Mychal Antonio Givens (born May 13, 1990) is an American

professional baseball Professional baseball is organized baseball in which players are selected for their talents and are paid to play for a specific team or club system. It is played in leagues and associated farm teams throughout the world. Modern professiona ...

pitcher In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throws ("pitches") the baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of retiring a batter, who attempts to either make contact with the pitched ball or dr ...

for the

Baltimore Orioles The Baltimore Orioles are an American professional baseball team based in Baltimore. The Orioles compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. As one of the American League's eight charter ...

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (A ...

(MLB). He has previously played in MLB for the

Colorado Rockies The Colorado Rockies are an American professional baseball team based in Denver. The Rockies compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. The team plays its home baseball games at Coors Fi ...

Cincinnati Reds The Cincinnati Reds are an American professional baseball team based in Cincinnati. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) National League Central, Central division and were a charter member of ...

Chicago Cubs The Chicago Cubs are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The Cubs compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as part of the National League (NL) Central division. The club plays its home games at Wrigley Field, which is locate ...

, and

New York Mets The New York Mets are an American professional baseball team based in the New York City borough of Queens. The Mets compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the National League (NL) East division. They are one of two major lea ...

. He made his MLB debut in 2015 with the Orioles.

Career

Amateur career

Givens attended Henry B. Plant High School in

Tampa, Florida Tampa () is a city on the Gulf Coast of the U.S. state of Florida. The city's borders include the north shore of Tampa Bay and the east shore of Old Tampa Bay. Tampa is the largest city in the Tampa Bay area and the seat of Hillsborough ...

, where he played for the school's baseball team as a

and an

infielder An infielder is a baseball player stationed at one of four defensive "infield" positions on the baseball field. Standard arrangement of positions In a game of baseball, two teams of nine players take turns playing offensive and defensive roles. ...

. In his junior and senior years, he was named All-State. In 2007, Givens was selected to play for the United States 18-and-under national baseball team. Givens was selected for the 2008 Aflac All-American High School Baseball Game (East Team) played at

Dodger Stadium Dodger Stadium is a baseball stadium in the Elysian Park neighborhood of Los Angeles, California. It is the home stadium of Major League Baseball's Los Angeles Dodgers. Opened in 1962, it was constructed in less than three years at a cost of ...

, in which he both pitched and played shortstop. At the Aflac Banquet, Givens won the Jackie Robinson Award as the nation's top high school player. Entering his 2009 senior season, Rawlings named Givens to the Preseason Senior All-American First Team and Florida All-Region First Team. As a senior, he had an 8–4

win–loss record In sports, a winning percentage is the fraction of games or matches a team or individual has won. The statistic is commonly used in standings or rankings to compare teams or individuals. It is defined as wins divided by the total number of match ...

and a 1.71

earned run average In baseball statistics, earned run average (ERA) is the average of earned runs allowed by a pitcher per nine innings pitched (i.e. the traditional length of a game). It is determined by dividing the number of earned runs allowed by the numb ...

(ERA) with 113

strikeout In baseball or softball, a strikeout (or strike-out) occurs when a batter accumulates three strikes during a time at bat. It usually means that the batter is out. A strikeout is a statistic recorded for both pitchers and batters, and is den ...

s in 78

inning In baseball, softball, and similar games, an inning is the basic unit of play, consisting of two halves or frames, the "top" (first half) and the "bottom" (second half). In each half, one team bats until three outs are made, with the other tea ...

s as a pitcher, and a .374 batting average with four

home run In baseball, a home run (abbreviated HR) is scored when the ball is hit in such a way that the batter is able to circle the bases and reach home plate safely in one play without any errors being committed by the defensive team. A home run i ...

s and 31

runs batted in A run batted in (RBI; plural RBIs ) is a statistic in baseball and softball that credits a batter for making a play that allows a run to be scored (except in certain situations such as when an error is made on the play). For example, if the b ...

as a hitter. In high school, Givens also played on Plant's basketball team.

