Last name is pronounced: BREHZ-loh. Married to Kelly. Is a 1998 graduate of Trumbull (CT) High School. Graduated from Yale University in 2002 with degrees in molecular biophysics and biochemistry...Earned All-Ivy honors as a junior. Named the "Smartest Man in Baseball" by the Wall Street Journal in 2009, and ranked 1st on The Sporting News list of Top 20 Smartest Athletes in 2010. Garnered 2010 Most Valuable Jewish Pitcher of the Year honors by Jewish Major Leaguers, Inc. Was the 2013 recipient of the Unsung Hero Award from the Boston chapter of the Baseball Writers Association of America.
2014
Made 60 appearances for BOS, 5th most on the staff despite missing the 1st week of the season while on the DL...Began the season on the disabled list with a mild left shoulder strain...Made 3 scoreless appearances (1 start) during a rehab assignment at Triple-A Pawtucket before being activated on 4/9...Threw 1.0 scoreless inning in his season debut on 4/10 at NYY...Had a 3.91 ERA (11 ER/25.1 IP) in 28 games on the road compared to a 7.71 ERA (25 ER/29.0 IP) in 32 at Fenway...Pitched more than 1.0 inning 10 times and posted a 2.25 ERA (4 ER/16.0 IP) in those games...Stranded 14 of 16 inherited runners...Made 10 straight scoreless appearances, 5/2-24 (9.2 IP) and held opponents to a .188 AVG (6-for-32) in that span...Had 4 separate appearances in which he allowed at least 4 ER...All together, those 4 games amounted to 18 of his total 36 ER allowed on the season...Earned the win in consecutive team games, both against CIN at Fenway Park, 5/6-7...Threw a scoreless 10th inning to record the save on 8/25 at TOR...Was his 1st save since 10/3/10 for OAK at SEA
2013
Began the season on the 15-day disabled list with left shoulder tendinitis...Made 5 rehab appearances between both Double-A Portland and Triple-A Pawtucket. Reinstated from the DL on 5/6 and made his season debut that night vs. MIN (1.0 IP, SO). Made 61 appearances after his activation on 5/6 which were 6th most among AL pitchers (T-8th in MLB) beginning on that date. No runs allowed in 52 of his 61 appearances...Had 23 perfect appearances, 2nd most on the staff. His 5 wins tied for the lead among Sox relievers and were his most since a single-season career-high 8 in 2009 with OAK and MIN. Was 3-1 with a 0.56 ERA (2 ER/32.1 IP) in 29 appearances on the road and 28 of those appearances were scoreless... Was 2-1 with a 3.29 ERA (10 ER/27.1 IP) in 32 games at Fenway Park. Threw more than 1.0 inning 14 times (4-1, 1.14 ERA, 3 ER/23.2 IP)...Pitched 2.0 or more innings 5 times. Earned his 1st win of the season in the Sox' 6-5 walk-off victory over CLE on 5/26...BOS trailed 5-2 entering the bottom of the 9th inning. Posted a career-best 16-game scoreless streak (13.2 IP), 7/22-8/31...Held opponents to a .140 AVG (6-for-43) over that span...All 12 of his appearances in the month of August were scoreless (8.2 IP). Went 2-0 with a 0.35 ERA (1 ER/25.2 IP), 12 H, 9 BB, 14 SO, .146 opp. AVG (12-for-82), and a 0.82 WHIP over his final 28 appearances of the season beginning 7/22. Each of his final 11 appearances of the season were scoreless (11.0 IP) and held opponents to a .143 AVG (5-for- 35)...Lowered his ERA from 2.22 on 9/1 to 1.81 at the season's end.
