Isiah Kiner-Falefa

Isiah Kiner-Falefa
Kiner-Falefa (left) at the 2017 Texas League All-Star Game
Texas Rangers – No. 9
Infielder / Catcher
Born: (1995-03-23) March 23, 1995
Honolulu, Hawaii
Bats: Right Throws: Right
MLB debut
April 10, 2018, for the Texas Rangers
MLB statistics
(through September 27, 2018)
Batting average .261
Home runs 4
Runs batted in 34
Teams

Isiah Kiner-Falefa (born March 23, 1995) is an American professional baseball infielder for the Texas Rangers of Major League Baseball (MLB).

Career

Kiner-Falefa attended Mid-Pacific Institute in Honolulu, Hawaii. He was drafted by the Texas Rangers in the fourth round of the 2013 Major League Baseball Draft.[1] He made his professional debut with the AZL Rangers and spent all of 2013 there, batting .322 with 11 RBIs and 12 stolen bases in 41 games. In 2014, he played for the AZL Rangers, Hickory Crawdads, and Spokane Indians where he batted .246 with 16 RBIs in 79 games, and in 2015, he played with Hickory and the High Desert Mavericks, where he batted .296 with 40 RBIs in 98 games. Kiner-Falefa spent 2016 with the Frisco RoughRiders where he compiled a .256 batting average with 27 RBIs in 108 games.

Kiner-Falefa has played numerous positions in the Rangers organization, including shortstop, second base, third baseman and catcher.[2][3][4] He played in 2017 with Frisco where he batted .288 with five home runs and 48 RBIs in 129 games.[5] The Rangers added him to their 40-man roster after the 2017 season.[6]

Kiner-Falefa made his Major League debut against the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim on April 10, 2018.[7] On April 14, against the Houston Astros, he hit his first career home run.[8]

Personal

Kiner-Falefa is of Samoan, Hawaiian, and Japanese descent.[9] His grandmother is from Hiroshima, Japan.[10]

References

  1. ↑ "Wong, Kiner-Falefa selected in fourth round of MLB draft". Staradvertiser.com. June 7, 2013. Retrieved February 27, 2018.
  2. ↑ "A Familiar Path For Isiah Kiner-Falefa". BaseballAmerica.com. Retrieved February 27, 2018.
  3. ↑ TEGNA (June 8, 2017). "Rangers prospect Kiner-Falefa reimagined as utility catcher". WFAA.com. Retrieved February 27, 2018.
  4. ↑ Hunt, Stephen. "Kiner-Falefa embracing new position in Frisco". Staradvertiser.com. Retrieved February 27, 2018.
  5. ↑ "Isiah Kiner-Falefa Stats, Highlights, Bio - MiLB.com Stats - The Official Site of Minor League Baseball". MiLB.com. Retrieved April 15, 2018.
  6. ↑ "Texas Rangers: Pitchers in forefront as Rangers add to 40-man major-league roster | SportsDay". Sportsday.dallasnews.com. Retrieved February 27, 2018.
  7. ↑ "Rangers' Isiah Kiner-Falefa makes MLB debut". MLB.com.
  8. ↑ Spangler, Sam (2018-04-15). "Video: Garcia, Kiner-Falefa leave the yard in MLB". KHON. Retrieved 2018-07-29.
  9. ↑ Grant, Evan. "How the Rangers found Isiah Kiner-Falefa and the prophetic words he told the scout who signed him". The Dallas Morning News. Retrieved 30 May 2018.
  10. ↑ 丹羽政善 (June 4, 2018). "イチローが選手登録を外れてから１カ月 来季を視野に、変わらず妥協なく" (in Japanese). Sportsnavi. Retrieved June 15, 2018.
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