Zach McKinstry
Zachary McKinstry (born April 29, 1995) is an American professional baseball infielder for the Los Angeles Dodgers of Major League Baseball (MLB).
Zach McKinstry | |||
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McKinstry with the Great Lakes Loons | |||
Los Angeles Dodgers – No. 8 | |||
Infielder | |||
Born: Toledo, Ohio | March 29, 1995|||
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Career
McKinstry graduated from North Side High School in Fort Wayne, Indiana, where he was a three-time all-conference selection an hit .595 as a junior to be selected to the all-area team. He was rated as the 8th best prospect in the state of Indiana.[1] McKinstry played college baseball for the Central Michigan University Chippewas.[2] He was named to the 2015 Louisville Slugger Freshman All-American team and in 2016 he was the team co-MVP, while leading the team in batting average, on base percentage and stolen bases.[1] He played for the Waterloo Bucks of the Northwoods League after the 2015 season and the Orleans Firebirds of the Cape Cod League after the 2016 season.[3] While playing for Waterloo in 2015, he learned that his parents house had burned to the ground in a fire.[4]
McKinstry was drafted by the Los Angeles Dodgers in the 33rd round of the 2016 Major League Baseball draft, and signed with the team on July 8.[5] After beginning his career by playing four games with the Arizona League Dodgers,[3] he was promoted to the Great Lakes Loons of the Class-A Midwest League, near where he attended college.[4] He hit .261 in 41 games for the Loons[3] and helped them win the league championship.[6] In 2017, he played 17 games for Great Lakes, 82 for the Rancho Cucamonga Quakes and 15 for the Tulsa Drillers. Overall, he had a .239 batting average.[3] He returned to the Loons to start 2018, but maintained a positive attitude about the demotion and improved his batting average and his walk ratio.[7] He played in only 76 games in 2018, across the same three levels, with a .282 average[3] while spending time on the disabled list.[8]
McKinstry began 2019 with Tulsa, where he increased his power numbers[9] and was selected to the mid-season all-star team.[10] After hitting .279 with 12 homers and 52 RBI in 95 games for Tulsa[3] he was promoted to the Triple-A Oklahoma City Dodgers of the Pacific Coast League on August 3.[8] With Oklahoma City, he played in 26 games with a .382 average.[3] The Dodgers added him to their 40-man roster after the 2019 season[11] and called him up to the majors for the first time on August 5, 2020.[12] However, he was optioned the following day without appearing in a game, making him a Phantom ballplayer.[13]
References
- "8 ZACH MCKINSTRY". cmuchippewas.com. Retrieved November 21, 2019.
- Bernreuter, Hugh (April 6, 2018). "Former CMU standout Zach McKinstry tries to work way back up Dodgers' system". mlive.com. Retrieved November 21, 2019.
- "Zach McKinstry Amateur, College & Minor League Statistics & History". Baseball Reference. Retrieved November 21, 2019.
- Bernreuter, Hugh (July 26, 2016). "Zach McKinstry makes transition from CMU to Great Lakes Loons". mlive.com. Retrieved November 21, 2019.
- Hoornstra, J.P. (July 8, 2016). "Report: Dodgers sign their 33rd-round draft pick, college shortstop Zach McKinstry". Inside Socal. Retrieved November 21, 2019.
- Uhlman, Harold (January 14, 2017). "Zach McKinstry – An important spoke in Loons championship wheel". thinkbluela.com. Retrieved November 21, 2019.
- Petzold, Evan (April 27, 2018). "Ex-CMU infielder Zach McKinstry shines early for Great Lakes Loons". Central Michigan Life. Retrieved November 21, 2019.
- "Zach McKinstry Stats, Highlights, Bio". milb.com. Retrieved November 21, 2019.
- Lewis, Barry (May 25, 2019). "Pro baseball column: Drillers infielder Zach McKinstry showing more power". Tulsa World. Retrieved November 21, 2019.
- "Gavin Lux, Keibert Ruiz Among 8 Dodgers Prospects Selected To Represent Tulsa Drillers In 2019 Texas League All-Star Game". Dodger Blue. June 19, 2019. Retrieved November 21, 2019.
- Gurnick, Ken (November 20, 2019). "Dodgers add three prospects to 40-man roster". mlb.com. Retrieved November 21, 2019.
- Stephen, Eric (August 5, 2020). "Dodgers recall Zach McKinstry, option Victor Gonzalez". SB Nation. Retrieved August 5, 2020.
- Harris, Blake (August 6, 2020). "Dodgers option Adam Kolarek and Zach McKinstry". SB Nation. Retrieved August 6, 2020.