2012
Split the season between ARI and BOS...Acquired by the Red Sox at the 7/31 trade deadline for RHP Matt Albers and OF Scott Podsednik. Held left-handed batters to a .222 AVG (24-for-108) overall...Posted a .074 opponent clip (2-for-27) vs. the AL East while tossing 9.2 scoreless frames over 10 outings against the division. Began the year with the D-backs and went 2-0 with a 2.70 ERA (13 ER/43.1 IP) in 40 relief outings...Fanned 42 batters with ARI, 8th-most among left-handed NL relievers at the time of the trade...16 of his 1st 18 appearances were scoreless, including 8 straight from 5/2-18 (9.1 IP). Made 300th career appearance on 4/17 vs. PIT. Tossed a season-high 2.1 innings on 4/20 vs. ATL (0 R), his 6th career outing of more than 2.0 innings. Did not walk a batter in a career-high 11 consecutive games from 5/29-7/ 2 (11.2 IP). 27 of his last 31 games were scoreless beginning at the start of July (2.22 ERA, 7 ER/28.1 IP)...Recorded 36 K's over 33.0 IP over his last 34 tilts beginning 6/23. Tallied at least 1 strikeout in a career-high 7 straight outings from 7/15-8/1 (10 K's), with the last of those appearances coming with BOS. Added to Red Sox active roster on 8/1 and appeared in 23 games with BOS, posting a 2.70 ERA (6 ER/20.0 IP) and holding opponents to a .206 AVG (14-for-68) with 19 K's...Allowed runs in just 3 outings with the Sox. Recorded 5 holds with the Sox, tied for the club lead beginning 7/31 (also Tazawa). Tossed 9.0 scoreless frames over 10 games to end the season beginning 9/2, holding opponents to .143 clip (4-for-28) with 9 K's during that span...15 of his final 16 outings of 2012 were scoreless beginning on 8/15 and had 15 strikeouts in that time (2.45 ERA, 4 ER/14.2 IP).
2011
Was 0-2 with a 3.79 ERA (25 ER in 59.1 IP) in 67 appearances in his second full season with the A's...his .296 (69-for-233) opponents average and 3.79 ERA marked career highs...Led all relief pitchers with a career-high 5 pickoffs and topped American League relievers in caught stealing (7)...also ranked 11th in the AL in inherited runners scored percent (21.1, 8-of-38)...Right-handers hit .261 (37-for-142) compared to .352 (32-for-91) vs. left-handers...Had a 3.06 ERA (11 ER in 32.1 IP) prior to the All-Star Break and a 4.67 ERA (14 E R in 27.0 IP) after...Compiled a pair of 11-game scoreless streaks (April 13- May 3 and June 11-July 15), tying his career high.
2010
Made a team-leading 75 appearances for the A's, registering a 4-4 mark with five saves and 3.01 ERA... the games pitched tied for the fifth highest single season total in Oakland history...also set an Oakland record for strikeouts by a left-handed reliever with 71...broke the previous mark of 69 set by Bob Lacey in 1977...ranked second among American League relievers in appearances, tied for fourth in innings pitched (74.2), tied for sixth in strikeouts and 10th in opponents batting average (.194)...the opponents batting average was a career low and marked his second consecutive season under .200...now has a .204 opponents average in his career...also had a career low .272 on-base percentage while posting career-highs in saves, innings pitched, hits (53), strikeouts and home runs (9)...matched his high in walks (29)...the nine home runs tied for eighth most among AL relievers...first batters faced were 9 for 69 (.130) with six walks (.200 on-base percentage)...the batting average was sixth lowest in the AL and the on-base percentage tied for sixth...tied for second in first batter strikeouts (23)...allowed 7 of 33 (21.2%) inherited runners to score, which was the seventh lowest percentage in the AL...his opponents batting average broke down to .181 (17 for 94) against left-handed hitters and .201 (36 for 179) against right-handers...allowed a .236 average with runners in scoring position but opponents were 0 for 11 with no RBI with the bases loaded...the 11 at-bats were the most among major league pitchers that did not allow a RBI with the bases loaded and were the most by an AL pitcher with no RBI since the stat was tracked beginning in 1974...opponents are 2 for 30 (.067) with six RBI with the bases loaded in his career...compiled a 5.17 ERA in 18 appearances on no days rest, a 2.44 ERA in his other 57 games... now has a 3.91 career ERA on no days rest and 2.56 ERA with one day of rest or more...had a 2.48 ERA on the road compared to 3.63 in Oakland, where he allowed six of his nine home runs...did not yield a run in his only appearance against Detroit and has not allowed a run in 11 career outings against the Tigers (11.0 ip)...tossed at least one inning in 56 of his 75 outings, including a season-high 2.0 three times.
