Kean Wong

Kean Keanu Wong (born April 17, 1995) is an American professional baseball second baseman for the San Francisco Giants of Major League Baseball (MLB). The Tampa Bay Rays selected Wong in the fourth round of the 2013 MLB draft. He made his MLB debut in 2019. He has played in MLB for the Rays and Los Angeles Angels.

Kean Wong
San Francisco Giants – No. 45
Second baseman
Born: (1995-04-17) April 17, 1995
Hilo, Hawaii
Bats: Left Throws: Right
MLB debut
September 5, 2019, for the Tampa Bay Rays
MLB statistics
(through 2019 season)
Batting average.167
Home runs0
Runs batted in0
Teams

Career

Wong attended Waiakea High School in Hilo, Hawaii. He committed to play college baseball at the University of Hawaii.[1] The Tampa Bay Rays selected Wong in the fourth round of the 2013 MLB draft.[2]

Tampa Bay Rays

He signed with the Rays, receiving a $400,000 signing bonus. After he signed, he played for the Gulf Coast Rays of the Rookie-level Gulf Coast League[3] where he slashed .328/.377/.390 with 22 RBIs in 46 games.

Wong spent 2014 with the Bowling Green Hot Rods of the Class A Midwest League where he batted .306 with two home runs and 24 RBIs in 106 games. He was promoted to the Charlotte Stone Crabs in 2015, where he posted a .274 batting average with one home run and 36 RBIs along with 15 stolen bases in 103 games.

In 2016, Wong played for the Montgomery Biscuits where he batted .276/.324/.368 with five home runs and 56 RBIs in 117 games.[4] In 2017, Wong played for the Durham Bulls where he batted .265/.328/.361 with five home runs and 44 RBIs in 105 games and was named the MVP of the Triple-A National Championship Game.[5]

Wong returned to Durham in 2018, slashing .282/.345/.406 with nine home runs and 50 RBIs in 116 games.[6] He returned to Durham for the 2019 season,[7] producing a .307/.366/.464/.830 slash line with 10 home runs and 63 RBIs in 453 at bats.

On September 5, 2019, the Rays selected Wong's contract and promoted him to the major leagues.[8] He made his major league debut that night versus the Toronto Blue Jays.[9] He had three hits in 14 at bats in 2019 for the Rays.[10] On September 22, Wong was designated for assignment.[11]

Los Angeles Angels

On September 24, 2019, Wong was claimed off waivers by the Los Angeles Angels, for whom he had four at bats.[12][10]

San Francisco Giants

On November 5, 2019, Wong was claimed off waivers by the San Francisco Giants.[13]

Personal life

His older brother, Kolten Wong, plays for the St. Louis Cardinals.[14] They have a sister, Kiani, who played softball at Hawaii.[15]

His father, Kaha, instructed him on how to play baseball.[14] Wong's mother, Keala Wong, died from cancer.[16]

References
  1. "Kean Wong Class of 2013 - Player Profile - Perfect Game USA". www.perfectgame.org. Retrieved December 14, 2018.
  2. "Rays draft Kean Wong in fourth round". Hawaii Tribune-Herald. Retrieved October 7, 2014.
  3. "Baseball: Rays' Kean Wong going to minors all-star game". West Hawaii Today. Retrieved October 7, 2014.
  4. "Kean Wong Stats, Highlights, Bio - MiLB.com Stats - The Official Site of Minor League Baseball". Retrieved November 19, 2016.
  5. "Wong does it all as Bulls win Triple-A title". MiLB.com. September 19, 2017. Retrieved November 26, 2017.
  6. "Kean Wong Stats, Highlights, Bio - MiLB.com Stats - The Official Site of Minor League Baseball". MiLB.com. Retrieved October 21, 2018.
  7. "Kean Wong is back with the Durham Bulls for a third season". The Herald-Sun. Retrieved June 22, 2019.
  8. RotoWire Staff (September 5, 2019). "Rays' Kean Wong: Gets call to majors". CBSSports.com. Retrieved September 5, 2019.
  9. Kainoa Carlson (September 5, 2019). "Kean Wong turns double play in Big League debut". Hawaii News Now. Retrieved September 6, 2019.
  10. "Kean Wong Minor & Fall Leagues Statistics & History". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved 2019-12-05.
  11. RotoWire Staff (September 22, 2019). "Rays' Kean Wong: Designated for assignment". CBSSports.com. Retrieved September 22, 2019.
  12. Steve Carney (September 24, 2019). "Wong Heads To Halos". 95.3 WDAE. Retrieved September 24, 2019.
  13. Kerry Crowley (November 5, 2019). "Giants hit the waiver wire, acquire three players, subtract two from 40-man roster". The Mercury News. Retrieved November 5, 2019.
  14. "Age not an obstacle for Wong". Bowling Green Daily News. Retrieved October 7, 2014.
  15. Goold, Derrick (January 10, 2014). "No time to breathe for Kolten Wong". St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Retrieved May 24, 2014.
  16. Jakahi, Kevin (January 10, 2014). "Wongs fight on". West Hawaii Today. Retrieved May 24, 2014.
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