Draft and minor leagues

The

selected Givens in the second round, with the 54th overall selection, of the 2009 MLB draft. He signed with the Orioles, receiving a reported $800,000

signing bonus A signing bonus or sign-on bonus is a sum of money paid to a new employee (including a professional sports person) by a company as an incentive to join that company. They are often given as a way of making a compensation package more attractive ...

rather than enrolling at

Oklahoma State University Oklahoma (; Choctaw: ; chr, ᎣᎧᎳᎰᎹ, ''Okalahoma'' ) is a state in the South Central region of the United States, bordered by Texas on the south and west, Kansas on the north, Missouri on the northeast, Arkansas on the east, New ...

. The Orioles began to develop Givens as a

shortstop Shortstop, abbreviated SS, is the baseball or softball fielding position between second and third base, which is considered to be among the most demanding defensive positions. Historically the position was assigned to defensive specialists wh ...

. Playing for the

Delmarva Shorebirds The Delmarva Shorebirds are a Minor League Baseball team based in Salisbury, Maryland. They are members of the Carolina League and the Single-A affiliate of the Baltimore Orioles. Their home games are played at Arthur W. Perdue Stadium. The Shor ...

of the Class A

South Atlantic League The South Atlantic League, often informally called the Sally League, is a Minor League Baseball league with teams predominantly in states along the Atlantic coast of the United States from New York to Georgia. A Class A league for most of its ...

in 2010, he was batting .222 when he sprained his thumb. He required surgery to correct the injury. In 2011, Givens returned to Delmarva, and hit .195. He was demoted to the

Aberdeen IronBirds The Aberdeen IronBirds are a Minor League Baseball team based in the city of Aberdeen in Harford County, Maryland. They are the High-A affiliate of the Baltimore Orioles and compete in the South Atlantic League. They were previously members of the ...

of the

Class A-Short Season Class A Short Season (officially Short-Season A) was a level of play in Minor League Baseball in the United States from 1965 through 2020. In the hierarchy of minor league classifications, it was below Triple-A, Double-A, Class A-Advanced (cre ...

New York–Penn League The New York–Penn League (NYPL) was a Minor League Baseball league that operated in the northeastern United States from 1939 to 2020. Classified as a Class A Short Season league, its season started in June, after major-league teams signed th ...

. Givens played for the Perth Heat in

2011–12 Australian Baseball League season The 2011–12 Australian Baseball League season is the second Australian Baseball League (ABL) season, and is being held from 4 November 2011 to 12 February 2012. The season was scheduled to start on 3 November with a single game between the Pert ...

and played in the

2011 Australian Baseball League All-Star Game Eleven or 11 may refer to: *11 (number), the natural number following 10 and preceding 12 * one of the years 11 BC, AD 11, 1911, 2011, or any year ending in 11 Literature * ''Eleven'' (novel), a 2006 novel by British author David Llewellyn *''El ...

. He batted .243 in Delmarva in 2012. Before the 2013 season, the Orioles approached Givens about becoming a pitcher. In 2013, he pitched 40 innings for Delmarva, recording 36 strikeouts and a 4.22 ERA. With the Frederick Keys of the

Class A-Advanced High-A (officially Class High-A, formerly known as Class A-Advanced, and sometimes abbreviated "A+" in writing) is the third-highest level of play in Minor League Baseball in the United States and Canada, below Triple-A and Double-A, and abov ...

Carolina League The Carolina League is a Minor League Baseball league which has operated along the Atlantic Coast of the United States since 1945. Having been classified at various levels throughout its existence, it operated at Class A-Advanced from 1990 un ...

in 2014, he had a 1–2 record and a 3.24 ERA. The Orioles assigned Givens to the

Glendale Desert Dogs The Glendale Desert Dogs are a baseball team that plays in the West Division of the Arizona Fall League. They play their home games at Camelback Ranch in Glendale, Arizona. The ballpark is also the spring training facility of the Chicago White Sox ...

of the

Arizona Fall League The Arizona Fall League (AFL) is an off-season sports league owned and operated by Major League Baseball (MLB) which operates during the autumn in Arizona, United States, at six different baseball complexes. Arizona Fall League rosters are fille ...