OAKLAND: Compiled a 5.06 ERA and .360 opponents batting average over his first eight games through April 24...then held the opposition to a .096 batting average while posting a 2.17 ERA over a 29-game span from April 27 to June 27...had a 0.71 ERA and .100 opponents batting average in 12 outings in May and stranded all five of his inherited runners...that included a 10-game, 10.0-inning scoreless streak from May 7 to 29...stranded 19 of 20 inherited runners over a 51-game stretch from June 2 to Oct. 2...struck out a career-high four batters in 1.2 innings June 4 against Minnesota...retired 19 consecutive batters from June 13 to 27...pitched in five consecutive games from June 23 to 29, although the stretch included a pair of off-days...appeared in a total of 16 games in June, which are the most in one month by an A's pitcher since Billy Koch pitched in 16 games in Sept., 2002...tossed a scoreless eighth inning July 20 against Boston in the 200th appearance of his career...struck out the final two batters in the A's 3-1 win at Texas July 28 for his first save of the season...had just one career save entering the season and would go on to save four more games...yielded a career-high tying three runs Aug. 21 against Tampa Bay (fourth time, first since Aug. 28, 2009 at Los Angeles), but posted a 1.40 ERA over his final 17 appearances...had a season-best 11.1-inning scoreless streak over a 10-game stretch from Sept. 8 to 29 (3 h, 7 bb, 8 so) and finished September with a 1.29 ERA and .125 opponents batting average...now has a 1.63 ERA (9 er in 49.2 ip) in 52 career appearances in September, his lowest ERA for any month of the season...picked up his third save of the season Sept. 20 against Chicago... had each of the A's final three saves as he also recorded the save in the final two games of the season, Oct. 2 and 3 at Seattle...walked a career-high tying three batters Sept. 29 at Los Angeles (also May 2, 2009 vs. Kansas City).
2009
Began the season with Minnesota and had a 6.28 ERA in 17 appearances when he was claimed off waivers by the A's May 20...went 7-5 with a 2.60 ERA in 60 games with Oakland and combined for an 8-7 record and a 3.36 ERA in 77 appearances overall...the games pitched were a career high and second most in the American League...his losses tied for the lead among AL relievers but he ranked second in wins...his .197 opponents batting average tied for 10th lowest...now has a .209 (109 for 521) opponents batting average in his career...allowed 12 of 50 (24.0%) inherited runners to score, which was 10th lowest in the AL...has allowed 26 of 118 (22.0%) to score in his career...was 1-4 with a 4.46 ERA in 44 appearances before the All-Star Break but then went 7-3 with a 2.29 ERA in 33 games after the break... the seven post-break wins led the A's pitching staff and tied for eighth among all AL pitchers...the ERA tied for fourth lowest in the AL among pitchers with at least 35.0 post-break innings...his opponents batting average included a .191 (26 for 136) mark against right-handed hitters and .204 (22 for 108) against left-handers...allowed a .143 average with runners in scoring position and opponents are batting .154 (24 for 156) against him with RISP for his career...first batters faced hit .302 (19 for 63) with 11 walks (.405 on-base percentage)...the walks tied for second most in the AL...tied for the AL lead in first batter grounded into double plays (4) and tied for third in home runs (4)...compiled a 1.35 ERA in 28 games in the Coliseum, fanning 26 in 26.2 innings...had a 4.60 ERA with 29 strikeouts in 43.0 innings in 49 games in all other ballparks...now has a 1.41 ERA (5 er in 32.0 ip) in 32 career appearances in Oakland...had a 4.29 ERA in 25 outings on no days rest and a 2.96 ERA in 52 appearances with at least one day of rest...allowed a .478 batting average against the opponents number one hitter in the order and .167 against everyone else...tossed less than one inning in 31 of his 77 outings while throwing a season high 2.0 innings four times.
2008
Claimed off waivers by Cleveland from Boston March 23...made Cleveland debut at Oakland on April 4 working 1.1 scoreless innings...tossed 8.1 innings allowing three runs on 10 hits with five walks and seven strikeouts in seven appearances with the Indians...five of those seven appearances with the Indians were scoreless...tossed 2.0 innings, allowing three hits with three strikeouts, May 10 vs. Toronto...designated for assignment by Cleveland on May 23...claimed off waivers by the Twins from Cleveland on May 29...made Twins debut, tossing 1.2 innings with three strikeouts, May 31 vs. New York (AL)...did not allow a run in 11 appearances (10.2 ip), May 31-June 30...tossed a season-high 3.0 scoreless innings and recorded his first career save, August 29 at Oakland...posted a 0.55 ERA (16.1 ip, 1 er) in 18 appearances from August 16-September 25...opponents hit just .148 during the span...tied career-high three strikeouts, September 13 at Baltimore...pitched a scoreless inning in back-to-back games vs. the White Sox, September 24 and 25 (he retired all six batters he faced in the series)...did not allow a run in 13 appearances in September (9.0 innings)...allowed just eight of his 42 inherited runners to score.
