Joe Wieland

Joseph Andrew Wieland

• Bats Right, Throws Right
• Height 6' 3", Weight 195 lb.
• High School Bishop Monogue High School
• Debut April 14, 2012
• Final Game August 12, 2016
• Born January 21, 1990 in Reno, NV USA

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Biographical Information

Pitcher Joe Wieland made his major league debut with the San Diego Padres in 2012.

Wieland had a 2.04 ERA as a high school senior and hit .556 with 12 homers. The Las Vegas Review Journal and Reno Gazette Journal both named him Nevada State high school Player of the Year. He had a commitment to San Diego State University before he was selected by the Texas Rangers in the 4th round of the 2008 amateur draft. He was signed by scout Butch Metzger and went 5-1, 1.44, for the AZL Rangers in 2008, with a 41/8 K/W ratio in 43 2/3 innings, to immediately establish himself as a prospect. Baseball America rated him as the 11th-best prospect in the Arizona League, between Yowill Espinal and Tyler Chatwood. He moved up to the Hickory Crawdads of the South Atlantic League in 2009, where he struggled a bit. In 19 games, he was 4-6, 5.31, and wielded 102 hits in 83 innings. He returned to Hickory in 2010, but this time mastered the level in 15 starts, during which he went 7-4, 3.34. Promoted to the Bakersfield Blaze of the California League, he had a slightly harder time, with a 4-3 record, but a 5.19 ERA.

In 2011, he started the year with another Class A team. the Myrtle Beach Pelicans of the Carolina League, where he was 6-3, 2.10 in 14 games. That got him promoted to the San Antonio Missions of the Texas League, where he was even better: he went 4-0, 1.23 in 7 starts. In his final start for San Antonio, he pitched a 9-inning no-hitter. At the trading deadline on July 31st, he was sent to the San Diego Padres along with Robby Erlin in return for Mike Adams. He finished the season by going 3-1, 2.77 in 5 games for the Frisco RoughRiders, also in the Texas League. That gave him a combined record for the season of 13-4, 1.97, with 150 strikeouts to 21 walks in 155 2/3 innings. He was named to the postseason All-Star team for the Texas League, joining Brad Brach, Shelby Miller, Garrett Richards, Dallas Keuchel and Matt Shoemaker as the selected hurlers. Baseball America rated him as the 8th-best prospect in the Padres organization and as having the best control in their system. Baseball America also rated him as the #9 Carolina League prospect (between Bryce Brentz and Christian Bethancourt) and #18 Texas League prospect (between Salvador Perez and Matt Adams). He finished 5th in the affiliated minors in ERA behind Michael Fiers, Matt Moore, Greg Billo and Eric Surkamp.

Wieland was a non-roster invitee to the Padres' spring training in 2012, and while he did not make the team, he impressed enough to put himself at the top of the depth chart. Indeed, after two starts for the AAA Tucson Padres (0-1, 3.52, 11 K in 7 2/3 IP), he was called up to San Diego to replace the injured Dustin Moseley and made his debut in an April 14th start against the Los Angeles Dodgers. He found the step a bit steep, as he gave up 6 runs in 5 innings, with 3 homers, to be charged with a 6-1 loss. It took him almost two more years to first inscribe his name in the win column, however, doing so for the first time on September 24, 2014, 4-3 over the Colorado Rockies. He had gone 0-4 in 5 starts in 2012, missed all of 2013 recovering from Tommy John surgery, and had been winless in his first three appearances after being a September call-up in 2014.

On December 11, 2014, the Padres traded Wieland with Yasmani Grandal and Zach Eflin to the Los Angeles Dodgers for Matt Kemp and Tim Federowicz. he spent most of the 2015 season in the minor leagues, going 10-5, 4.59 with the Oklahoma City Dodgers of the Pacific Coast League. he also made 2 starts for the Dodgers, going 0-1, 8.31. On January 12, 2016, he was traded to the Seattle Mariners in return for IF Erick Mejia.

Related Sites

• Joe Wieland on mlb.com
• BR Minors page