Sam Freeman (baseball)
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Samuel Douglas Freeman (born June 24, 1987) is an American former professional
baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball sport played between two team sport, teams of nine players each, taking turns batting (baseball), batting and Fielding (baseball), fielding. The game occurs over the course of several Pitch ...
pitcher In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throws ("Pitch (baseball), pitches") the Baseball (ball), baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of out (baseball), retiring a batter (baseball), batter, ...
. He played in
Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball league composed of 30 teams, divided equally between the National League (baseball), National League (NL) and the American League (AL), with 29 in the United States and 1 in Canada. MLB i ...
(MLB) for the
St. Louis Cardinals The St. Louis Cardinals are an American professional baseball team based in St. Louis. The Cardinals compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League Central, Centra ...
, Texas Rangers,
Milwaukee Brewers The Milwaukee Brewers are an American professional baseball team based in Milwaukee. The Brewers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League Central, Central Di ...
,
Atlanta Braves The Atlanta Braves are an American professional baseball team based in the Atlanta metropolitan area. The Braves compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League Eas ...
,
Los Angeles Angels The Los Angeles Angels are an American professional baseball team based in the Greater Los Angeles, Greater Los Angeles area. The Angels compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League West, ...
, and
Washington Nationals The Washington Nationals are an American professional baseball team based in Washington, D.C. The Nationals compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) East Division. They play their home games at Na ...
.


Early life

Freeman started playing baseball at the age of four in the Carrollton Little League in
Carrollton, Texas Carrollton is a city in Dallas County, Texas, Dallas, Denton County, Texas, Denton, and Collin County, Texas, Collin counties in the U.S. state of Texas. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, its population was 133,434, making it the ...
. When he was 12 years old his team won the Carrollton Pony League Championship. Freeman's pitching career started his freshman year of high school, one year before making the varsity team at Hebron High School.


College career

After graduating, Freeman was recruited to play for
North Central Texas College North Central Texas College (NCTC) is a Public college, public community college in Gainesville, Texas. It serves Cooke County, Texas, Cooke County, Denton County, Texas, Denton County, and Montague County, Texas. History As with many of the ...
(NCTC) where he played for 2 years. Then, Freeman signed with the
University of Kansas The University of Kansas (KU) is a public research university with its main campus in Lawrence, Kansas, United States. Two branch campuses are in the Kansas City metropolitan area on the Kansas side: the university's medical school and hospital ...
.


Professional career


St. Louis Cardinals

After his sophomore year of college, Freeman was selected by the
St. Louis Cardinals The St. Louis Cardinals are an American professional baseball team based in St. Louis. The Cardinals compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League Central, Centra ...
in the 24th round of the
2007 Major League Baseball Draft The 2007 Major League Baseball draft, was an annual choosing of high school and college baseball players, held on June 7, 2007 and June 8, 2007. The first day session of the draft included the first 25 rounds and was scheduled to be broadcast "l ...
. He didn't sign and went on to Kansas for his junior year. After his junior year, he was redrafted by the Cardinals in the 32nd round in the 2008 Major League Baseball Draft. With the Cardinals, he rose from the
Rookie League Minor League Baseball (MiLB) is a professional baseball organization below Major League Baseball (MLB), constituted of teams affiliated with MLB clubs. It was founded on September 5, 1901, in response to the growing dominance of the National L ...
to Double–A in three years. He was 0-2 with a 4.50 ERA in Triple–A with the
Memphis Redbirds The Memphis Redbirds are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League and the Triple-A affiliate of the St. Louis Cardinals. They are located in Memphis, Tennessee, and are named for their Major League Baseball affiliate. The Redbird ...
.Samuel Freeman
Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved January 2, 2011.
and was later signed to the Cardinals 40-man roster. Freeman sustained an injury to his elbow requiring
Tommy John surgery Ulnar collateral ligament reconstruction, sometimes referred to as Tommy John surgery is a surgical graft procedure where the ulnar collateral ligament in the medial elbow is replaced with either a tendon from elsewhere in the patient's body, ...
, which took him out of the 2010 season. Freeman made his major league debut during
Johan Santana Johan Alexander Santana Araque (; born March 13, 1979) is a Venezuelan former professional baseball starting pitcher. Santana pitched in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Minnesota Twins from 2000 to 2007 and for the New York Mets from 2008 ...
's (
New York Mets The New York Mets are an American professional baseball team based in the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of Queens. The Mets compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National ...
) no-hitter in New York on June 1, 2012. He appeared in 22 games for the St. Louis Cardinals in 2012, posting a record of 0-2 with a 5.40 ERA. Following the regular season he was sent by the Cardinals to play in the
Arizona Fall League The Arizona Fall League (AFL) is an off-season baseball league owned and operated by Major League Baseball (MLB) which operates during autumn in Arizona, United States, at six different baseball complexes. Arizona Fall League rosters are filled ...
. After appearing in just 13 games in 2013, Freeman pitched in 44 games in 2014 with an ERA of 2.61 in 38 innings.


