Xavier Scruggs (original) (raw)

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American baseball player (born 1987)

Baseball player

Xavier Scruggs
Scruggs batting for the Memphis Redbirds in 2015
First baseman
Born: (1987-09-23) September 23, 1987 (age 37)Whittier, California, U.S.
Batted: RightThrew: Right
Professional debut
MLB: September 4, 2014, for the St. Louis Cardinals
KBO: March 31, 2017, for the NC Dinos
Last appearance
MLB: October 2, 2016, for the Miami Marlins
KBO: October 13, 2018, for the NC Dinos
MLB statistics
Batting average .227
Home runs 1
Runs batted in 14
KBO statistics
Batting average .277
Home runs 61
Runs batted in 208
Stats at Baseball Reference Edit this at Wikidata
Teams
St. Louis Cardinals (2014–2015) Miami Marlins (2016) NC Dinos (2017–2018)

Xavier Ladel Scruggs (born September 23, 1987) is an American former professional baseball first baseman. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the St. Louis Cardinals and Miami Marlins, and in the KBO League for the NC Dinos.

Professional career

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Scruggs attended Poway High School in Poway, California. The Seattle Mariners selected Scruggs in the 50th round of the 2005 Major League Baseball draft, but did not sign[_citation needed_] and attended the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV) to play college baseball for the UNLV Rebels. During his three years at UNLV he hit .328/.427/.652 with 34 home runs and 112 runs batted in (RBIs).[1]

St. Louis Cardinals

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After his junior year, the St. Louis Cardinals selected Scruggs in the 19th round of the 2008 draft. He signed with the Cardinals.[1]

Scruggs called up to the majors for the first time on September 4, 2014.[2][3] He made his major league debut that day, but his major league action in 2014 was brief. He started the next season at Memphis. After batting .274 with five home runs and 16 RBI in 17 games in April, he was named the Cardinals' organizations Player of the Month.[4] The Cardinals recalled him from Memphis on June 19, 2015.[5] Four days later against the Miami Marlins, he provided three hits and two RBI, including a game-tying double, in an eventual 4–3 win.[6] Another three-hit, two-RBI effort followed on June 27 in an 8–1 win over the Chicago Cubs.[7]

On November 30, 2015, Scruggs signed a minor league deal with the Miami Marlins.[8] He was called up from Triple-A to play first base for the Marlins on August 19, 2016,[9] and hit his first career homer, a 2-run shot off Pirates pitcher Chad Kuhl, in a 3-1 Marlins win on August 20. On October 24, he was outrighted off of the team’s 40-man roster.[10]

Scruggs signed a one-year, $1 million contract with the NC Dinos of the KBO League on December 26, 2016.[11] He became a free agent following the 2018 season. In two years with the Dinos in the KBO, Scruggs hit 61 home runs and drove in 208 runs.

On June 17, 2019, Scruggs signed with the Leones de Yucatán of the Mexican League. He was released on December 5, 2019. In 57 games he hit .262/.362/.471 with 11 home runs, 31 RBIs and 1 stolen base.

Post-baseball career

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In April 2021, Scruggs joined the St. Louis Cardinals baseball operations team as the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Consultant. Xavier Scruggs has covered MLB for ESPN since 2021. He also covers the Little League World Series in South Williamsport, PA every August for the sports cable network. [12] In April 2022, Scruggs was hired as an inaugural panelist for the MLB Network show Off Base.[13]

  1. ^ a b Scruggs signs with Cardinals
  2. ^ Cards promote Scruggs to add depth at first base
  3. ^ Brewers: Cardinals set to add AAA slugger Xavier Scruggs for Milwaukee series Archived September 6, 2014, at the Wayback Machine
  4. ^ Palm Beach Cardinals (May 6, 2015). "Reyes, Scruggs named Minor League Players of the Month". MiLB.com. Retrieved July 3, 2015.
  5. ^ Thompson, Luke (June 19, 2015). "Cardinals call up Scruggs, Garcia, send down Harris, Easley". FOX Sports Midwest. Retrieved June 20, 2015.
  6. ^ Dorsey, Steve; Wilaj, Steve (June 23, 2015). "Liner off Marlins pitcher lifts Cardinals after HBPs". MLB.com. Archived from the original on June 26, 2015. Retrieved June 24, 2015.
  7. ^ Muskrat, Carrie; Langosch, Jenifer (June 27, 2015). "Cards put on clinic vs. Cubs for 5th straight W". MLB.com. Retrieved June 28, 2015.
  8. ^ Eddy, Matt (December 1, 2015). "Minor League Transactions: Nov. 21-27". Baseball America. Retrieved December 1, 2015.
  9. ^ Healey, Tim (August 19, 2016). "Xavier Scruggs gets his shot at first base for Marlins". Sun Sentinel. Retrieved August 21, 2016.
  10. ^ "Scruggs, Phelps power Marlins to 3-1 win over Pirates". ESPN. Associated Press. August 20, 2016. Retrieved August 21, 2016.
  11. ^ Todd, Jeff (December 27, 2016). "Xavier Scruggs Signs With Korea's NC Dinos". mlbtraderumors.com. Retrieved December 27, 2016.
  12. ^ Scruggs, Xavier [@Xavier_Scruggs] (April 15, 2021). "Some big news I've been holding onto for a bit… I'm officially starting work with the @cardinals Baseball Operations team as their Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Consultant" (Tweet). Archived from the original on April 15, 2021. Retrieved September 4, 2021 – via Twitter.
  13. ^ "Off Base". MLB Network. Retrieved April 22, 2022.