Jake Woodford

Jacob Robert Woodford (born October 28, 1996) is an American professional baseball pitcher for the St. Louis Cardinals of Major League Baseball (MLB). He made his MLB debut in 2020.

Jake Woodford
Woodford with the Memphis Redbirds in 2023
St. Louis Cardinals – No. 44
Pitcher
Born: (1996-10-28) October 28, 1996
St. Petersburg, Florida, U.S.
Bats: Right
Throws: Right
MLB debut
August 15, 2020, for the St. Louis Cardinals
MLB statistics
(through 2023 season)
Win–loss record10–7
Earned run average4.29
Strikeouts119
Teams

Amateur career

Woodford graduated from Plant High School in Tampa, Florida, where he played baseball and was teammates with Kyle Tucker.[1][2] As a senior at Plant, Woodford was 7–0 with a 0.67 ERA.[3] He committed to the University of Florida to play college baseball.[4] He was drafted by the St. Louis Cardinals with the 39th overall pick in the 2015 Major League Baseball draft and signed, forgoing his commitment to Florida.[5][6]

Professional career

Woodford made his professional debut with the Gulf Coast Cardinals and spent all of 2015 there, pitching to a 1–0 record and a 2.39 ERA in eight games. He spent the 2016 season with the Peoria Chiefs where was named a Midwest League All-Star[7] and posted a 5–5 record with a 3.31 ERA and 82 strikeouts in 21 starts,[8] and 2017 with the Palm Beach Cardinals, where he went 7–6 with a 3.10 ERA in 23 games (21 starts).[9] Woodford was a non-roster invitee to 2018 spring training.[10]

Woodford began the 2018 season with the Springfield Cardinals, with whom he was named a Texas League All-Star,[11] and was promoted to the Memphis Redbirds during the season.[12] In 16 starts for Springfield he compiled a 3–8 record with a 5.22 ERA, and in 12 starts for Memphis he was 5–5 with a 4.50 ERA.[13] He returned to Memphis to begin 2019,[14] earning Pacific Coast League All-Star honors.[15] Over 26 starts for Memphis, Woodford went 9–8 with a 4.15 ERA, striking out 131 batters over 151+2⁄3 innings. Woodford was added to St. Louis' 40–man roster following the 2019 season.[16]

On July 28, 2020, Woodford was promoted to the major leagues. On August 15, he made his major league debut against the Chicago White Sox, pitching three innings, giving up one earned run and striking out three.[17] For the 2020 season, Woodford went 1-0 with a 5.57 ERA and 16 strikeouts over 21 innings.[18]

In 2021, Woodford worked mainly as a reliever but also started 8 games in the second half. He went 3-4 with a 3.99 ERA and 50 strikeouts over 67+2⁄3 innings.

Woodford spent 2022 being recalled and optioned multiple times from the Memphis Redbirds, appearing in 11 games with the Redbirds (10 starts) and 27 games (1 start) with the Cardinals, where he went 4-0 with a 2.23 ERA across 48+1⁄3 innings.

He was reassigned to the minor leagues on October 9, 2022, and activated by the Cardinals again on January 17, 2023.[19]

References
  1. "Florida high school sports - Plant's Jake Woodford also a Day 1 draft possibility". Retrieved September 26, 2016.
  2. "Florida high school sports - Jake Woodford makes two Plant players drafted on Day 1". Retrieved September 26, 2016.
  3. "Cards take RHP Woodford No. 39 overall". MLB.com. 9 June 2015. Retrieved March 25, 2018.
  4. "Jacob Woodford - Player Profile". Perfect Game USA. Retrieved March 10, 2018.
  5. "Cardinals take Jake Woodford No. 39 overall". MLB.com. Retrieved September 26, 2016.
  6. Post-Dispatch, Kevin Modelski St. Louis (8 June 2015). "Cards draft blog: Cards pick OF Plummer, RHP Woodford, 3B Denton". Retrieved September 26, 2016.
  7. "Pitching prospect Jake Woodford making himself known in Cardinals camp". 26 February 2019.
  8. "Jake Woodford Stats, Highlights, Bio - MiLB.com Stats - The Official Site of Minor League Baseball". Retrieved September 26, 2016.
  9. "Jake Woodford Stats, Highlights, Bio - MiLB.com Stats - The Official Site of Minor League Baseball". MiLB.com. Retrieved September 9, 2017.
  10. "Cardinals invite 23 non-roster players to Spring Training". Viva El Birdos. 5 February 2018. Retrieved March 25, 2018.
  11. "7 Springfield Cardinals named Texas League All-Stars".
  12. "Woodford taking flight with Redbirds". MiLB.com. August 2, 2018. Retrieved December 5, 2018.
  13. "Jake Woodford Stats, Highlights, Bio - MiLB.com Stats - The Official Site of Minor League Baseball". MiLB.com. Retrieved October 6, 2018.
  14. "Hudson named fifth starter; Fowler homers twice, Ozuna once as Cards romp | Sports | herald-review.com". Archived from the original on 2019-04-16.
  15. "Woodford's rewarding week capped by PCL All-Star nod".
  16. "Cardinals add three prospects to 40-man roster ahead of Rule 5 deadline".
  17. "Cardinals return from COVID-19 outbreak with win over White Sox in first game in 17 days". 15 August 2020.
  18. "Cardinals' Jake Woodford: Removed from roster". 30 September 2020.
  19. "Tuesday's Transactions". nrtoday.com. Associated Press. Retrieved 2023-01-18.
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