after the 2014 season. The Orioles opted not to add Givens on their 40-man roster, which would have prevented him from being eligible in the Rule 5 draft. Givens went unselected. With the

Bowie Baysox The Bowie Baysox are a Minor League Baseball team located in Bowie, Maryland. They are the Double-A affiliate of the Baltimore Orioles, and play in the Eastern League. Their home ballpark is Prince George's Stadium. History From 1989 to 1992, ...

of the

Class AA Double-A (officially Class AA) is the second-highest level of play in Minor League Baseball in the United States since 1946, below only Triple-A. There are currently 30 teams classified at the Double-A level, one for each team in Major League ...

Eastern League Eastern League may refer to: Baseball in the United States ''Most recent leagues listed first'' * Eastern League (1938–present), a minor league established in 1923 and renamed Eastern League in 1938, at the Double-A level * Eastern League (1916� ...

, Givens began the 2015 season with a 3–1 win–loss record, a 1.60 ERA and 12 saves with 54 strikeouts in innings.

Baltimore Orioles

2015–2016

The Orioles promoted Givens to the major leagues on June 20, 2015. He made his major league debut on June 24, pitching one scoreless inning, striking out one batter, and was optioned back to Bowie the next day. He was named to the Eastern League All-Star Game. On July 31, he was recalled after the Orioles traded Tommy Hunter and designated Bud Norris for assignment. He pitched 1 innings while striking out two batters and earning his first career Major League win against the

Detroit Tigers The Detroit Tigers are an American professional baseball team based in Detroit. The Tigers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the American League (AL) Central division. One of the AL's eight charter franchises, the club was f ...

. Givens went 2–0 in 2015 with a 1.80 ERA in 22 games, with 30.0 innings pitched. Givens struck out 38 batters while only walking six and had a WHIP of 0.867. Givens made the Orioles' 2016

Opening Day Opening Day is the day on which professional baseball leagues begin their regular season. For Major League Baseball (MLB) and most of the American minor leagues, this day typically falls during the first week of April, although in recent years ...

roster and made his first relief appearance on Opening Day. He threw 1 innings, giving up two runs while striking out two batters. The Orioles would eventually win the game 3–2 on a walk-off single. After allowing three runs in his first two relief appearances of the season, Givens saw his ERA sitting at 13.50. Givens would go on to throw ten consecutive scoreless innings, before giving up another run. He ended the month of April, having appeared in 12 games, throwing 12 innings, striking out 21, walking seven, and pitching to a 3.00 ERA. Givens also went 2–0 in the month. In May, Givens went 1–0, while pitching to a 1.93 ERA in 11 innings in eight appearances. Givens earned the win for the Orioles on June 2 and 3rd, making him 5–0 on the year and 7–0 for his career. According to STATS, LLC, Givens was the first Orioles pitcher to begin his Major League career with seven consecutive wins as a reliever. Givens would win three more games out of the bullpen in 2016. Givens finished his 2016 season with 96 strikeouts and a 3.13 ERA in 74 innings in 66 appearances. He pitched to a 1.27 WHIP and an 8–2 record while striking out 11.6 batters per nine innings pitched. Givens made his postseason debut in the

Wild Card Game The Wild Card Series (formerly known as Wild Card Game from 2012 to 2019 and in 2021) are games that serve as the opening round of the Major League Baseball (MLB) postseason. A single wild card game was first instituted in 2012; best-of-three ...

against the Toronto Blue Jays. He entered the game with a 2–2 tie and runners on the corners. He forced a first-pitch double play. He ended up striking out three batters in 2 scoreless innings pitched, in what ended up being a 5–2 Orioles loss in 11 innings.

