Joshua Michael Osich (born September 3, 1988) 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 ...

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, ...

. He made his

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) debut with the

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

in 2015 and also played for the

Chicago White Sox The Chicago White Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The White Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League Central, Central Division. The club plays its ...

Boston Red Sox The Boston Red Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Boston. The Red Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League East, East Division. Founded in as one of the Ameri ...

, and

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

. He is one of the only players in MLB history who is of

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descent.

College career

Born and raised in

Boise Boise ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Idaho. As of the 2020 census, there were 235,685 people residing in the city. Located on the Boise River in southwestern Idaho, it is east of the Oregon border and nor ...

Idaho Idaho ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest and Mountain states, Mountain West subregions of the Western United States. It borders Montana and Wyoming to the east, Nevada and Utah to the south, and Washington (state), ...

, Osich graduated from

Bishop Kelly High School Bishop Kelly High School is a private Roman Catholic secondary school in Boise, Idaho, operated by the Diocese of Boise. One of two Catholic high schools in the state of Idaho, its school colors are black and gold and the mascot is a knight. Hi ...

in 2007. 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, ...

Oregon State University Oregon State University (OSU) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Corvallis, Oregon, United States. OSU offers more than 200 undergraduate degree programs and a variety of graduate and doctor ...

in Corvallis, but missed the 2010 season, recovering from

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, ...

. Despite the injury, he was selected by the

Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim The Los Angeles Angels are an American professional baseball team based in the Greater Los Angeles area. The Angels compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West Division. Since 1966, the team has pl ...

in the seventh round of the

2010 Major League Baseball draft The 2010 Major League Baseball draft was held on June 7–9, 2010 at the MLB Network Studios in Secaucus, New Jersey. First-round selections The draft order was determined based on the 2009 MLB standings, with the worst team picking first. ;Key ...

. Osich did not sign and returned to Oregon State and in his final collegiate season in

2011 The year marked the start of a Arab Spring, series of protests and revolutions throughout the Arab world advocating for democracy, reform, and economic recovery, later leading to the depositions of world leaders in Tunisia, Egypt, and Yemen ...

, he threw a

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 ...

against

UCLA The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California, United States. Its academic roots were established in 1881 as a normal school then known as the southern branch of the C ...

Professional career

San Francisco Giants (2011–2018)

Osich was then taken by the

in the sixth round (207th overall) of the

2011 Major League Baseball draft The 2011 Major League Baseball draft was held from June 6 through June 8, 2011, from Studio 42 of the MLB Network in Secaucus, New Jersey. The Pittsburgh Pirates selected Gerrit Cole out of the University of California, Los Angeles, with the firs ...

and signed. He made his professional debut in 2012 with the High-A

San Jose Giants The San Jose Giants are a Minor League Baseball team of the California League and the Single-A affiliate of the San Francisco Giants. Located in San Jose, California, the Giants play their home games at Excite Ballpark. Games San Jose Giants g ...

, registering a 3.62 ERA with 34 strikeouts across 27 appearances. Osich split the 2013 season between San Jose and the Double-A

Richmond Flying Squirrels The Richmond Flying Squirrels are a Minor League Baseball team based in Richmond, Virginia. The team, which is a part of the Eastern League, is the Double-A affiliate of the San Francisco Giants major league club, and plays at The Diamond. Th ...

. In 56 appearances out of the

bullpen In baseball, the bullpen (or simply the pen) is the area where relief pitchers warm up before entering a game. A team's roster of relief pitchers is also metonymically referred to as "the bullpen". These pitchers usually wait in the bullpen if ...

, he accumulated a 5-4 record and 3.47 ERA with 76 strikeouts over 70 innings of work. Osich returned to Richmond for the 2014 campaign, recording a 3.78 ERA with 27 strikeouts across innings pitched. Osich began the 2015 season with Richmond, and received a promotion to the Triple-A

Sacramento River Cats The Sacramento River Cats are a Minor League Baseball team of the Pacific Coast League (PCL) and are the Triple-A (baseball), Triple-A affiliate of the San Francisco Giants. Prior to 2015, the River Cats were the Triple-A affiliate of the Oakland ...

in June. In 37 appearances split between the two affiliates, he registered a cumulative 1.32 ERA with 45 strikeouts and 21 saves across 41 innings of work. Osich was called up to the majors for the first time on July 3, 2015, pitching one scoreless inning of relief against 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 ...

. On July 11, Osich earned his first major league win in his fifth relief appearance, pitching of an inning against the

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

. Osich didn't allow a hit until his eighth major league appearance. Osich was optioned to Triple-A Sacramento on July 22. Osich was recalled to the Giants on August 7, when pitcher Mike Leake was put on the disabled list. In 2015, Osich appeared in 35 games, recording a 2.20 ERA with 27 strikeouts in 28 innings pitched. In 2016, Osich was named to the

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 year ...

Major League roster for the Giants. On July 28, Osich was placed on disabled list. He finished the season appearing in 59 games, posting an ERA of 4.71 in innings. Osich posted an ERA of 6.23 in 54 games in 2017, with 43 strikeouts in innings. Osich began the 2018 season in the bullpen before being placed on the disabled list on April 20. He was sent to the minors on May 25. Osich ended the season having appeared in 12 games, with an 8.25 ERA. Osich 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 ...

on February 12, 2019, following the acquisition of Jose Lopez.

Chicago White Sox (2019)

On February 19, 2019, Osich was claimed off waivers by the

Baltimore Orioles The Baltimore Orioles (also known as the O's) 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 America ...

. He was designated for assignment on March 8, following the acquisition of Dwight Smith Jr. On March 11, 2019, Osich was claimed off waivers by the

. Osich appeared in 57 games (all in relief) with the 2019 White Sox, recording a 4–0 record with a 4.66 ERA while striking out 61 batters in innings pitched.

Boston Red Sox (2020)

On October 31, 2019, Osich was claimed off waivers by the

. He was non-tendered on December 2, 2019, and became a free agent. On December 4, Osich re-signed with Boston on a one-year major league contract. He made his debut for the Red Sox in the team's second game of the delayed-start 2020 season, pitching a scoreless inning in relief on July 25. With the 2020 Red Sox, Osich compiled a 1–1 record in 13 appearances totaling innings pitched with a 5.74 ERA.

Chicago Cubs (2020)

On August 31, 2020, Osich was traded to the

in exchange for Zach Bryant. With the 2020 Chicago Cubs, Osich appeared in 4 games, struggling to a 10.13 ERA and 4 strikeouts in innings pitched. On September 30, Osich was designated for assignment by the Cubs shortly before their Wild Card matchup against the

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 ...

Cincinnati Reds (2021)

On December 21, 2020, Osich signed a minor league contract with 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 ...

organization. On June 19, 2021, Osich was selected to the active roster. In 17 appearances for the Reds, Osich posted a 5.02 ERA with 9 strikeouts. On July 11, Osich recorded his only MLB save by pitching the final inning of a 3-1 Reds victory over the Brewers. On July 28, Osich was designated for assignment by the Reds. He elected free agency on July 30. On May 16, 2022, Osich announced his retirement from professional baseball via Instagram.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Osich, Josh 1988 births Living people Baseball players from Boise, Idaho Major League Baseball pitchers San Francisco Giants players Chicago White Sox players Boston Red Sox players Chicago Cubs players Cincinnati Reds players Oregon State Beavers baseball players San Jose Giants players Richmond Flying Squirrels players Sacramento River Cats players Charlotte Knights players Louisville Bats players Bishop Kelly High School alumni