Andrew Graham

From BR Bullpen

Andrew Ewes Graham

Bats Right, Throws Right
Height 6' 4", Weight 215 lb.

Schools Clarendon Junior College, Armstrong Atlantic State University

Born April 22, 1982 in Sydney, New South Wales Australia

Andrew Graham played his fifth minor league season in 2007, spending all year as a backup at AAA. He has played for the Australian national team in several events.

Graham helped Armstrong Atlantic State finish 9th in NCAA Division II in 2003. The Detroit Tigers picked in the 19th round of the 2003 amateur draft. He was assigned to the Oneonta Tigers and hit .182/.333/.236 in 20 games. In 2004, he played for Oneonta (.280/.360/.308 in 8 games) and the West Michigan Whitecaps (.253/.303/.361 in 26 contests).

Graham made his debut in his native Australia with the 2005 Claxton Shield, in which he was 3 for 14 for the New South Wales Patriots. In the summer, he hit .190/.234/.230 in 32 games for West Michigan and was 4 for 14 with the Lakeland Tigers. He played for the Australian national team in the 2005 Baseball World Cup, going 4 for 15 with a double and two passed balls in seven games, starting ahead of Trent D'Antonio, who had a better tournament.

In the 2006 Claxton Shield, the New South Wales catcher hit .409/.435/.636 with 5 runs, 4 RBI and 5 doubles in five games. He successfully filled the big shoes left empty by the retirement of long-time Australian star Gary White. He played two games for Australia in the 2006 World Baseball Classic. Against Jason Grilli, he struck out in his only at-bat before Gavin Fingleson pinch-hit for him. In his only other appearance, he walked against Duaner Sanchez. Andrew hit only .127/.127/.257 in 28 games for Lakeland in 2006 but was better with the Erie SeaWolves, batting .276/.344/.362 in 20 contests. In the 2006 Intercontinental Cup, the burly right-handed batter was 4 for 8 with two walks and 5 RBI as the backup to Matthew Kent.

He was only 3 for 20 with a homer and a walk in the 2007 Claxton Shield. Graham batted .208/.274/.292 in 36 games for the 2007 Toledo Mud Hens as the backup to a player with an even lower average that year, Dane Sardinha. In the 2007 Baseball World Cup, Graham hit .231/.389/.308 while splitting catching duties with Kent.