Amos Lee Willingham (born August 21, 1998) is an American 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, ...

in 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 ...

organization. He has previously 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

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 ...

Career

Washington Nationals

The

selected Willingham in the 17th round, with the 513th overall selection, of the

2019 Major League Baseball draft The 2019 Major League Baseball draft was held from June 3 to 5, 2019. The draft assigned amateur baseball players to MLB teams. The draft order was set based on the reverse order of the 2018 MLB season standings. In addition, compensation picks ...

. He made his professional debut with the Low–A

Auburn Doubledays The Auburn Doubledays are a collegiate summer baseball team of the Perfect Game Collegiate Baseball League (PGCBL) that is located in Auburn, New York. From 1958 to 2020, they were members of Minor League Baseball's New York–Penn League (NYPL) ...

, pitching to a 3.67 ERA with 18 strikeouts across 12 appearances. Willingham did not play in a game in 2020 due to the cancellation of the minor league season because of the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...

. He returned to action in 2021, beginning the season with the Single–A

Fredericksburg Nationals The Fredericksburg Nationals are a Minor League Baseball team that is the Single-A affiliate of the Washington Nationals. They are located in Fredericksburg, Virginia, and play their home games at Virginia Credit Union Stadium, with a capacity of ...

. On August 14, 2021, Willingham combined with Gilberto Chu and Leif Strom to no–hit the

Salem Red Sox The Salem Red Sox are a Minor League Baseball affiliate of the Boston Red Sox of Major League Baseball (MLB), based in Salem, Virginia, Salem, an independent city adjacent to Roanoke, Virginia. The team competes at the Single-A level in the Car ...

, the first

no-hitter In baseball, a no-hitter or no-hit game is a game in which a team does not record a hit (baseball), hit through conventional methods. Major League Baseball (MLB) officially defines a no-hitter as a completed game in which a team that batted in ...

thrown in Fredericksburg history. He posted a 2.28 ERA in 23 games for Fredericksburg, and was briefly promoted to the High–A

Wilmington Blue Rocks The Wilmington Blue Rocks are a Minor League Baseball team of the South Atlantic League and the High-A affiliate of the Washington Nationals. They are located in Wilmington, Delaware, and play their home games at Daniel S. Frawley Stadium. Fra ...

. In 6 contests for Wilmington, Willingham struggled to a 14.54 ERA with 14 strikeouts and 6 walks across 13.0 innings, and was returned to Fredericksburg shortly thereafter. Willingham spent the 2022 season with High–A Wilmington, making 29 appearances and registering a 3.41 ERA with 40 strikeouts and 3 saves in innings pitched. He began the 2023 season with the Double–A

Harrisburg Senators The Harrisburg Senators are a Minor League Baseball team who play in the Eastern League, and are the Double-A affiliate of the Washington Nationals. The team is based in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, and play their home games at FNB Field on Cit ...

, and logged 14 strikeouts and 5 saves in scoreless innings pitched across 10 contests. On May 14, 2023, Willingham was promoted to the Triple–A

Rochester Red Wings The Rochester Red Wings are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League and the Triple-A (baseball), Triple-A affiliate of the Washington Nationals. They are located in Rochester, New York, and play their home games at Innovative Fie ...

. In 10 games with Rochester, he recorded a 3.46 ERA with 11 strikeouts in 13.0 innings of work. On June 26, 2023, Willingham was selected to the

40-man roster A Major League Baseball roster is a list of players who are allowed, by league agreement, to play for a Major League Baseball (MLB) team. Each MLB team maintains two rosters: an active roster of players eligible to participate in an MLB game, an ...

and promoted to the major leagues for the first time. In 18 appearances during his rookie campaign, he struggled to a 6.66 ERA with 15 strikeouts across innings pitched. Willingham was optioned to Triple–A Rochester to begin the 2024 season. He made one appearance for Washington in 2024, allowing two runs in one inning of relief against 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 January 11, 2025, Willingham 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 ...

by the Nationals.

Atlanta Braves

On January 17, 2025, Willingham was claimed off waivers by the

. He was optioned to the Triple-A

Gwinnett Stripers The Gwinnett Stripers are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League (IL) and the Triple-A (baseball), Triple-A affiliate of the Atlanta Braves. They play their home games at Coolray Field in unincorporated Gwinnett County, Georgia ...

to begin the 2025 season. After two appearances for Gwinnett, Willingham was released by the Braves on April 22, following the promotion of Nathan Wiles. He re-signed with the Braves on a minor league contract the following day.https://www.milb.com/transactions/2025-04-23/p-2

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Willingham, Amos 1998 births Living people Auburn Doubledays players Baseball players from Georgia (U.S. state) Columbus Clingstones players Florida Complex League Braves players Fredericksburg Nationals players Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets baseball players Gwinnett Stripers players Harrisburg Senators players Major League Baseball pitchers Peoria Javelinas players Rochester Red Wings players Rome Emperors players Sportspeople from Rome, Georgia Washington Nationals players 21st-century American sportsmen Wilmington Blue Rocks players