Locke_St._John

Locke St. John

Locke St. John

American baseball player

Kenton Locke St. John (born January 31, 1993) is an American professional baseball relief pitcher who is a free agent. He has previously played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Texas Rangers and Chicago Cubs.

Quick Facts Free agent, MLB debut ...

Career

St. John attended Pell City High School in Pell City, Alabama.[1] He played college baseball at Southern Union Community College for two years and then transferred to the University of South Alabama for one season.[2] He was drafted by the Detroit Tigers in the 32nd round, with the 970th overall selection, of the 2014 MLB draft.[3]

Detroit Tigers

St. John spent the 2014 through 2017 seasons in the Tigers organization.[4] During his time with them, he played for the GCL Tigers, Connecticut Tigers, West Michigan Whitecaps, and Lakeland Flying Tigers.[5][4] During the 2017 season, he converted from a conventional over the top pitcher, into a side-armer.[4]

Texas Rangers

St. John was selected by the Texas Rangers in the Triple-A phase of the 2017 Rule 5 draft.[6] He split the 2018 season between the Down East Wood Ducks of the Class A-Advanced Carolina League and the Frisco RoughRiders Double-A Texas League, going a combined 6–3 with a 2.67 ERA in 60.2 innings.[7][4] He opened the 2019 season back with Frisco,[8] and on June 6 he was promoted to the Nashville Sounds of the Triple-A Pacific Coast League.[4] Between the two levels, St. John went 5–4 with a 4.38 ERA in 48 innings.

On June 20, 2019, St. John had his contract selected and he was promoted to the major leagues.[9] He made his major league debut on June 25, retiring the two batters he faced.[10] On September 1, 2019, St. John was designated for assignment after going 0–0 with a 5.40 ERA over 6.2 innings.[11] He was outrighted to Nashville on September 3.[12] He became a free agent on November 2, 2020.

Detroit Tigers (second stint)

On January 4, 2021, St. John signed a minor league contract with the Detroit Tigers.[13] Over 36 games for the Toledo Mud Hens in 2021, he posted a 2.58 ERA.

Chicago Cubs

On November 29, 2021, St. John signed a minor league contract with the Chicago Cubs.[14] He was assigned to the Triple-A Iowa Cubs to begin the season, posting a 5.14 ERA across five appearances. On April 16, 2022, the Cubs selected St. John's contract.[15] St. John appeared in 1 game for Chicago, but surrendered 3 runs off of 2 home runs against the Milwaukee Brewers. He was designated for assignment on May 3 following the promotion of Robert Gsellman.[16]

New York Mets

On May 10, 2022, St. John was claimed off waivers from the Chicago Cubs by the New York Mets, who designated him for assignment. The team opened up a spot on the 40-man roster for St. John when Jacob deGrom was transferred to the 60-day IL.[17] He didn’t appear in a major league game for New York before he was designated for assignment on June 26. He cleared waivers and was sent outright to the Triple-A Syracuse Mets on July 1.[18] He spent the remainder of the season with Syracuse, struggling to a 2-5 record and 6.00 ERA with 25 strikeouts in 42.0 innings pitched across 29 appearances. On October 14, St. John elected to become a free agent.

Minnesota Twins

On February 3, 2023, St. John signed a minor league contract with the Minnesota Twins organization.[19] St. John was released by the organization on March 24.[20]

See also

References

  1. [1]
    Ellen Sowa (March 1, 2017). "Memory lane: Minor League, Panther baseball players return home". St. Clair News-Aegis. Retrieved June 20, 2019.
  2. [2]
    Erich Hilkert (June 9, 2014). "Pell City native St. John picked in MLB Draft". The Daily Home. Retrieved June 20, 2019.
  3. [3]
    AL.com staff (June 13, 2014). "South Alabama pitcher Locke St. John to skip senior season with South Alabama, signs with Detroit". AL.com. Retrieved June 20, 2019.
  4. [4]
    "Locke St. John Player page". MLB.com. Retrieved June 20, 2019.
  5. [5]
    Marc Allard (July 29, 2016). "Tigers ace Locke St. John bouncing back after rough start to career". The Bulletin. Retrieved October 7, 2019.
  6. [6]
    "Rangers swing Rule 5 deal for outfielder Tocci". MLB.com. December 14, 2017. Retrieved June 20, 2019.
  7. [7]
    Matt Present (June 27, 2019). "Former Wood Duck Locke St. John Makes MLB Debut for Rangers". MiLB.com. Retrieved October 7, 2019.
  8. [8]
    Frisco RoughRiders (March 27, 2019). "Trio of star starters part of Riders initial roster". MiLB.com. Retrieved June 20, 2019.
  9. [9]
    Mark Inabinett (June 20, 2018). "Pell City pitcher reaches big leagues with Texas Rangers". AL.com. Retrieved June 20, 2019.
  10. [10]
    James Schmehl (June 25, 2019). "Chavez opens eyes with a strong start". MLB.com. Retrieved June 26, 2019.
  11. [11]
    RotoWire Staff (September 1, 2019). "Rangers' Locke St. John: Designated for assignment". CBSSports.com. Retrieved October 7, 2019.
  12. [12]
    RotoWire Staff (September 3, 2019). "Rangers' Locke St. John: Clears waivers". CBSSports.com. Retrieved September 4, 2019.
  13. [13]
    Beck, Jason (January 4, 2021). "St. John returns to Detroit on Minors deal". MLB.com. Retrieved January 4, 2021.
  14. [14]
    Altman, Evan (November 29, 2021). "Cubs Sign Former Rangers LHP Locke St. John to Minors Deal". Cubs Insider. Retrieved December 1, 2021.
  15. [15]
    Zeneka, TC (April 16, 2022). "Cubs Option Alfonso Rivas, DFA Cory Abbott, Greg Deichmann". MLB Trade Rumors. Retrieved April 16, 2022.
  16. [16]
    "Scott Effross Will Start in Place of Drew Smyly (Bereavement List) Tonight (UPDATE)". May 3, 2022.
  17. [17]
    "Mets' Locke St. John: Scooped up by Mets". May 10, 2022.
  18. [18]
    "Locke St. John Stats, Fantasy & News".
  19. [19]
    "Twins' Locke St. John: Signs MiLB deal with Minnesota". cbssports.com. Retrieved February 4, 2023.
  20. [20]
    "Transactions".
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