Yankees Birthday of the Day: David Hale

As a high schooler, Hale was originally an infielder before turning to pitching in his senior year. His performance on the mound attracted MLB scouts, but the right-hander chose to play at Princeton University following graduation, having committed to the college before his senior year. Over three seasons in collegiate baseball, Hale went 7-9 with a 4.74 ERA across 127.1 innings. Those aren't eye-popping numbers, but apparently scouts saw enough in him to rank him as the Ivy League's top pitching prospect prior to his junior year. The Atlanta Braves concurred, and selected Hale 87th overall in the third round of the 2009 draft.

After bouncing between starting and bullpen roles in the Braves' system, Hale made it to the majors in September 2013. His first start was one to remember. Against an admittedly pitiful Padres lineup, Hale punched out nine batters in five innings , setting a franchise record for most strikeouts in a debut. His second start was successful too, with just one run allowed over six innings of work against the Phillies . That was enough for the Braves to place him on the playoff roster. Unfortunately, Atlanta's postseason run was short-lived, as they fell to the Dodgers in the NLDS, three games to one. Hale's sole appearance came in Game 3, facing just one batter to close out a 13-6 loss. Nonetheless, it was quite the successful year for Hale.

However, Hale did not enjoy the same level of success in the following years. In 2014, he posted a 4.31 FIP and nearly as many walks as strikeouts across 87.1 innings, most of them as a reliever. That prompted the Braves to ship him to Colorado in the offseason, where he went 5-5 with a 6.09 ERA in 17 appearances (of which 12 were starts). After giving up three runs in two innings to open the 2016 season, Hale was designated for assignment.