Charles Quinn Priester (born September 15, 2000) 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 ...

pitcher In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throws ("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 attempts to e ...

for the

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) East division. Founded in as one of the American League's eig ...

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL) ...

(MLB). He was selected by 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 (NL) National League Central, Central division. Founded as part o ...

in the first round of the

2018 MLB draft The 2018 Major League Baseball (MLB) First-Year Player Draft began on June 4, 2018. The draft assigned amateur baseball players to MLB teams. The draft order was determined based on the reverse order of the 2017 MLB season final standings. In ad ...

, and made his MLB debut with them in 2023.

Amateur career

Priester attended Cary-Grove High School in

Cary, Illinois Cary is a village located in Algonquin Township, McHenry County, Illinois, and Cuba Township, Lake County, Illinois, United States. Per the 2020 census, the population was 17,826. Founding In 1841, William Dennison Cary purchased for $1.25 ...

. He played

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding ...

and football, and was a member of the 2018 Cary-Grove football team that won the 6A state championship. He also caught a touchdown pass in the championship game. In 2019, as a senior, he had a 8–2

win–loss record In sports, a winning percentage is the fraction of games or matches a team or individual has won. The statistic is commonly used in standings or rankings to compare teams or individuals. It is defined as wins divided by the total number of match ...

with a 1.00

earned run average In baseball statistics, earned run average (ERA) is the average of earned runs allowed by a pitcher per nine innings pitched (i.e. the traditional length of a game). It is determined by dividing the number of earned runs allowed by the numb ...

(ERA), striking out 91 batters in

innings pitched In baseball, innings pitched (IP) are the number of innings a pitcher has completed, measured by the number of batters and baserunners that are put out while the pitcher is on the pitching mound in a game. Three outs made is equal to one inning ...

. He was named the Illinois Gatorade Baseball Player of the Year. He committed to play

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 ...

Texas Christian University Texas Christian University (TCU) is a private research university in Fort Worth, Texas. It was established in 1873 by brothers Addison and Randolph Clark as the Add-Ran Male & Female College. It is affiliated with the Christian Church (Disciple ...

Professional career

Pittsburgh Pirates

The

selected Priester in the first round, with the 18th overall selection, in 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 ...

. He signed with the Pirates on June 10 for $3.4 million. After signing, he was assigned to the rookie–level

Gulf Coast League Pirates The Florida Complex League Pirates are a Rookie-level affiliate of the Pittsburgh Pirates, competing in the Florida Complex League of Minor League Baseball. Prior to 2021, the team was known as the Gulf Coast League Pirates. The team plays its h ...

. Over nine games (eight starts) in the GCL, he went 1–1 with a 3.19 ERA, striking out 41 over innings. He did not play in a 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 ...

. Priester spent the 2021 season with the High–A Greensboro Grasshoppers with whom he went 7–4 with a 3.04 ERA and 98 strikeouts over innings. In June, he was selected to play in the

All-Star Futures Game The All-Star Futures Game is an annual baseball exhibition game hosted by Major League Baseball (MLB) in conjunction with the mid-summer MLB All-Star Game. A team of American League-affiliated prospects competes against a team of National Le ...

. Priester split the 2022 season between the Single–A

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 ...

, Greensboro, Double–A

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 th ...

, and Triple–A

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

. In 19 starts between the four affiliates, he accumulated a 5–5 record and 3.29 ERA with 89 strikeouts across innings pitched. In 2023, Priester began the season with Indianapolis. In 18 starts, he registered a 7–3 record and 4.31 ERA with 84 strikeouts in innings pitched. On July 17, 2023, Priester was selected to the

40-man roster A Major League Baseball roster is a list of players who are allowed, by league agreement, to play for a Major League Baseball (MLB) team. Each MLB team maintains two rosters: an active roster of players eligible to participate in an MLB game, and ...

and promoted to the major leagues for the first time. He made his MLB debut that day as the starting pitcher against 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 ...

; in innings, he allowed 7 runs on 7 hits and 2 walks with 2 strikeouts, earning the loss. In 10 games (8 starts) during his rookie campaign, Priester struggled to a 7.74 ERA with 36 strikeouts across 50 innings pitched. Priester was optioned to Triple–A Indianapolis to begin the 2024 season after he was beat out by

Jared Jones Below are the rosters of the minor league affiliates of the Pittsburgh Pirates: Players Carter Bins Carter Bins (born October 7, 1998) is an American professional baseball catcher in the Pittsburgh Pirates organization. Bins attended Angelo R ...

for the final rotation spot. He was called up to the major leagues in April and pitched to a 2–6 record and 5.04 ERA across innings. In 10 appearances (6 starts), he allowing 52 hits, 25 earned runs, seven home runs, and 13 walks, while recording 31 strikeouts.

Boston Red Sox

On July 29, 2024, the Pirates traded Priester to the

in exchange for

Nick Yorke Nicholas Anthony Yorke (born April 2, 2002) is an American professional baseball player in the Boston Red Sox organization. He was selected 17th overall by the Red Sox in the 2020 MLB draft. Listed at and , he bats and throws right-handed. Amat ...

. He was subsequently assigned to Boston’s Triple–A affiliate, the

Worcester Red Sox The Worcester Red Sox (nicknamed the WooSox) are a professional minor league baseball team based in Worcester, Massachusetts. Beginning play in 2021, the team is the Triple-A affiliate of the Boston Red Sox, succeeding the Pawtucket Red Sox. The ...

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Priester, Quinn 2000 births Living people Altoona Curve players Baseball players from DuPage County, Illinois Boston Red Sox players Bradenton Marauders players Greensboro Grasshoppers players Gulf Coast Pirates players Indianapolis Indians players Major League Baseball pitchers Pittsburgh Pirates players Surprise Saguaros players West Virginia Black Bears players Worcester Red Sox players