Kyle Bird

Ronald Kyle Bird (born April 12, 1993) is an American professional baseball relief pitcher in the Texas Rangers organization.

Kyle Bird
Texas Rangers – No. 55
Relief pitcher
Born: (1993-04-12) April 12, 1993
Orange Park, Florida
Bats: Left Throws: Left
MLB debut
March 28, 2019, for the Texas Rangers
MLB statistics
(through 2019 season)
Win–loss record0–0
Earned run average7.82
Strikeouts10
Teams

Amateur career

Bird attended Clay High School in Green Cove Springs, Florida.[1] Undrafted out of high school in 2011, Bird attended Florida State University for two years (2012 and 2013),[2] before transferring to Division II Flagler College in St. Augustine, Florida, for his junior season in 2014.[3] He was drafted by the Tampa Bay Rays in the 35th round, 1,057th overall, of the 2014 MLB draft.[4]

Professional career

Tampa Bay Rays

After signing with Tampa Bay, Bird was assigned to the rookie Princeton Rays to make his professional debut in 2014. In 19 innings pitched, he posted a 1–0 record with a 4.19 earned run average (ERA). He split the 2015 season between the Class A Bowling Green Hot Rods and the Triple-A Durham Bulls. Through 33 games (1 with Durham), he accumulated 4–0 record with a 2.54 ERA and 71 strikeouts in 70.1 innings. He played the 2016 season with both the Class A-Advanced Charlotte Stone Crabs and the Double-A Montgomery Biscuits. He appeared in 68 innings across 43 games, earning a 3–2 record with a 2.28 ERA and 60 strikeouts. He split the 2017 season between Montgomery and Durham. In 54 games, he posted a 4–2 record with a 2.89 ERA and 70 strikeouts in 74.2 innings. He again played the 2018 season at both Double-A and Triple-A. He appeared in 43 games, making 6 starts, and accumulated a 3–3 record with a 2.39 ERA and 88 strikeouts across 74 innings.[5] After the 2018 regular season, Bird pitched for the Yaquis de Obregón of the Mexican Pacific League in winter ball.[6] In 18 games with them, he went 1–0 with a 2.00 ERA and 19 strikeouts in 18 innings.[5]

The Rays added Bird to their 40-man roster after the 2018 season.[7]

Texas Rangers

On December 21, 2018, Bird was traded to the Texas Rangers as part of a three team deal in which the Rangers also acquired Brock Burke, Yoel Espinal, Eli White, and $750,000 of international signing bonus pool space; the Rays acquired Emilio Pagan, Rollie Lacy, and a competitive balance pick in the 2019 MLB draft (Seth Johnson); and the Oakland Athletics acquired Jurickson Profar.[8]

Bird made the Rangers' 2019 Opening Day roster on March 28, 2019, and made his major league debut that afternoon versus the Chicago Cubs, walking Anthony Rizzo, the only batter he faced.[9] He split the season between the Rangers and the Nashville Sounds. With Texas he went 0–0 with a 7.82 ERA ​12 2⁄3 innings, and with Nashville he went 5–1 with a 2.86 ERA in ​34 2⁄3 innings.

References
  1. Randy Lefko (November 28, 2018). "Bird gets call to Rays' 40-man roster". Clay Today. Retrieved September 16, 2019.
  2. "Kyle Bird". Florida Seminoles. Retrieved March 28, 2019.
  3. "Kyle Bird". Flagler Athletics. Retrieved March 28, 2019.
  4. Tom Bone (June 24, 2014). "Bird gets his shot with Rays". Bluefield Daily Telegraph. Retrieved September 16, 2019.
  5. "Kyle Bird". Baseball Cube. Retrieved January 22, 2019.
  6. "Kyle Bird, Último Extranjero de Yaquis". Puro Beisbol (in Spanish). Retrieved March 28, 2019.
  7. Marc Topkin (November 20, 2018). "Rays DFA C.J. Cron in Adding 5 Prospects to Roster". Tampa Bay Times. Retrieved December 14, 2018.
  8. T.R. Sullivan (December 21, 2018). "Rangers Deal Profar to A's in 3-Team Trade". MLB.com. Retrieved December 21, 2018.
  9. Adam J. Morris (March 28, 2019). "Texas Rangers Set Opening Day Roster, DFA Connor Sadzeck". Lone Star Ball. SB Nation. Retrieved March 28, 2019.
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