Billy McKinney (baseball)

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This article is about the baseball player. For other people named Billy McKinney, see William McKinney (disambiguation).

Billy McKinney
Billy McKinney (49963940623) (cropped).jpg
McKinney with the Toronto Blue Jays in 2019
Free agent
Outfielder
Born: (1994-08-23) August 23, 1994 (age 27)
Dallas, Texas
Bats: Left
Throws: Left
MLB debut
March 30, 2018, for the New York Yankees
Career statistics
(through 2021 season)
Batting average.215
Home runs27
Runs batted in68
Teams

William Landis McKinney (born August 23, 1994) is an American professional baseball outfielder who is a free agent. McKinney was a first-round draft pick (24th overall) of the Oakland Athletics in 2013. He was traded to the Chicago Cubs in 2014, and the New York Yankees in 2016. He made his Major League Baseball (MLB) debut with the Yankees in 2018, and was traded to the Toronto Blue Jays during the season, with whom he played until 2020. He also played for the Milwaukee Brewers, New York Mets and Los Angeles Dodgers in 2021.

Career[]

McKinney attended Plano West Senior High School in Plano, Texas. He led the school's baseball team to the state's Class 5A semifinals.[1] He committed to play college baseball at Texas Christian University.[2]

Oakland Athletics[]

The Oakland Athletics selected McKinney in the first round, with the 24th overall selection, of the 2013 Major League Baseball draft.[3] He signed with the Athletics, receiving a $1.8 million signing bonus.[4]

McKinney began the 2014 season with the Stockton Ports of the Class A-Advanced California League. He batted .241 for the Ports.[5]

Chicago Cubs[]

On July 4, 2014, the Athletics traded McKinney to the Chicago Cubs with Addison Russell and Dan Straily, in exchange for Jeff Samardzija and Jason Hammel.[6] He was assigned to the Daytona Cubs of the Class A-Advanced Florida State League.[5] He batted .301 in 51 games for Daytona.[7]

McKinney began the 2015 season with the Myrtle Beach Pelicans of the Class A-Advanced Carolina League.[8] After he batted .340 in 29 games,[9] the Cubs promoted him to the Tennessee Smokies of the Double-A Southern League in May.[10] He suffered a hairline fracture in his right knee in August, ending his season.[11] McKinney returned to Tennessee in 2016.[12]

New York Yankees[]

On July 25, 2016, the Cubs traded McKinney, Adam Warren, Gleyber Torres, and Rashad Crawford to the New York Yankees for Aroldis Chapman,[13] and McKinney joined the Trenton Thunder of the Double-A Eastern League. McKinney ended the 2016 season with a .246 batting average, four home runs, and 44 RBIs.[14] McKinney began the 2017 season with Trenton, and was promoted to the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders of the Triple-A International League in late June.[15] He finished the 2017 season with a combined .277 batting average with 16 home runs and 64 RBIs between both clubs.[16] The Yankees added him to their 40-man roster after the season.[17]

The Yankees optioned McKinney to the RailRiders at the end of spring training in 2018. An injury to Aaron Hicks led the Yankees to promote McKinney to the major leagues on March 30.[18] He made his major league debut that day,[19] and recorded his first hit in his first at bat. The next day, McKinney sprained the AC joint in his left shoulder, and went on the disabled list.[20] On May 25, McKinney was activated from the disabled list and optioned to the minors.[21]

Toronto Blue Jays[]

On July 26, 2018, the Yankees traded McKinney and Brandon Drury to the Toronto Blue Jays for J. A. Happ. The Blue Jays assigned McKinney to the Buffalo Bisons of the International League and promoted him to the major leagues August 17.[22] On August 21, McKinney hit his first major league home run off Baltimore Orioles pitcher Ryan Meisinger.[23] McKinney appeared in 36 games for the Blue Jays in 2018, hitting .252 with six home runs and 13 RBIs.[24] In 2019, McKinney hit 12 home runs with 28 RBI in 84 games. On September 11, 2020, McKinney was designated for assignment by the Blue Jays.[25]

Milwaukee Brewers[]

On September 14, 2020, McKinney was claimed off waivers by the Milwaukee Brewers.[26] McKinney hit .207 with three home runs and six RBI in 40 games for the Brewers before being designated for assignment on May 22, 2021.[27]

New York Mets[]

On May 25, 2021, McKinney was traded to the New York Mets in exchange for Pedro Quintana.[28] In 39 games with the Mets, McKinney slashed .220/.304/.473 with five home runs and 14 RBI, before being designated for assignment on July 16.[29]

Los Angeles Dodgers[]

On July 21, 2021, McKinney was traded to the Los Angeles Dodgers in exchange for minor league outfielder Carlos Rincon.[30] He played in 37 games for the Dodgers, hitting .146 with one homer and seven RBI.[31] McKinney appeared in four games in the postseason, primarily as a defensive replacement and only had one plate appearance, in the 2021 NLDS, in which he struck out.[31]

On November 19, 2021, McKinney was designated for assignment by the Dodgers.[32] On November 22, he and Zach Reks were traded to the Texas Rangers for cash considerations.[33] However, the Rangers non-tendered him on November 30, making him a free agent.[34]

References[]

