Brian Dopirak
Last updated
Brian Allan Dopirak, born December 20, 1983, is an American former professional baseball first baseman. The Chicago Cubs selected him in the second round (56th overall) of the 2002 MLB draft out of Dunedin High School.
He spent parts of eight seasons in the minor leagues across three organizations, peaking at the Triple-A level. His best season came in 2004, when he hit 39 home runs and drove in 120 runs for the Single-A Lansing Lugnuts, earning Midwest League Most Valuable Player honors. Injuries, including two left foot surgeries in 2006, slowed his progress, but he continued to produce power numbers in the Blue Jays system, winning back-to-back R. Howard Webster Awards in 2008 and 2009.
Professional career
Dopirak's professional debut came in 2002 with the rookie-level Arizona League Cubs, where he batted .253 with no home runs and six runs scored. In 2003, he played for the Low-A Boise Hawks of the Northwest League, hitting .240 with 13 home runs and 37 runs batted in, then moved to the Single-A Lansing Lugnuts of the Midwest League, where he added two more home runs. The 2004 season was his breakout: with Lansing, he hit 39 home runs and 120 RBI while batting .307.
After that season, injuries began to mount. In 2005, he played 131 games for the High-A Daytona Cubs, slashing .235/.290/.382 with 16 home runs and 76 RBI. On November 18, 2005, the Cubs added him to their 40-man roster to protect him from the Rule 5 draft. Two left foot surgeries in 2006 caused a setback, and he hit .257 with one home run and 23 RBI in 52 games for the Double-A West Tenn Diamond Jaxx.
Toronto Blue Jays
On August 6, 2007, he was designated for assignment following the promotion of Eric Patterson, and he was released after the season. In 115 games split between Daytona and the Double-A Tennessee Smokies, he combined for a .266/.311/.449 line with 18 home runs and 68 RBI. In March 2008, Dopirak signed a minor league contract with the Toronto Blue Jays. Assigned to the High-A Dunedin Blue Jays, he slashed .308/.382/.577 with 27 home runs and 88 RBI, earning a promotion to the Double-A New Hampshire Fisher Cats, where he batted .287/.297/.425 with two home runs and 13 RBI.
He started 2009 with the Fisher Cats, hitting .308/.374/.576 with 19 home runs and 68 RBI, then moved up to the Triple-A Las Vegas 51s, where he hit .330/.366/.509 with eight home runs and 34 RBI. On November 9, 2009, Toronto purchased his contract and added him to their 40-man roster. On June 16, 2010, he was removed from the 40-man roster and sent outright to Triple-A Las Vegas; in 86 games for the 51s, he batted .274/.309/.454 with 11 home runs and 53 RBI.
Houston Astros
He became a free agent on October 5. On November 13, 2010, Dopirak signed a one-year minor league contract with the Houston Astros that included an invitation to spring training. He played in 57 games for the Triple-A Oklahoma City RedHawks, hitting .252/.287/.429 with six home runs and 17 RBI. The Astros released him on June 16, 2011.
More in Arizona League Cubs Players
Sources
Compiled from Wikipedia and the sources listed below. Text from Wikipedia is available under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is adapted from it.
- Wikipedia: Brian Dopirak (CC BY-SA 4.0).
- Word definitions: the Codexery glossary, each quoted from its Wikipedia article.
Spotted an error? Know more?
Reader corrections go straight into our review queue. Suggest an edit · How this site is sourced