Texas Rangers

On March 28, 2015, the Texas Rangers acquired Freeman from the Cardinals for a
player to be named later In Major League Baseball, a player to be named later (PTBNL) is an unnamed player involved in exchange or "trade" of players between teams. The terms of a trade are not finalized until a later date, most often following the conclusion of the seaso ...
. He was designated for assignment on April 5 and outrighted on April 15. He was brought back up a few weeks later, finishing the season with 54 appearances for the Rangers.


Milwaukee Brewers

Freeman was acquired by the
Milwaukee Brewers The Milwaukee Brewers are an American professional baseball team based in Milwaukee. The Brewers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League Central, Central Di ...
on April 5, 2016. He was
designated for assignment Designated for assignment (DFA) is a contractual term used in Major League Baseball (MLB). A player who is designated for assignment is immediately removed from the team's 40-man roster, after which the team must, within seven days, return the pla ...
on May 2, 2016, when the team recalled Junior Guerra. With the Brewers, he allowed 11 earned runs for a 12.91 ERA in seven appearances.


Atlanta Braves

On October 21, 2016, Freeman signed a minor league contract with an invitation to spring training with the
Atlanta Braves The Atlanta Braves are an American professional baseball team based in the Atlanta metropolitan area. The Braves compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League Eas ...
. The Braves promoted him to the majors on May 4, 2017. For the season, he appeared in 58 games, going 2-0 with a 2.55 ERA. Freeman and the Braves agreed to a one-year contract worth $1.075 million on January 11, 2018. He struggled with inconsistency throughout the 2018 season due to a lack of command, a problem that had been noted by several coaches over the course of his career. In late July, Freeman was placed on the disabled list, and returned to the active roster on August 19. On March 22, 2019, Freeman was unconditionally released from the
Atlanta Braves The Atlanta Braves are an American professional baseball team based in the Atlanta metropolitan area. The Braves compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League Eas ...
.


Los Angeles Angels

On March 27, 2019, Freeman signed a minor league contract with the
Los Angeles Angels The Los Angeles Angels are an American professional baseball team based in the Greater Los Angeles, Greater Los Angeles area. The Angels compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League West, ...
. Freeman had his contract selected on April 23. He was designated for assignment the next day following the promotion of Matt Ramsey. Freeman cleared waivers and was sent outright to the Triple–A
Salt Lake Bees The Salt Lake Bees are a Minor League Baseball (MiLB) team that plays in the Pacific Coast League (PCL) and are the Triple-A affiliate of the Los Angeles Angels. Based in South Jordan, Utah, the team plays its home games at The Ballpark at Am ...
on April 29. Freeman was released by the Angels organization on August 19.


Washington Nationals

On August 21, 2019, Freeman signed a minor league contract with the
Washington Nationals The Washington Nationals are an American professional baseball team based in Washington, D.C. The Nationals compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) East Division. They play their home games at Na ...
. He made 5 scoreless appearances down the stretch for the Triple–A
Fresno Grizzlies The Fresno Grizzlies are a Minor League Baseball team of the California League and the Single-A affiliate of the Colorado Rockies. They are located in Fresno, California, and play their home games at Chukchansi Park, which was opened in 2002 in ...
, striking out 11 in 6 innings of work. Freeman elected free agency following the season on November 4. On February 12, 2020, Freeman re–signed with the Nationals on a new minor league contract. On July 23, Freeman had his contract selected to the 40-man roster. In 7 appearances for Washington, he logged a 1.80 ERA with 6 strikeouts across 5 innings pitched. In August/September, Freeman underwent
Tommy John surgery Ulnar collateral ligament reconstruction, sometimes referred to as Tommy John surgery is a surgical graft procedure where the ulnar collateral ligament in the medial elbow is replaced with either a tendon from elsewhere in the patient's body, ...
. He was removed from the 40–man roster and sent outright to Triple–A Fresno on October 12, and subsequently elected free agency.