  1. ^ Master Tesfatsion (June 3, 2013). "The Rangers are considering drafting Plano West outfielder Billy McKinney". Mlb.mlb.com. Archived from the original on December 14, 2013. Retrieved August 23, 2013.
  2. ^ "Billy McKinney Class of 2013 - Player Profile | Perfect Game USA". Perfect Game.
  3. ^ David Just (June 6, 2013). "Plano West's Billy McKinney taken 24th overall by Oakland Athletics in 2013 MLB First-Year Player Draft". Dallas News. Archived from the original on December 14, 2013. Retrieved August 23, 2013.
  4. ^ Jane Lee (May 24, 2013). "First-round Draft pick Billy McKinney leads 26 Oakland Athletics signings". MLB.com. Archived from the original on December 14, 2013. Retrieved August 23, 2013.
  5. ^ a b Sam Dykstra (July 13, 2014). "McKinney hits first homer as D-Cub". MiLB.com. Archived from the original on October 15, 2014. Retrieved September 6, 2014.
  6. ^ Jesse Rogers (July 5, 2014). "Cubs trade Jeff Samardzija to A's". ESPN. Archived from the original on October 16, 2014. Retrieved September 6, 2014.
  7. ^ Chicago Tribune (October 13, 2014). "Billy McKinney's lefty bat fits Cubs' mission". chicagotribune.com. Retrieved August 19, 2015.
  8. ^ "No. 8 Chicago Cubs prospect Billy McKinney's focus is on helping Myrtle Beach Pelicans win". MiLB.com. Retrieved August 19, 2015.
  9. ^ Greene, Adam (May 28, 2015). "Smokies: Billy McKinney's skill, not age, stands out". Knoxville News Sentinel. Retrieved August 19, 2015.
  10. ^ "Chicago Cubs' No. 8 prospect Billy McKinney doubles twice in Double-A debut for Tennessee Smokies - MiLB.com News - The Official Site of Minor League Baseball". MiLB.com. Retrieved August 19, 2015.
  11. ^ "Billy McKinney will miss remainder of season". Chicago Cubs. Retrieved August 19, 2015.
  12. ^ "Smokies' McKinney, Happ pour it on in rout". MiLB.com. Retrieved March 31, 2018.
  13. ^ Gonzales, Mark (July 25, 2016). "Cubs land marquee closer Aroldis Chapman from Yankees". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved July 25, 2016.
  14. ^ "Billy McKinney Stats, Highlights, Bio - MiLB.com Stats - The Official Site of Minor League Baseball". MiLB.com.
  15. ^ "Billy McKinney named I.L. Batter of the Week". Web.yesnetwork.com. Retrieved March 31, 2018.
  16. ^ "Billy McKinney Stats, Highlights, Bio - MiLB.com Stats - The Official Site of Minor League Baseball". Retrieved October 31, 2017.
  17. ^ King, George A. (November 20, 2017). "Yankees scramble to keep top-rated farm system together | New York Post". Nypost.com. Retrieved March 31, 2018.
  18. ^ Caldera, Pete (March 30, 2018). "Yankees place Aaron Hicks on DL, Aaron Judge could see time in center field". Retrieved March 30, 2018.
  19. ^ "How Yankees messed with Billy McKinney before giving him the best news". NJ.com. March 31, 2018. Retrieved March 31, 2018.
  20. ^ "Billy McKinney out 'at least a few weeks' with shoulder injury". ESPN. April 2018. Retrieved April 1, 2018.
  21. ^ Tartaglia, Greg. "Tommy Kahnle, Greg Bird returning to New York Yankees from DL". North Jersey Media Group.
  22. ^ "Blue Jays' Billy McKinney: Called up from Buffalo". CBS Sports. Retrieved August 17, 2018.
  23. ^ Thosar, Deesha (July 26, 2018). "Yankees add Happ in deal with Blue Jays". MLB.com. Retrieved July 26, 2018.
  24. ^ "Exit Interviews: Blue Jays position players assess their own seasons". October 1, 2018. Retrieved October 1, 2018.
  25. ^ "Blue Jays reinstate Ken Giles from IL, promote Alejandro Kirk". Sportsnet. September 11, 2020. Retrieved September 11, 2020.
  26. ^ "Brewers Claim Billy McKinney; Trey Supak, Ronny Rodriguez Designated For Assignment". MLB Trade Rumors.
  27. ^ "Brewers Designate Billy McKinney, Option Pablo Reyes". MLB Trade Rumors.
  28. ^ "Mets Acquire Billy McKinney". MLB Trade Rumors.
  29. ^ "Mets Designate Billy McKinney For Assignment". MLB Trade Rumors.
  30. ^ Franco, Anthony (July 21, 2021). "Dodgers Acquire Billy McKinney From Mets". MLB Trade Rumors. Retrieved July 21, 2021.
  31. ^ a b "Billy McKinney Statistics". Baseball Reference. Retrieved October 11, 2021.
  32. ^ "Dodgers DFA Billy McKinney, Zach Reks as part of roster maneuvers". November 20, 2021.
  33. ^ Franco, Anthony (November 22, 2021). "Rangers Acquire Billy McKinney, Zach Reks From Dodgers". MLB Trade Rumors. Retrieved November 22, 2021.
  34. ^ Adams, Steve (November 30, 2021). "American League Non-Tenders: 11/30/21". MLB Trade Rumors. Retrieved November 30, 2021.

External links[]

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