Robert Stock

Robert Stock
San Diego Padres – No. 66
Pitcher
Born: (1989-11-21) November 21, 1989
Bellevue, Washington
Bats: Left Throws: Right
MLB debut
June 24, 2018, for the San Diego Padres
Career statistics
(through September 25, 2018)
Win–loss record 1–1
Earned run average 2.54
Strikeouts 38
Teams

Robert Anthony Stock (born November 21, 1989) is an American professional baseball pitcher for the San Diego Padres of Major League Baseball (MLB).

Baseball America rated Stock as the best baseball player of his age in the country when he was 13, 14, and 15 years old, and he played for the United States junior national baseball team in 2004 and 2005. He was named Baseball America's 2005 Youth Player of the Year at 15 years of age. In both 2007 and 2008 he was a Cape Cod Baseball League All Star. The St. Louis Cardinals selected him in the second round, with the 67th overall selection, of the 2009 MLB draft. In 2009 he was both a Topps Short-Season/Rookie All-Star and an Appalachian League All-Star at catcher. In 2012, the Cardinals transitioned Stock into a full-time pitcher.

Stock signed with the Padres in 2018, and made his major league debut in June of that year. He regularly reaches 100 mph with his fastball.

Early and personal life

Stock was born in Bellevue, Washington, his hometowns growing up were Agoura Hills and Westlake Village, California, and he is Jewish.[1][2] His parents are Gregg (an engineer) and Randi Stock. He has two brothers, Richard (also a professional baseball player, who has played in the Cleveland Indians organization, as well as in the independent American Association of Independent Professional Baseball and Can-Am League) and Jacob, and two sisters, Sasha and Sabina.[3][4][1][5]

As a 12-year-old, Stock was throwing an 80 mph fastball.[6] In 2002, he threw a no-hitter to lead Agoura to an 11-1 victory over Taiwan in the Pony Baseball's Bronco League World Series (ages 11-12) championship game.[7] Baseball America rated him as the best baseball player of his age in the country when he was 13 years old in 2003, 14 years old in 2004, and 15 years old in 2005.[8][1][9] Stock played for the United States junior national baseball team in 2004 (as the team's youngest player ever, at 14 years of age, and number one pitcher) and 2005.[10][9]

High school and college

Stock attended Agoura High School in Agoura Hills, and played for the school's Agoura High Chargers baseball team as a cleanup-batting catcher and a pitcher.[11] In 2003, his sophomore season, he had a .405 batting average with eight home runs, and on the mound was 5-1 with a 2.85 ERA as batters hit .190 against him.[1][12] In 2004, his junior year, he batted .456 with six home runs and 25 RBIs and caught 70 percent of would-be basestealers.[1] He also had a 5-3 win-loss record and a 2.69 earned run average as a pitcher, as his fastball reached 95 miles per hour and batters hit .218 against him.[1][12] He was named Baseball America's 2005 Youth Player of the Year at 15 years of age (the first time the award was won by a high school underclassman), Los Angeles Times Player of the Year, and All-California Interscholastic Federation (CIF) First Team as he developed a reputation for hitting 400-foot home runs with wood bats.[13][1][10][14][9] He graduated from Agoura a year early, an honor student with a 3.8 GPA and a 1410 SAT score.[1][15][16]

Stock passed up what some felt was a certain first-round selection in the 2007 MLB draft, to instead enroll a year early at the age of 16, in the University of Southern California (USC) in its Resident Honors Program, which allows 30 exceptional high school students to enroll a year early, the first athlete to do so in USC history.[2][17][15] He began college while he was still wearing braces.[18] He played college baseball for the USC Trojans as a catcher and a pitcher.[13][2] In three years at USC, Stock had a .263 career batting average, threw out 33.8% of baserunners, and as a pitcher (and sometimes closer, sometimes starter) was 8-7 with a 3.38 ERA and nine saves as opponents batted .228 against him.[1][2] In the summers of 2007 (as the youngest player in the league) and 2008 he played for the Cotuit Kettleers of the Cape Cod Baseball League, where both seasons he was an All Star.[1][19][18]

Minor leagues

The St. Louis Cardinals selected Stock in the second round, with the 67th overall selection, of the 2009 MLB draft, and he signed for a $525,000 signing bonus.[2][2][20] In 2009 he was both a Topps Short-Season/Rookie All-Star and an Appalachian League All-Star at catcher, as he batted .322/.386/.550 with 7 home runs (tied for third among 2009 Cardinals draft picks) for the Johnson City Cardinals.[21][22][10] Baseball America rated him the 10th-best prospect in the Cardinals organization.[10] He played as a catcher until 2011, batting .241 in 680 at bats.

