Michael John Papierski (born February 26, 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 ...

catcher Catcher is a position in baseball and softball. When a batter takes their turn to hit, the catcher crouches behind home plate, in front of the (home) umpire, and receives the ball from the pitcher. In addition to this primary duty, the catc ...

and

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 majori ...

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

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 ...

and

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 ...

. Papierski 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, ...

for the LSU Tigers and was selected in the ninth round in the 2017 MLB draft by the

Houston Astros The Houston Astros are an American professional baseball team based in Houston. The Astros compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League West, West Division. They are one of two major leag ...

. He made his MLB debut in May 2022 with the Giants.

Early life and amateur career

Papierski grew up in

Lemont, Illinois Lemont is a village located in Cook, DuPage, and Will counties in the U.S. state of Illinois, and is a south-west suburb of Chicago. The population was 17,629 as of the 2020 census. The village is situated on a hillside along the south banks ...

, and attended Lemont High School. He was selected in the 16th round of 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 ...

by the

Toronto Blue Jays The Toronto Blue Jays are a Canadian professional baseball team based in Toronto. The Blue Jays compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League East, East Division. Since 1989, the team has p ...

, but opted not to sign in favor of attending

Louisiana State University Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College, commonly referred to as Louisiana State University (LSU), is an American Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Baton Rouge, Louis ...

(LSU). Papierski played

for the LSU Tigers for three seasons. He spent the majority of his freshman season as the backup to starting catcher Kade Scivicque. In 2015, he played

collegiate summer baseball Collegiate summer baseball leagues are amateur baseball leagues in the United States and Canada featuring players who have attended at least one year of college and have at least one year of athletic eligibility remaining. Generally, they operat ...

with the

Yarmouth–Dennis Red Sox The Yarmouth–Dennis Red Sox, or Y-D Red Sox, are a collegiate summer baseball team based in South Yarmouth, Massachusetts. The team is a member of the Cape Cod Baseball League (CCBL) and plays in the league's East Division. The Red Sox play th ...

of the

Cape Cod Baseball League The Cape Cod Baseball League (CCBL or Cape League) is a collegiate summer baseball wooden bat league located on Cape Cod in the U.S. state of Massachusetts. One of the nation's premier collegiate summer leagues, the league boasts over 1,000 forme ...

. Papierski started 40 games at catcher and hit .242/.358/.387 in his sophomore season. As a junior, Papierski hit .256/.401/.477 with 11 home runs and 39 RBIs in 65 games, and was named to the SEC All-Defensive team after throwing out 23 baserunners.

Professional career

Houston Astros

The

selected Papierski in the ninth round of the 2017 Major League Baseball draft. After signing with the team he was assigned to the

Tri-City ValleyCats The Tri-City ValleyCats are a professional baseball team based in Albany, New York. The ValleyCats compete in the Frontier League (FL) as a member of the North Division in the Atlantic Conference. The team was established in 2002, along with the ...

of the

New York–Penn League The New York–Penn League (NYPL) was a Minor League Baseball league that operated in the northeastern United States from 1939 to 2020. Classified as a Class A Short Season league, its season started in June, after major-league teams signed th ...

. Papierski spent the 2018 season with the Class A Quad Cities River Bandits. He was assigned to the Fayetteville Woodpeckers of the

Class A-Advanced High-A, officially Class High-A, formerly known as Class A-Advanced, and sometimes abbreviated "A+" in writing, is the third-highest level of play in Minor League Baseball in the United States and Canada, below Triple-A (baseball), Triple-A and D ...

Carolina League The Carolina League is a Minor League Baseball league which has operated along the Atlantic Coast of the United States since 1945. Having been classified at various levels throughout its existence, it operated at Class A-Advanced from 1990 unti ...

in 2019, where he batted .233/.351/.324 with seven home runs, 11 doubles, one triple, and 38 RBIs. After the 2020 minor league season was canceled due to 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 ...

