Brycelin Steven Ball (born July 8, 1998) 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 ...

first baseman A first baseman, abbreviated 1B, is the player on a baseball or softball team who fields the area nearest first base, the first of four bases a baserunner must touch in succession to score a run. The first baseman is responsible for the major ...

in the

Philadelphia Phillies The Philadelphia Phillies are an American professional baseball team based in Philadelphia. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the National League (NL) East division. Since 2004, the team's home stadium has been Citize ...

organization.

Career

Ball attended Newman Catholic High School in

Mason City, Iowa Mason City is a city and the county seat of Cerro Gordo County, Iowa, United States. The population was 27,338 in the 2020 census, a decline from 29,172 in the 2000 census. The Mason City Micropolitan Statistical Area includes all of Cerro G ...

, and played

college baseball College baseball is baseball that is played on the intercollegiate level at institutions of higher education. In comparison to football and basketball, college competition in the United States plays a smaller role in developing professional pl ...

North Iowa Area Community College North Iowa Area Community College (NIACC) is a public community college in Mason City, Iowa. History NIACC began as Mason City Junior College in 1918, becoming the first public two-year college in Iowa. The college was located in the high school ...

and

Dallas Baptist University Dallas Baptist University (DBU) is a Christian liberal arts university in Dallas, Texas. Founded in 1898 as Decatur Baptist College, Dallas Baptist University currently operates campuses in Dallas, Plano, and Hurst. History Dallas Baptist Uni ...

. He was drafted by 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 (NL) East division. The Braves were founded in B ...

in the 24th round of the

2019 Major League Baseball draft The 2019 Major League Baseball (MLB) First-Year Player 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 addit ...

Atlanta Braves

Ball made his professional debut with the

Danville Braves The Danville Braves were a Minor League Baseball team in Danville, Virginia. They were an Advanced Rookie-level team in the Appalachian League and were a farm team of the Atlanta Braves. The Braves have played home games at American Legion Post 3 ...

and was later promoted to the

Rome Braves The Rome Braves are a Minor League Baseball team of the South Atlantic League and the High-A affiliate of the Atlanta Braves. They are located in Rome, Georgia, and play their home games at AdventHealth Stadium. From 2003 to 2020, the team served ...

. In 62 games, he hit .329/.395/.628 with 17

home runs 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 is ...

and 52

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 ba ...

(RBIs) over 231 at-bats. The Braves invited him to their Spring Training in 2020. However, he did not play a minor league 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, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identified ...

. Ball began the 2021 season with Rome.

Chicago Cubs

On July 15, 2021, Ball was traded to the Chicago Cubs in exchange for

Joc Pederson Joc Russell Pederson ( ; born April 21, 1992) is an American professional baseball outfielder for the San Francisco Giants of Major League Baseball (MLB). He has previously played in MLB for the Los Angeles Dodgers, Chicago Cubs, and Atlanta Br ...

. He was assigned to the

South Bend Cubs The South Bend Cubs are a Minor League Baseball team of the Midwest League and the High-A affiliate of the Chicago Cubs. They are located in South Bend, Indiana, and play their home games at Four Winds Field at Coveleski Stadium. The team was ...

with whom he finished the season. Over 107 games between Rome and South Bend, he slashed .206/.351/.387 with 13 home runs, 52 RBIs, and 21 doubles. Ball spent the 2022 season with the Double–A

Tennessee Smokies The Tennessee Smokies are a Minor League Baseball team based in Kodak, Tennessee, a suburb of Knoxville. The team, which plays in the Southern League, is the Double-A affiliate of the Chicago Cubs. They play at Smokies Stadium, directly off I ...

. Playing in 131 games, he hit .265/.357/.405 with 11 home runs and a career–high 76 RBI. In 2023, Ball played in 52 games split between South Bend and Tennessee, accumulating a .214/.323/.305 batting line with 1 home runs and 28 RBI. On July 4, 2023, Ball was released by the Cubs organization.

Cleveland Guardians

On July 20, 2023, Ball signed a minor league contract with the

Cleveland Guardians 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) Central division. Since , they have played at Progressive Fi ...

organization.https://www.mlb.com/transactions/2023/07/20

Philadelphia Phillies

On December 6, 2023, Ball was selected by the

in the minor league phase of the Rule 5 draft.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ball, Bryce 1998 births Living people Baseball first basemen Baseball players from Iowa Dallas Baptist Patriots baseball players Danville Braves players People from Mason City, Iowa Rome Braves players South Bend Cubs players Tennessee Smokies players