In 2012, the Cardinals transitioned Stock into a full-time pitcher.[13] In 2013, with the Peoria Chiefs in the Midwest League he was 0-1 with a 2.30 ERA, and with the Palm Beach Cardinals in the Florida State League he was 2-0 with a 4.37 ERA.[23] The Cardinals released him in December 2014.[20] Stock played in 2015 for the Pittsburgh Pirates organization, and in 2016 for the New Jersey Jackals of the Can-Am League, an independent baseball league, for whom he was 1–2 with a 2.85 ERA in 60 innings over 52 games (a league record).[21][24] Stock signed with the Cincinnati Reds organization in 2017.[24] Between Class A-Advanced and Class AA, Stock was 9–5 with a 2.82 ERA in 70 innings in 41 games.[21]

The Padres signed him before the 2018 season with a non-roster invitation to spring training.[25] In spring training, his fastball reached 100 mph.[26] Stock began the 2018 season playing for the San Antonio Missions of the Class AA Texas League, and received a midseason promotion to the El Paso Chihuahuas of the Class AAA Pacific Coast League.[27][28]

Major leagues

The Padres promoted him to the major leagues on June 24, and he made his major league debut that day at 28 years of age, nine years after he was drafted as a catcher.[29] He regularly reaches 100 mph with his fastball.[30]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 "Robert Stock - 2009 Baseball Roster," University of Southern California Official Athletic Site.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Pedro Moura (May 31, 2011). "Where are they now: Robert Stock". ESPN. Retrieved January 20, 2018.
  3. ↑ "Richard Stock". The Baseball Cube. June 20, 2012. Retrieved May 25, 2018.
  4. ↑ Heather Gripp. "Stock's Value Continues To Rise Among Peers Agoura Star Finalist For Top National Player," Daily News.
  5. ↑ Zev Ben Avigdor (February 8, 2013). "Richard Stock, Cleveland Indians prospect". Jewish Baseball News. Retrieved March 16, 2018.
  6. ↑ David A. Himmelstein. "Rookie of the Month Robert Stock; Agoura High School, Westlake Village, CA," Baseball Coaches.
  7. ↑ "Agoura Wins Bronco Baseball Title," Los Angeles Times, August 14, 2002.
  8. ↑ Eric Sondheimer (February 19, 2006). "Good From Both Sides of the Plate". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved January 20, 2018.
  9. 1 2 3 Alan Matthews (March 30, 2006). "2005 Youth Player Of The Year: Robert Stock," Baseball America.
  10. 1 2 3 4 "Robert Stock Stats, Fantasy & News," MLB.com.
  11. ↑ Lindsay Berra (October 29, 2008). "Next Teen Titans," ESPN.
  12. 1 2 "Robert Stock's (Agoura, CA) Baseball Stats," MaxPreps.
  13. 1 2 3 Steve Batterson (April 12, 2012). "Stock catching on at pitcher | Midwest League Baseball". Quad City Times. Retrieved January 20, 2018.
  14. ↑ Gregory J. Tully (2009). Nine College Nines: A Closeup View of Campus Baseball Programs Today, McFarland.
  15. 1 2 Ramona Shelburne (August 26, 2006). "Robert Stock," Daily News High School Sports Spotlight.
  16. ↑ Eric Sondheimer (August 25, 2006). "No Minor Leap; Robert Stock passes on his senior season of baseball at Agoura -- and the draft -- to enroll early at USC," Los Angeles Times.
  17. ↑ Gary Klein (May 27, 2007). "Another USC bonus baby; Stock still should be in high school, but he's finishing freshman season with Trojans". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved January 20, 2018.
  18. 1 2 Matt Gelb (July 27, 2007). "Cape League Extra: Cotuit’s Stock on the rise," Cape Cod Times.
  19. ↑ "The Robert Stock Experiment," High School Baseball, March 17, 2008.
  20. 1 2 Brian Walton (December 24, 2014). "Cards Release Former 2nd-Rounder Robert Stock; A former top draft pick who moved from catching back to pitching never found his groove as a professional"
  21. 1 2 3 "Robert Stock," The Baseball Cube.
  22. ↑ "Robert Stock Stats, Highlights, Bio," MiLB.com.
  23. ↑ "Robert Stock Stats & Scouting Report," Baseball America.
  24. 1 2 Sheldon, Mark (January 20, 2016). "Reds' Robert Stock got noticed with a video". MLB.com. Retrieved January 20, 2018.
  25. ↑ Dennis Lin (January 8, 2018). "Top prospects highlight Padres' non-roster invitations to spring training". The San Diego Union-Tribune. Retrieved January 20, 2018.
  26. ↑ Jeff Sanders (March 8, 2018). "Stock rising, but Padres' Lyles, Strahm knocked around in loss," The San Diego Union-Tribune.
  27. ↑ "Austin Allen hits third Double-A homer". The San Diego Union-Tribune. Retrieved May 25, 2018.
  28. ↑ "Stock on the rise after years of turbulence". MiLB.com. Retrieved May 25, 2018.
  29. ↑ "Robert Stock came a long way to show he belonged with Padres" - The San Diego Union-Tribune
  30. ↑ Kevin Acee. "Padres send Lyles to DL, call up Stock, Makita for reinforcement" - The San Diego Union-Tribune
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