Austin Ryan Kearns (born May 20, 1980) 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 ...

outfielder An outfielder is a person playing in one of the three defensive positions in baseball or softball, farthest from the batter. These defenders are the left fielder, the center fielder, and the right fielder. As an outfielder, their duty is to catch ...

. 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) from 2002 through 2013 for the

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

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 ...

Cleveland Indians The Cleveland Guardians are an American professional baseball team based in Cleveland. The Guardians compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League Central, Central Division. Since , the team ...

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

, and

Miami Marlins The Miami Marlins are an American professional baseball team based in Miami. The Marlins compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League East, East Division. The ...

Baseball career

Cincinnati Reds

After playing at Lafayette Senior High School, he was offered a

scholarship A scholarship is a form of Student financial aid, financial aid awarded to students for further education. Generally, scholarships are awarded based on a set of criteria such as academic merit, Multiculturalism, diversity and inclusion, athleti ...

to play college baseball at the

University of Florida The University of Florida (Florida or UF) is a public university, public land-grant university, land-grant research university in Gainesville, Florida, United States. It is a senior member of the State University System of Florida and a preem ...

. However, he decided to sign with the

after being selected seventh overall in the 1998 Major League Baseball Draft. After three seasons in the Reds'

minor league Minor leagues are professional sports leagues which are not regarded as the premier leagues in those sports. Minor league teams tend to play in smaller, less elaborate venues, often competing in smaller cities/markets. This term is used in Nort ...

system, he made his Major League debut on April 17, 2002. By July, he was in the running for NL Rookie of the Year, hitting .286 with 8 home runs and 40 RBIs. Kearns ultimately finished three in the voting, behind

Jason Jennings Jason Ryan Jennings (born July 17, 1978) is an American former professional baseball pitcher. He pitched in Major League Baseball with the Colorado Rockies (2001-2006), Houston Astros (2007) and Texas Rangers (2008-2009). High school/college y ...

and

Brad Wilkerson Stephen Bradley Wilkerson (born June 1, 1977) is an American former professional baseball outfielder and first baseman who played eight seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB). Wilkerson played college baseball for the University of Florida, and ...

. He hit .315 with 13 home runs in 107 games in his rookie season. Kearns underwent surgery in March 2003 to remove loose bodies from his left elbow. He played just 82 games that year after suffering a torn labrum and rotator cuff in his right shoulder following a home plate collision with

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 ...

pitcher Ray King. In April 2004, Kearns was hit by a pitch from

Pittsburgh Pirates The Pittsburgh Pirates are an American professional baseball team based in Pittsburgh. The Pirates compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League Central, Central ...

pitcher Ryan Vogelsong that broke his left forearm. In June, he also required surgery on his right thumb to clear our scar tissue.

Washington Nationals

Kearns was traded to the Nationals on July 13, 2006, along with Felipe Lopez and Ryan Wagner from the Cincinnati Reds in exchange for Gary Majewski, Bill Bray,

Royce Clayton Royce Spencer Clayton (born January 2, 1970) is an American former professional baseball shortstop. He played in Major League Baseball for the San Francisco Giants, St. Louis Cardinals, Texas Rangers, Chicago White Sox, Milwaukee Brewers, Colo ...

, Brendan Harris, and Daryl Thompson. On September 23, 2006, playing against the

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 ...

Shea Stadium William A. Shea Municipal Stadium ( ), typically shortened to Shea Stadium, was a multi-purpose stadium in Flushing Meadows–Corona Park in Queens, New York City.Nick Johnson collided while making a sliding attempt to catch a fly ball. Kearns originally remained in the game relatively unhurt, but was removed shortly after play resumed by Manager

Frank Robinson Frank Robinson (August 31, 1935 – February 7, 2019), nicknamed "the Judge", was an American professional baseball outfielder and manager in Major League Baseball (MLB) who played for five teams over 21 seasons: the Cincinnati Reds (1956–196 ...

. Kearns was replaced by

Ryan Church Ryan Matthew Church (born October 14, 1978) is an American former Major League Baseball outfielder. He played for the Montreal Expos / Washington Nationals, New York Mets, Atlanta Braves, Pittsburgh Pirates, and Arizona Diamondbacks. Career Mi ...

, who played in Kearns' spot for most of the rest of the season. Kearns suffered severe bruising down his left side as well as soreness. Johnson sustained a broken

femur The femur (; : femurs or femora ), or thigh bone is the only long bone, bone in the thigh — the region of the lower limb between the hip and the knee. In many quadrupeds, four-legged animals the femur is the upper bone of the hindleg. The Femo ...

and underwent surgery that night to repair his injuries. Johnson missed all of 2007 recuperating from his injuries. Kearns, however, had career highs in several key areas, including 161

games played Games played (GP) is a statistic used in team sports to indicate the total number of games in which a player has participated (in any capacity); the statistic is generally applied irrespective of whatever portion of the game is contested. Associat ...

and 74

RBIs A run batted in or runs batted in (RBI) 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 th ...

. On May 12, 2007, in a game at home against the

Florida Marlins The Miami Marlins are an American professional baseball team based in Miami. The Marlins compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) East Division. The team plays its home games at LoanDepot Park. The ...

, Kearns hit a bases-empty inside-the-park

home run In baseball, a home run (abbreviated HR) is scored when the Baseball (ball), ball is hit in such a way that the batting (baseball), batter is able to circle the bases and reach home plate safe (baseball), safely in one play without any error ( ...

