Brian McCann biography
Date of birth : 1984-02-20
Date of death : -
Birthplace : Athens, Georgia, U.S.
Nationality : American
Category : Sports
Last modified : 2010-07-14
Credited as : Baseball player/catcher MLB, plays for Atlanta Braves,
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Early career
As a youth, McCann played Little League at league 6 in Huntington, West Virginia. Brian committed to play baseball for the University of Alabama(Rivals.com). He was selected by the Atlanta Braves in the 2nd round of the 2002 Major League Baseball Draft. McCann advanced steadily through the Braves' minor league system, playing for the Rome Braves (Low A) in 2003, the Myrtle Beach Pelicans (High A) in 2004, and the Mississippi Braves (Double-A) in 2005.
McCann was a member of the Rome Braves which won the 2003 South Atlantic League Championship. McCann led that team in RBIs (71), and doubles (31).
Major League career
McCann made his Major League Baseball debut with the Atlanta Braves on June 10, 2005. A personal catcher for John Smoltz for most of the 2005 season, McCann hit his first home run in just his second regular-season game and became the first Braves player in franchise history to hit a home run in his first playoff at-bat on October 6, 2005. He accomplished the feat in the second inning of a 7-1 victory over Roger Clemens and the Houston Astros in Game 2 of the 2005 National League Division Series. McCann was named the everyday starter when the Braves traded Johnny Estrada to the Diamondbacks.
During the 2006 season, McCann hit .333 with 24 homers and 94 RBI. He led all Major League catchers in homers, and his RBI total was matched only by Jorge Posada and Victor Martinez. The Braves rewarded McCann by buying out his arbitration years with a 6-year, $27.8 million contract during spring training in 2007.
McCann was selected to play in the 2006 MLB All-Star Game in his first full major league season and has been selected in both 2007 and 2008, making him the first Braves player ever to be selected to the National League All-Star team in each of his first three seasons.
Beginning in April of 2009, McCann was bothered by blurry vision in his left eye, due to a slight vision change following 2007 LASIK surgery. He decided to opt for glasses when contact lenses proved uncomfortable. In May 2009, Oakley, Inc. made special glasses for McCann to correct the vision problem and allow for comfort under the catcher's mask. McCann remarked, "I need my Oakleys. I have to have the wraparounds for my peripheral vision."
In 2009, he had more errors at catcher than any other major leaguer, with 12, and had the lowest fielding percentage among them (.988).
In 2009, he had more errors at catcher than any other major leaguer, with 12, and had the lowest fielding percentage among them (.988).
He was selected for the 2009 MLB All-Star Game in St. Louis, Missouri and the 2010 MLB All-Star Game in Anaheim, California.
He was named the 2010 MLB All-Star Game MVP after driving in all three of the National League's runs with a bases-clearing double (driving in Scott Rolen, Matt Holliday, and Marlon Byrd) off of Chicago White Sox reliever, Matt Thornton, giving the NL its first win since 1996.
PERSONAL LIFE
McCann married the former Ashley Jarusinski in December 2007 and they are expecting their first child due in February 2011. His older brother, Brad, played pro baseball in the Florida Marlins and Kansas City Royals organizations before retiring after the 2007 season.
