Ben Lively

The Cincinnati Reds selected Lively in the fourth round of the 2013 Major League Baseball Draft.[5][6] He made his professional debut with the Billings Mustangs and made one start with the Dayton Dragons.[7] Lively finished his first season, 0–4 but with a 0.88 ERA and 56 strikeouts in 41 innings. He started the 2014 season with the Bakersfield Blaze.[8] He was named as the top player in the Reds' farm system in 2014 after posting a 13–7 record and 3.04 ERA with Bakersfield and the Double-A Pensacola Blue Wahoos.[9]

On December 31, 2014, the Reds traded Lively to the Philadelphia Phillies in exchange for Marlon Byrd.[10]

In 2015, Lively went 8–7 with a 4.13 ERA in 25 games with the Double-A Reading Fightin Phils. He began the 2016 season with Reading before being promoted to the Triple-A Lehigh Valley IronPigs. He received the 2016 Paul Owens Award as best pitcher in the Phillies' farm system.[2] The Phillies added him to their 40-man roster after the 2016 season.[11] He was assigned to Lehigh Valley to begin the 2017 season.

On June 3, 2017, Lively made his major league debut with the Philadelphia Phillies against the San Francisco Giants. He allowed one run on four hits and three walks, earning his first major league win.[12] In his June 24 start against the Arizona Diamondbacks, he collected his first major league RBI with a 2-run home run, but gave up 4 earned runs and took the 9–2 loss.[13] He finished his rookie season with a 4–7 record and 4.26 ERA in 15 major league appearances. In 2018, Lively pitched in 5 games for Philadelphia, but after struggling to an 0–2 record and 6.85 ERA, he was designated for assignment on September 3, 2018.[14]

On September 5, 2018, Lively was claimed off waivers by the Kansas City Royals, who then designated Eric Stout for assignment to add Lively to the 40-man roster.[15] Lively recorded a 1.35 ERA in 6.2 innings of work for Kansas City in 2018. He was assigned to the Triple-A Omaha Storm Chasers to begin the 2019 season. Lively himself was designated for assignment on June 20, 2019, following the promotion of Humberto Arteaga. He allowed 3 runs in the only inning he pitched for Kansas City.

On June 22, 2019, Lively was traded to the Arizona Diamondbacks in exchange for cash considerations.[16] He was assigned to the Triple-A Reno Aces, where he recorded a 5.04 ERA and 2–1 record across 7 appearances.

On August 7, 2019, Lively left the Diamondbacks organization to sign with the Samsung Lions of the KBO League. Lively pitched to a 4–4 record and a 3.95 ERA in his first season with Samsung. Lively re-signed with Samsung for the 2020 season on a $700,000 contract.[17] In 2020 he pitched to a 6–7 record and 4.26 ERA in 21 appearances. Lively only made six appearances in 2021, registering a 4.05 ERA. On June 1, 2021, Lively was released after being diagnosed with a shoulder injury.[18]

On January 6, 2022, Lively signed a minor league contract with the Cincinnati Reds.[19] He spent the entire year with the Triple-A Louisville Bats, making 18 starts and registering a 2–5 record and 4.09 ERA with 79 strikeouts in 77.0 innings pitched. He elected free agency following the season on November 10.[20]

On November 19, 2022, Lively re-signed with the Reds on a new minor league contract. He was assigned to Triple-A Louisville to begin the 2023 season, where he posted a 4–0 record and 2.33 ERA with 16 strikeouts across 5 games (4 starts). On May 9, 2023, Lively had his contract selected to the active roster.[21] He made his first start on May 20 against the New York Yankees, allowing 2 runs on 2 hits and one walk with a career-high 8 strikeouts in 5.2 innings pitched.[22] In an August 1 start against the Chicago Cubs, Lively allowed 13 runs on 13 hits and 2 walks in 4.0 innings of work.[23] In 19 total games (12 starts) for Cincinnati, he logged a 4–7 record and 5.38 ERA with 79 strikeouts in 88+2⁄3 innings of work. Following the season on October 18, Lively was removed from the 40–man roster and sent outright to Triple–A Louisville.[24]