2017–2020

Givens was selected to Team USA's

2017 World Baseball Classic The 2017 World Baseball Classic (WBC) was an international professional baseball competition, composed of 16 competing nations, held from March 6 to March 22, 2017. It was the fourth iteration of the World Baseball Classic. The first-round hosts ...

roster. Givens helped Team USA to win the gold medal at the 2017 World Baseball Classic, as he made three relief pitching appearances. Out of relief, Givens earned his first victory of the 2017 season on April 8, against the

New York Yankees The New York Yankees are an American professional baseball team based in the New York City borough of the Bronx. The Yankees compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. They are one ...

after throwing a perfect inning while striking out two batters. Givens pitched to a 2.25 ERA before the break, striking out 44 batters in 44 innings pitched, picking up six wins and three saves along the way. Overall, he finished with a 2.75 ERA in 69 games, striking out 88 in innings. Givens began the 2018 season as the Orioles' setup man. With a 0–7 record in 69 appearances, he also had 9 saves in 13 attempts, eight of ten as the team's closer after the late-July

fire sale A fire sale is the sale of goods at extremely discounted prices. The term originated in reference to the sale of goods at a heavy discount due to fire damage. It may or may not be defined as a closeout, the final sale of goods to zero inventor ...

trades of Zach Britton, Brad Brach and Darren O'Day.Dubroff, Rich. "Mychal Givens faces uncertain Orioles’ future," BaltimoreBaseball.com, Thursday, October 10, 2019
Retrieved October 10, 2019 Mychal Givens (48076306592) (cropped)

Givens was tasked to be the Orioles closer to begin the 2019 season. He saved 11 of 19 opportunities, but his eighth and ninth inning ERAs went from 5.55 and 2.96 respectively the previous year to 1.93 and 6.69. He returned to the setup role for his final five outings. He appeared in 58 games with 86 strikeouts in 63 innings. In 2020 with the Orioles, Givens posted a 0–1 record with a 1.38 ERA in 12 games played.

Colorado Rockies

The Orioles traded Givens to the

for

Tyler Nevin Tyler Joseph Nevin (born May 29, 1997) is an American professional baseball infielder for the Detroit Tigers of Major League baseball (MLB). He made his MLB debut in 2021 for the Baltimore Orioles. Career Amateur career Nevin attended Poway High ...

Terrin Vavra Terrin Thomas Vavra (born May 12, 1997) is an American professional baseball second baseman and outfielder for the Baltimore Orioles of Major League Baseball (MLB). He made his MLB debut in 2022. Amateur career Vavra attended Menomonie High Sc ...

and 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 ...

on August 30, 2020. Minor-league outfielder Mishael Deson was sent to Baltimore to complete the transaction nineteen days later on September 18. He finished the season with an ERA of 6.75 in innings. In 31 appearances for the Rockies in 2021, Givens posted a 2.73 ERA with 34 strikeouts.

Cincinnati Reds

On July 28, 2021, the Rockies traded Givens to the

in exchange for Case Williams and pitcher Noah Davis.

Chicago Cubs

On March 23, 2022, Givens officially signed a one-year deal with the

New York Mets

On August 2, 2022, Givens was traded to the

for pitcher Saul Gonzalez.

Baltimore Orioles (second stint)

On December 21, 2022, Givens signed a one-year, $3 million contract with the

that includes a mutual option for 2024.

Personal life

Givens was raised by great-grandmother Liduvina Padilla and her late husband Pedro Padilla. Givens married his long time girlfriend Tiffani in 2014, and had two daughters together. In early 2020. Givens founded the Givens Back Foundation, a charitable organization focused on providing access to sports, unique opportunities through sports, and the teaching of life lessons outside of the classroom, for those in communities most in need. The Givens Back Foundation hosts a number of charity events each year, including Thanksgiving turkey drives, Christmas events to help those in need and the Foundation's annual "Blitzball" tournament.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Givens, Mychal 1990 births Living people Aberdeen IronBirds players African-American baseball players American expatriate baseball players in Australia American sportspeople of Puerto Rican descent Baltimore Orioles players Baseball players from Tampa, Florida Bowie Baysox players Chicago Cubs players Cincinnati Reds players Colorado Rockies players Delmarva Shorebirds players Frederick Keys players Glendale Desert Dogs players Gulf Coast Orioles players Major League Baseball pitchers New York Mets players Perth Heat players World Baseball Classic players of the United States 2017 World Baseball Classic players 21st-century African-American sportspeople Henry B. Plant High School alumni