, Papierski was added to the Astros' alternate training site roster for the Major League season. He spent the 2021 season with the Triple-A

Sugar Land Skeeters The Sugar Land Space Cowboys are a Minor League Baseball team of the Pacific Coast League (PCL) and the Triple-A (baseball), Triple-A affiliate of the Houston Astros Major League Baseball club. They are located in Sugar Land, Texas, part of the G ...

, hitting .246/.379/.375 with 7 home runs and 46 RBIs. He opened the 2022 season back with Sugar Land.

San Francisco Giants

On May 14,

2022 The year began with another wave in the COVID-19 pandemic, with SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant, Omicron spreading rapidly and becoming the dominant variant of the SARS-CoV-2 virus worldwide. Tracking a decrease in cases and deaths, 2022 saw ...

, the Astros traded Papierski to the

in exchange for

Mauricio Dubón Mauricio Andre Dubón ( born July 19, 1994) is a Honduran professional baseball utility player for the Houston Astros of Major League Baseball (MLB). Selected during the 26th round of the 2013 MLB draft by the Boston Red Sox, Dubón made his M ...

. He was assigned to the

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 ...

. Papierski was promoted to the Giants' major league roster on May 21, 2022. He made his major league debut later that day in 2-1 loss to 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. ...

. He went 0-for-9 in his first five major league games. Papierski was designated for assignment on June 18, 2022, after the Giants claimed Yermín Mercedes.

Cincinnati Reds

On June 25, 2022, Papierski was claimed off waivers by the

. He recorded his first major league hit on June 29, against the

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 ...

. On August 7, Papierski hit his first career home run, a solo shot off of

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 ...

starter

Corbin Burnes Corbin Brian Burnes (born October 22, 1994) is an American professional baseball pitcher for the Arizona Diamondbacks of Major League Baseball (MLB). He has previously played in MLB for the Milwaukee Brewers and Baltimore Orioles. Burnes was se ...

. He appeared in 34 games for Cincinnati, hitting .159/.242/.207 with one home run and 4 RBI.

Detroit Tigers

On October 14, 2022, he was claimed off waivers by the

Detroit Tigers The Detroit Tigers are an American professional baseball team based in Detroit. The Tigers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League Central, Central Division. One of the AL's eight chart ...

. On November 15, Papierski 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 Tigers. On November 18, he was non–tendered and became a free agent. He re-signed with the Tigers on a minor league contract on November 29. Papierski spent the 2023 season with the Triple–A

Toledo Mud Hens The Toledo Mud Hens are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League and the Triple-A affiliate of the Detroit Tigers. They are located in Toledo, Ohio, and play their home games at Fifth Third Field. A baseball team nicknamed the ...

, playing in 77 games and batting .266/.371/.422 with 8 home runs and 51 RBI. He elected free agency following the season on November 6.

Seattle Mariners

On January 22, 2024, Papierski signed a minor league contract with the

Seattle Mariners The Seattle Mariners are an American professional baseball team based in Seattle. The Mariners compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League West, West Division. The team joined the American ...

. He made 83 appearances for the Triple-A

Tacoma Rainiers The Tacoma Rainiers are a Minor League Baseball team of the Pacific Coast League (PCL) and the Triple-A (baseball), Triple-A affiliate of the Seattle Mariners. They are located in Tacoma, Washington, and play their home games at Cheney Stadium, ...

, slashing .242/.358/.372 with six home runs and 46 RBI. Papierski elected free agency following the season on November 4.

References

External links

LSU Tigers bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Papierski, Michael 1996 births Living people Baseball players from Cook County, Illinois Cincinnati Reds players Eau Claire Express players Fayetteville Woodpeckers players Leones del Escogido players Louisville Bats players LSU Tigers baseball players Major League Baseball catchers People from Palos Heights, Illinois Quad Cities River Bandits players Sacramento River Cats players San Francisco Giants players Sugar Land Skeeters players Sugar Land Space Cowboys players Tacoma Rainiers players Toledo Mud Hens players Tri-City ValleyCats players Yarmouth–Dennis Red Sox players