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Caden Dana

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Caden Dana
Los Angeles Angels – No. 36
Pitcher
Born: (2003-12-17) December 17, 2003 (age 20)
Warwick, New York, U.S.
Bats: Right
Throws: Right
MLB debut
September 1, 2024, for the Los Angeles Angels
MLB statistics
(through 2024 season)
Win–loss record1–2
Earned run average9.58
Strikeouts8
Teams

Caden Lawrence Dana (born December 17, 2003) is an American professional baseball pitcher for the Los Angeles Angels of Major League Baseball (MLB). The Angels selected him in the 11th round of the 2022 MLB draft.

Amateur career

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Dana attended Don Bosco Preparatory High School in Ramsey, New Jersey. In early 2020, Dana committed to play college baseball for the Kentucky Wildcats.[1] He was the New Jersey Gatorade Baseball Player of the Year his senior year in 2022.[2]

Professional career

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Minor leagues

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Dana was drafted by the Los Angeles Angels in the 11th round of the 2022 Major League Baseball Draft. Dana forewent his commitment to play for the Kentucky Wildcats and signed with the Angels for $1,497,500, a record-high signing bonus for an 11th-round pick.[3] He netted the second-highest bonus in the Angels' 2022 draft class, only behind first-round pick Zach Neto.[4] His brother, Casey, was also drafted by the Angels that year.[5]

On August 8, 2022, the Angels assigned Dana to the Rookie-level Arizona Complex League Angels. On August 9, he made his professional debut, pitching two innings while allowing one hit and no runs against the ACL Diamondbacks Black. On September 7, the Angels promoted Dana to the Single-A Inland Empire 66ers of the California League, where he pitched one game.[6] Between the two teams, Dana finished his partial 2022 season with a 0–0 record, 6.48 ERA, and 8 strikeouts in 8+1⁄3 innings.[7]

Dana played his first three games of the 2023 season with Inland Empire, compiling a 1–1 record with a 1.20 ERA and 18 strikeouts across 15 innings.[8] On April 25, the Angels promoted him to the High-A Tri-City Dust Devils of the Northwest League.[9] In 11 starts with the team, Dana went 2–4 with a 4.22 ERA and 71 strikeouts across 53+1⁄3 innings.[7]

In 2024, Dana received a non-roster invitation to the Angels' big-league spring training camp for the first time. His performance at the camp received positive reviews from the media, such as after his two shutout innings against the Chicago White Sox on March 3.[10] The organization promoted him to the Double-A Rocket City Trash Pandas of the Southern League to begin the 2024 regular season. In late June, Dana entered MLB.com's league-wide top 100 prospects list, the only Angels player with the distinction at the time.[11] He later moved up to 91 on the list and received an invitation to pitch in the 2024 All-Star Futures Game.[12] By August, he moved up to 74 on the MLB.com ranking, maintaining his organizational top prospect status with first-round draft pick Christian Moore entering behind him.[13] In 23 starts with Rocket City through late August, Dana posted a 9–7 record with a 2.52 ERA and 147 strikeouts in 135+2⁄3 innings.[8]

Major leagues

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On August 29, 2024, the Angels promoted Dana to the major leagues.[14] When he debuted on September 1, he was 20 years and 259 days old, making him the youngest person to pitch for the Angels since Francisco Rodríguez in 2002 and the youngest starter since Frank Tanana in 1973. In the game, Dana gave up two runs over six innings with four strikeouts, earning a win against the Seattle Mariners. He became the youngest Angels pitcher to record a win in a debut.[15]

References

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  1. ^ Hunt, TJ (February 1, 2020). "Commitment News: 2022 RHP Caden Dana Commits to Kentucky". Prep Baseball Report. Retrieved June 27, 2024.
  2. ^ "Don Bosco's Caden Dana is 2021-22 Gatorade N.J. Baseball Player of the Year". June 3, 2022.
  3. ^ "An 11th-round pick in MLB Draft, Dana agrees to record-setting deal with Angels". July 23, 2022.
  4. ^ "Angels sign 18 of 19 Draft picks". MLB.com. MLB Advanced Media. August 2, 2022. Retrieved June 27, 2024.
  5. ^ "Los Angeles Angels draft brothers Caden and Casey Dana, both Don Bosco Prep grads".
  6. ^ "Caden and Casey Dana set to begin careers with Angels". August 3, 2022.
  7. ^ a b "Caden Dana Stats". MiLB.com. MLB Advanced Media. Retrieved June 27, 2024.
  8. ^ a b "Caden Dana 2023 Minor Leagues Game Logs & Splits". Baseball Reference. Sports Reference. Retrieved June 27, 2024.
  9. ^ "Angels Challenge Caden Dana with Quick Promotion". May 3, 2023.
  10. ^ Padilla, Doug (March 3, 2024). "Angels like early results from rookie pitcher Caden Dana". The Orange County Register. Southern California News Group. Retrieved June 27, 2024.
  11. ^ Angus-Coombs, Maren (June 27, 2024). "The Angels Have a Top-100 MLB Prospect Again". FanNation. Sports Illustrated. Retrieved June 27, 2024.
  12. ^ Geitheim, Eva (July 4, 2024). "Angels Top Prospect Gets Big MLB Honor". FanNation. Sports Illustrated. Retrieved July 6, 2024.
  13. ^ Bollinger, Rhett (August 23, 2024). "Angels' top prospect 'on the radar' for bigs". MLB.com. MLB Advanced Media. Retrieved August 29, 2024.
  14. ^ Martinez, Valentina (August 29, 2024). "Breaking: Angels To Promote Prospect Caden Dana For Sunday Start". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved August 29, 2024.
  15. ^ Reedy, Joe (September 1, 2024). "Caden Dana becomes youngest Angels pitcher to win debut in 3-2 victory over Mariners". ABC News. Associated Press. Retrieved September 2, 2024.
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