Kansas City Royals

On December 27, 2021, Freeman signed a minor league contract with the
Kansas City Royals The Kansas City Royals are an American professional baseball team based in Kansas City, Missouri. The Royals compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League Central, Central Division. The team ...
organization. In 34 appearances with the Triple–A
Omaha Storm Chasers The Omaha Storm Chasers are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League and the Triple-A (baseball), Triple-A affiliate of the Kansas City Royals. They are located in Papillion, Nebraska, a suburb southwest of Omaha, Nebraska, Omah ...
, he posted a 1.50 ERA with 32 strikeouts and 1 save in 36.0 innings pitched. On August 24, 2022, Freeman was released.


Gastonia Honey Hunters

On June 6, 2023, Freeman signed with the
Gastonia Honey Hunters The Gastonia Honey Hunters were a professional baseball team based in Gastonia, North Carolina. They played in the South Division of the Atlantic League of Professional Baseball, a "partner league" of Major League Baseball, at CaroMont Health Pa ...
of the
Atlantic League of Professional Baseball The Atlantic League of Professional Baseball (ALPB) is a professional independent baseball league in the United States. It is an official MLB Partner League based in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern United States, and the headquarters are l ...
. In 34 appearances for Gastonia, he logged a 6.06 ERA with 41 strikeouts in innings pitched. On September 1, Freeman retired from professional baseball.


Coaching career

On January 24, 2024, the
Kansas City Royals The Kansas City Royals are an American professional baseball team based in Kansas City, Missouri. The Royals compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League Central, Central Division. The team ...
hired Freeman to serve as the assistant pitching coach for their Single-A affiliate, the
Columbia Fireflies The Columbia Fireflies are a Minor League Baseball team based in Columbia, South Carolina, and are the Single-A affiliate of the Kansas City Royals of Major League Baseball. Their home stadium is Segra Park. The team was previously known as the ...
.


Awards

The Cardinal Nation/Scout.com Springfield Relief Pitcher of the Year: 2011
Texas League The Texas League is a Minor League Baseball league which has operated in the South Central United States since 1902. It is classified as a Double-A league. Despite the league's name, only its five South Division teams are actually based in the ...
All-Star An all-star team is a group of people all having a high level of performance in their field. Originating in sports, it has since drifted into vernacular and has been borrowed heavily by the entertainment industry. Sports "All-star" as a sport ...
: 2011
Florida State League The Florida State League (FSL) is a Minor League Baseball league based in the state of Florida. Having been classified at various levels throughout its existence, it operated at Class A-Advanced from 1990 until its demotion to Single-A following ...
All-Star: 2009 Scout.com Johnson City Reliever of the Year: 2008 Brian Walton
"Sam Freeman Profile"
'Scout.com'', August 2, 2012''


References


External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Freeman, Samuel 1987 births Living people African-American baseball players Atlanta Braves players Baseball players from Houston Bravos de Margarita players 21st-century American sportsmen American expatriate baseball players in Venezuela Colorado Springs Sky Sox players Fresno Grizzlies players Gastonia Honey Hunters players Gwinnett Braves players Johnson City Cardinals players Kansas Jayhawks baseball players Los Angeles Angels players Major League Baseball pitchers Memphis Redbirds players Milwaukee Brewers players NCTC Lions baseball players Palm Beach Cardinals players Round Rock Express players Salt Lake Bees players Springfield Cardinals players St. Louis Cardinals players Surprise Saguaros players Texas Rangers players Washington Nationals players 21st-century African-American sportsmen 20th-century African-American sportsmen 20th-century American sportsmen Wisconsin Woodchucks players