Bob Brenly is a retired American baseball player, former manager, and broadcaster. He’s 68 years-old. He played Major League Baseball for the San Francisco Giants and the Toronto Blue Jays. Brenly made one All-Star Game. Brenly managed the Arizona Diamondbacks from 2001 to 2004 and won a World Series. He is currently a sports broadcaster for the Diamondbacks.
Bob Brenly attended Ohio University where he played for the Ohio Bobcats baseball team. He was a collegiate All-American. He tied Mike Schmidt’s single season school home run record of 10. Brenly graduated in 1976. Brenly went undrafted in the 1976 draft.
After going undrafted in the 1976 draft, Bob Brenly signed as a free agent with the San Francisco Giants. He made his major league debut in 1981. Brenly secured the starting catcher position in the 1983 season. He batted .224 with 7 home runs and 34 runs batted in. In 1984, Brenly batted .291 with 20 home runs and 80 runs batted in. He was a National League All-Star in 1984. Brenly led the National League with a .995 fielding percentage in the 1986 season. The Giants won the NL West Division title in 1987. Brenly batted .267 with 18 home runs and 51 runs batted in that year. In the 1987 postseason, Brenly batted a measly .235 with just 1 home run and 2 runs batted in. He became a free agent after being released by the Giants following the 1988 season.
Bob Brenly began the 1989 season with the Toronto Blue Jays. He was released by the Blue Jays on July 18, 1989. He finished the 1989 season with the Giants. Brenly finished his 9 year MLB career with a .247 batting average, 647 hits, 91 home runs, and 333 runs batted in. He had a career .984 fielding percentage as a catcher.
Bob Brenly returned to baseball in 2001 when he was hired to be the manager of the Arizona Diamondbacks. He replaced Buck Showalter who was fired after the 2000 season. Brenly guided the Diamondbacks to the World Series in his first season. The Diamondbacks would face the New York Yankees in the 2001 World Series. It was the first World Series appearance in Diamondbacks history. The Yankees were looking for their 4th straight World Series title. The Diamondbacks prevailed after Luis Gonzalez hit a walkoff base hit in Game 7 against Yankees closer Mariano Rivera. The Diamondbacks became the fastest expansion team to win a World Series title. The Diamondbacks won the NL West for a second time under Brenly in 2002, but they lost to the Saint Louis Cardinals in the NLDS. The Diamondbacks finished 3rd in the NL West in 2003. Brenly was fired halfway through the 2004 season after starting an abysmal 29-50. The Diamondbacks proceeded to lose 111 games in 2004. Brenly finished with 303 wins as manager of the Diamondbacks.
Prior to being hired as the Diamondbacks manager, Bob Brenly worked for Fox as a baseball broadcaster from 1996 to 2000. He returned to the booth in 2004 to broadcast for the Chicago Cubs. His contract was renewed in 2008. He stayed as broadcaster for the Cubs until 2012. Brenly returned to Arizona after the 2012 season and began broadcasting games for the Arizona Diamondbacks alongside broadcast partner Steve Berthiaume. The duo continue to provide play-by-play commentary for the Diamondbacks and just recently completed the 2022 season.
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