the Australian national team in the 2008 Final Olympic Qualification Tournament and played regularly. His four games at third base led the team (one ahead of Glenn Williams); he also played two games in left, one at DH and one at catcher. Berg batted .308/.367/.462 with 7 runs in 7 games. He tied Kuo-Hui Lo for 7th in the tourney in runs and was second on his team behind Brice. Berg went 3 for 5 with 2 runs and 3 RBI in a win over Team Canada, the tourney champs. Australia fell short of a spot in the 2008 Olympics despite Berg's performance.

Daniel split the 2008 campaign between the Fort Myers Miracle (.279/.381/.414 in 67 games) and New Britain Rock Cats (.255/.327/.319 in 15 games). He played every position except for shortstop, center field and pitcher during the year. Berg was on the Australian roster for the 2009 World Baseball Classic. He backed up James Beresford at second base and struck out in all three of at-bats; he also made an error.

In 2009, Berg hit just .210 in 60 games between New Britain and Fort Myers. He was designated for assignment by the Twins and ended the year playing with the Grand Prairie Air Hogs of the independent American Association.

Sources

• 2008 Twins Media Guide
• 2006-2009 Baseball Almanacs
• IBAF
• Flintoff & Dunn Australian Baseball Almanac
• Australian Baseball Federation
• World Baseball Classic