, the first ever for a Nationals player. The ball bounced off the glove of

player

Reggie Abercrombie Reginald Damascus Abercrombie (born July 15, 1980) is an American former professional baseball outfielder. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Florida Marlins and Houston Astros. Professional career Abercrombie graduated from Colum ...

. Down the stretch, he tallied 4

hits Hits or H.I.T.S. may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Music * '' H.I.T.S.'', 1991 album by New Kids on the Block * ''...Hits'' (Phil Collins album), 1998 * ''Hits'' (compilation series), 1984–2006; 2014, a British compilation album s ...

in 11

at bat In baseball, an at bat (AB) or time at bat is a batter's turn batting against a pitcher. An at bat is different from a plate appearance. A batter is credited with a plate appearance regardless of what happens upon completion of his turn at bat, ...

s (with 2 home runs) in a late-season Nats' series sweep over the division leading New York Mets that kept the Mets out of the playoffs. In 2008, the Nationals placed Kearns on the 15-day

disabled list In Major League Baseball (MLB), the injured list (IL) is a method for teams to remove their injured players from the roster in order to summon healthy players. Before the 2019 Major League Baseball season, 2019 season, it was known as the disabl ...

on May 22 because of loose bodies in his right elbow and on August 25 with a

stress fracture A stress fracture is a fatigue-induced bone fracture caused by repeated stress over time. Instead of resulting from a single severe impact, stress fractures are the result of accumulated injury from repeated submaximal loading, such as running ...

in his left foot. Kearns was placed on the disabled list on August 5, 2009, with a right thumb injury. His move to the list was retroactive to August 4. He did not return to the majors in 2009. On November 6, the Nationals declined Kearns' 2010 option, making him a

free agent In professional sports, a free agent is a player or manager who is eligible to sign with other clubs or franchises; i.e., not under contract to any specific team. The term is also used in reference to a player who is under a contract at present ...

Cleveland Indians

On January 5, 2010, Kearns signed a minor league contract with the

with an invite to spring training. He was added to the major league roster on April 3. On July 5, 2010, Kearns was hit by a pitch three times by Texas Rangers pitchers. This tied the franchise and MLB record for most hits by pitches in a game. The last player hit three times was

Manny Ramirez Manuel Arístides Ramírez Onelcida (born May 30, 1972) is a Dominican Americans (Dominican Republic), Dominican-American former professional baseball outfielder. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for parts of 19 seasons. He played wit ...

on the same day in 2008. Austin Kearns 2010

New York Yankees

On July 30, 2010, Kearns was traded to the

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 ...

, later identified as pitcher Zach McAllister. Kearns was part of the Yankees 2010 postseason roster until the team lost to the Texas Rangers in the

2010 ALCS The 2010 American League Championship Series (ALCS) was a best-of-seven-game semifinal series in Major League Baseball's 2010 postseason pitting the winners of the 2010 American League Division Series for the American League Championship. The ...

Second stint with Cleveland

On December 20, 2010, Kearns signed a one-year deal with Cleveland. Kearns was arrested on February 12 in

Lexington, Kentucky Lexington is a Consolidated city-county, consolidated city coterminous with and the county seat of Fayette County, Kentucky, United States. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census the city's population was 322,570, making it the List of ...

for a

DUI Driving under the influence (DUI) is the crime of driving, operating, or being in control of a vehicle while one is impaired from doing so safely by the effect of either alcohol (see drunk driving) or some other drug, whether recreational or ...

. He later entered a conditional guilty plea. He was designated for assignment on August 12, 2011, as

Shin-Soo Choo Shin-Soo Choo (; ; born July 13, 1982) is a South Korean former professional baseball outfielder. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Seattle Mariners, Cleveland Indians, Cincinnati Reds, and Texas Rangers, before ending his car ...

returned from the disabled list. Kearns was released on August 17.

Miami Marlins

Kearns signed a minor league contract with the

on January 25, 2012. He also received an invitation to spring training and would later make the Opening Day roster. On May 23, the Marlins placed Kearns on a 15-day disabled list after he strained his right hamstring. He returned on June 7. In 2012, he hit .245 with 6 doubles, 4 home runs, 16 RBI, 22 walks, and 2 stolen bases in 147 at bats. Kearns re-signed with Miami for the 2013 season. He was batting .185 through 19 games before he was placed on the bereavement list by the Marlins on May 5. His mother suffered a heart attack. Kearns did not return to the team after seven games, so the Marlins transferred him to the restricted list.

Post-playing career and personal life

Kearns did not officially announce his retirement from baseball. In 2015, following his mother's heart attack, he remained in Lexington to work with his sons' youth league teams and serve as a volunteer coach with Lexington Christian Academy. He also has hosted an annual golf tournament fundraiser with former

Kentucky Wildcats baseball The Kentucky Wildcats baseball team represents the University of Kentucky in NCAA Division I college baseball and competes in the of the Southeastern Conference (SEC). The current head coach of the Wildcats is Nick Mingione. History The baseba ...

coach Keith Madison. Kearns and his wife Abby have three children.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kearns, Austin 1980 births Living people Cincinnati Reds players Washington Nationals players 21st-century American sportsmen Cleveland Indians players New York Yankees players Miami Marlins players Baseball players from Lexington, Kentucky Major League Baseball right fielders Billings Mustangs players Rockford Reds players Dayton Dragons players Gulf Coast Reds players Chattanooga Lookouts players Louisville Bats players Hagerstown Suns players Columbus Clippers players Jupiter Hammerheads players