New York Yankees Pitcher Dies While Climbing: Former Pitcher Brad Halsey Dies At 33
Former New York Yankees pitcher Brad Halsey died Friday while recreationally climbing near his New Braunfels, Texas home.
An anonymous close friend told USA TODAY Sports that Halsey, 33, died while climbing. No public information of Halsey's death has been revealed besides with the close friend told the news outlet.
The Comal (Texas) County Sheriff's Office is investigating Halsey's death and will not release any information until the investigation is complete, said Detective Juan Guerrero. The sheriff's office is working with a medical examiner in Lockhart, Texas, Guerrero told USA Today.
Halsey was an eighth-round pick in the 2002 Major League Baseball Draft by the New York Yankees. Halsey spent most of 2004 at Triple-A Columbus, going 11-4 with a 2.63 ERA in 144 innings. He posted a 2.95 strikeout-to-walk ratio (109-to-37), while opponents batted .237 against him with eight home runs. The Yankees gave him a spot in their pitching rotation on June 19, 2004. In seven starts and a relief appearance, Halsey finished with a 1-3 record, 25 strikeouts, and a 6.47 ERA in 32 innings.
He also played for the Diamondbacks, A's and ended his career in the Dodgers farm system.
Halsey debuted in 2004 and shined in winning his first major league start, giving up two runs in 5 2/3 innings for the Yankees against the Los Angeles Dodgers. A week later, he started at Yankee Stadium against the Boston Red Sox in a game made famous by Derek Jeter's dive into the stands to catch a foul ball.
Halsey had just one win as a Yankee, as they traded him to the Diamondbacks - along with catcher Dioner Navarro and pitcher Javier Vazquez - in a deal for Johnson in January 2005, according to the report.
Halsey gave up Barry Bonds' 714th career home run in 2006, pitching for the A's, his final season in the major leagues. Halsey pitched in independent leagues and most recently was back in the Yankees organization, reaching Class AA Trenton (N.J.) in 2011.
