Blake Cederlind (born January 4, 1996) 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, ...

who is a free agent. 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

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 ...

Amateur career

Cederlind attended Turlock High School in

Turlock, California Turlock is a city in Stanislaus County, California, United States. Its population was 72,740 at the 2020 United States census, making it the second-largest city in Stanislaus County after Modesto. History Founded on December 22, 1871, by pr ...

, where he played baseball and was teammates with Brett Cumberland and

Kevin Kramer Kevin Lowell Kramer (born October 3, 1993) is an American former professional baseball second baseman. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Pittsburgh Pirates in 2018 and 2019. Amateur career Kramer attended Turlock High School ...

. In 2014, his senior year, he went 8–1 with a 1.50 ERA along with batting .289. He was not drafted out of high school in the

2014 Major League Baseball draft The 2014 Major League Baseball draft was held from June 5 through June 7, 2014, to assign amateur baseball players to MLB teams. The first two rounds were conducted on June 5, followed by rounds three through ten on June 6, and the last 30 round ...

, and he enrolled at

Merced College Merced College is a public community college in Merced, California. History In 1961, the Merced High and Le Grand High School Districts petitioned the State Board of Education for permission to set an election to approve the establishment of ...

where he played

college baseball College baseball is baseball that is played by Student athlete, student-athletes at institutions of higher education. In the United States, college baseball is sanctioned mainly by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA); in Japan, ...

. As a freshman at Merced in 2015, Cederlind went 3–1 with a 7.89 ERA over innings. After the year, he was selected by the

Minnesota Twins The Minnesota Twins are an American professional baseball team based in Minneapolis. The Twins compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League Central, Central Division. The team is named afte ...

in the 22nd round of the

2015 Major League Baseball draft The 2015 Major League Baseball draft was held from June 8 through June 10, 2015, to assign amateur baseball players to MLB teams. The draft order is the reverse order of the 2014 MLB season standings. As the Diamondbacks finished the 2014 season ...

but did not sign. In 2016, his sophomore year at Merced, he appeared in 23 games (making four starts) in which he compiled a 5–2 record and 3.75 ERA while striking out 63 batters in innings. Following the season, the

selected Cederlind in the fifth round the

2016 Major League Baseball draft The 2016 Major League Baseball draft began on June 9, 2016, to assign amateur baseball players to MLB teams. The draft order is the reverse order of the 2015 MLB season standings. In addition, compensation picks were distributed for players who ...

Professional career

Pittsburgh Pirates

Cederlind signed with Pittsburgh for $285,000, and was assigned to the

Bristol Pirates The Bristol Pirates were a Minor League Baseball team in Bristol, Virginia, United States. They were a Rookie-level team in the Appalachian League. The team played home games at DeVault Memorial Stadium. Opened in 1969, Devault Memorial Stadium ...

. Over six starts, he went 0–1 with a 4.67 ERA. In 2017, Cederlind spent the season with the

West Virginia Power The Charleston Dirty Birds are an United States, American professional baseball team based in Charleston, West Virginia. They are a member of the South Division of the Atlantic League of Professional Baseball, a MLB Partner League, partner league ...

where he pitched to a 2–3 record and 7.76 ERA over 25 games (seven starts), striking out 55 batters over 58 innings. He returned to West Virginia to begin the 2018 season and was promoted to the

Bradenton Marauders The Bradenton Marauders are a Minor League Baseball team of the Florida State League and the Single-A affiliate of the Pittsburgh Pirates. They are located in Bradenton, Florida, and play their home games at LECOM Park, which also serves as the ...

in June. Over innings between both teams, he pitched to a 4–4 record and 4.89 ERA while striking out 54 batters. Cederlind returned to Bradenton to begin 2019 before being promoted to the

Altoona Curve The Altoona Curve are a Minor League Baseball team based in Altoona, Pennsylvania, named after nearby Horseshoe Curve (but also alluding to the curveball, a type of pitch). The team plays in the Eastern League and is the Double-A affiliate of ...

in May. In August, he was promoted to the

Indianapolis Indians The Indianapolis Indians are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League (IL) and the Triple-A (baseball), Triple-A affiliate of the Pittsburgh Pirates. They are located in Indianapolis, Indiana, and play their home games at Victory ...

with whom he finished the season. Over 41 relief appearances between the three clubs, Cederlind went 5–2 with a 2.28 ERA, striking out 55 over innings. Cederlind was added to the Pirates 40-man roster following the 2019 season. On July 5, 2020, it was announced that Cederlind had tested positive for

COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by the coronavirus SARS-CoV-2. In January 2020, the disease spread worldwide, resulting in the COVID-19 pandemic. The symptoms of COVID‑19 can vary but often include fever ...

. On September 15, Cederlind was promoted to the major leagues for the first time and made his debut against 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 ...

. On March 12, 2021, Cederlind was placed on the 60-day injured list due to a strained ulnar collateral ligament in his right elbow. On March 23, 2021, Cederlind 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, ...

, causing him to miss the 2021 season. On November 10, 2022, Cederlind was sent outright off of the 40-man roster. Cederlind returned from injury in 2023, making 5 appearances for the Single-A

and struggling to a 13.50 ERA with 6 strikeouts in 6.0 innings pitched. On May 31, 2023, Cederlind was released by the Pirates organization.

San Diego Padres

On June 8, 2023, Cederlind signed a minor league contract with the

San Diego Padres The San Diego Padres are an American professional baseball team based in San Diego. The Padres compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League West, West Division. ...

organization. Cederlind made 5 appearances split between the rookie–level

Arizona Complex League Padres The Arizona Complex League Padres or ACL Padres are a Minor League Baseball team based in Peoria, Arizona. The Padres compete in the Arizona Complex League as a rookie-level affiliate of the San Diego Padres. The team plays its home games at Peori ...

and Double–A

San Antonio Missions The San Antonio Missions are a Minor League Baseball team based in San Antonio, Texas. The Missions compete in the Texas League as the Double-A (baseball), Double-A affiliate of the San Diego Padres. The team plays its home games at Nelson W. W ...

; in innings, he surrendered 6 runs on 5 hits and 7 walks with 7 strikeouts. On July 14, Cederlind was released by the Padres.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Cederlind, Blake 1996 births Living people Baseball players from Turlock, California Turlock High School alumni Major League Baseball pitchers Pittsburgh Pirates players Merced Blue Devils baseball players Bristol Pirates players West Virginia Power players Bradenton Marauders players 21st-century American sportsmen Altoona Curve players Indianapolis Indians players Peoria Javelinas players Arizona Complex League Padres players San Antonio Missions players