2007
Pitched exclusively for Triple-A Pawtucket, earning mid-season International League All-Star honors for the second straight season...ranked third on the club with 49 appearances (all but one as a reliever), going 2-3 with a 4.06 ERA...struck out 73 in 68.2 innings, an average of 9.6 strikeouts per nine innings...was a Sept. 1 call-up to Boston, but did not pitch before being optioned back to Pawtucket the following day...posted a 1.85 ERA in 29 games before the All-Star break and a 7.92 ERA in 20 appearances after the break...had ERAs of 2.13 in April, 0.61 in May and 2.03 in June...was scored upon in 10 of his final 16 outings of the season...had a streak of 12.1 consecutive innings without allowing an earned run from June 14-July 3...worked more than 1.0 inning in 24 of his 48 relief appearances, including a season-high 3.0 innings, three times...recorded a season-high five strikeouts in 2.0 innings June 26 vs. Norwich...earned a save and a win in his third and fourth appearances of the season, respectively (April 11 and 19), and then did not record another victory until Aug. 21...allowed one hit in 0.2 scoreless innings in the Triple-A All-Star Game July 11 in Albuquerque...his start Aug. 9 (3.0 ip, 1 er) was the first of his professional career.
2006
Had three separate stints with Boston, going a combined 0-2 with three holds and a 3.75 ERA in 13 relief appearances...had 12 strikeouts in 12.0 innings...was originally selected from Pawtucket July 13 and made his Red Sox debut the following night vs. Oakland, allowing just one hit with two strikeouts in 1.2 innings...was optioned back to Pawtucket the next day before being recalled Aug. 14... pitched that night vs. Detroit, but was again optioned to Pawtucket Aug. 18...earned a Sept. 1 call-up to Boston, where he stayed for the remainder of the season...appeared in 11 games with the Sox to close the year, going 0-2 with a 5.19 ERA...allowed one run in 1.0 inning for his first big league loss Sept. 9 vs. Kansas City...went 7-1 with seven saves and a 2.69 ERA in 39 relief appearances with Pawtucket and was selected as the team's Most Valuable Pitcher in a teammate vote...was on the International League team for the 2006 Triple-A All-Star Game but did not pitch...led the PawSox in appearances and ranked second in saves while holding opponents to a .200 average...had 77 strikeouts in 67.0 innings, an average of 10.3 strikeouts per nine innings...did not allow an earned run in his final 11 appearances covering 17.1 innings, going 2-0 with two saves in that span.
2005
Made his Major League debut with three separate stints with the Padres, posting no record and a 2.20 ERA in 14 games out of the bullpen...with San Diego, limited left-handed hitters to a .063 average... began the season with Mobile, going 2-1 with a 2.79 ERA in 39 relief appearances to earn a July 23 promotion to San Diego...made his Major League debut that night in Philadelphia, striking out three in 1.2 innings of scoreless relief...was optioned back to Mobile the following day before being recalled by the Padres five days later...was optioned to Triple-A Portland Aug. 11 and made seven appearances before his third recall to San Diego, Sept. 1...pitched for Peoria in the Arizona Fall League and had a loss and a 7.24 ERA in 15 relief appearances.
2004
Began his 3rd season in the Brewers organization with Single-A High Desert, going 1-3 with a 7.19 ERA in 23 games before being released July 6...signed with the New Jersey Jackals of the Independent Northeast League in late July, and went on to post a 3-1 record with a save and a 4.10 ERA in 19 games...held Northeast League foes to a .204 average and recorded 37 strikeouts in 26.1 innings, an average of 12.6 K's per 9 innings...did not allow a run in his first 6 games (9.1 IP) with the Jackals.
2003
Averaged 11.1 strikeouts per nine innings for Single-A Beloit, fanning 80 batters in 65.0 innings... issued only 27 walks for a 3-to-1 strikeout-to-walk ratio...held opponents to a .254 average and gave up four home runs in 65.0 innings, an average of one homer per 16.3 innings.
2002
Ranked fifth in the Pioneer League with six wins in his first professional campaign, going 6-2 with a 1.82 ERA in 23 appearances out of the pen for Rookie-level Ogden...struck out 56 in 54.1 innings and limited the opposition to a .218 average.
