Stefan Welch
Stefan Welch | |
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Adelaide Bite – No. 26 | |
Third baseman / First baseman | |
Born: Adelaide, Australia | 12 August 1988|
Bats: Left Throws: Right |
Stefan Robert Welch (born 12 August 1988 in Adelaide, Australia) is an Australian professional baseball first baseman for the Adelaide Bite of the Australian Baseball League. He Had played for the New York Mets, Pittsburgh Pirates and Boston Red Sox organisations.
Professional career[]
New York Mets[]
He was scouted by Australian national coach Tony Harris in 2005 and eventually signed with the New York Mets in 2005 at the age of 16. In 2006, Welch made his Claxton Shield debut for the South Australia Bite where he went 0 for 1 with 3 walks.[1] He made his pro debut in 2007 for the GCL Mets where he batted .288 in his first season. In 2009, he was twice selected for the Australia national baseball team; in March for the 2009 World Baseball Classic,[2] and again in September for the 2009 Baseball World Cup.[3] Welch spent the 2010 and 2011 seasons with the Class A-Advanced St. Lucie Mets.
Pittsburgh Pirates[]
The Pittsburgh Pirates signed Welch in November 2011.[4] He began the season with the Bradenton Marauders. In his first game with the Marauders, which was against St. Lucie, Welch was hit by a Ryan Fraser pitch with the bases loaded in the bottom of the 11th inning, to score Gift Ngoepe and give the Marauders a walk-off win.[5] Welch's first promotion to Double-A came in June 2012, when he was promoted to the Double-A Altoona Curve.[6] In November 2012, Welch re-signed with the Pirates.[7]
Boston Red Sox[]
Welch was traded to the Boston Red Sox in early June 2013, starting with the High A Salem Red Sox.[8] He then got promoted to AA in March 2014 and played the season in Portland, Maine.
Adelaide Bite[]
Welch played for the Adelaide Bite of the Australian Baseball League (ABL) from 2010 to 2017. After missing the 2017-18 season, Welch returned to the Bite for the 2018-19 season. After the conclusion of the season, Welch announced his retirement, leading the club in all time in games (284), hits (258), runs (160), home runs (35) and RBI (169) [9]
Personal[]
Stefan attended Norwood Morialta High School and graduated in 2006[10] He also played cricket, football, and basketball for local Adelaide clubs and school teams. He still currently plays Division 1 Baseball for the Goodwood Indians[11] He and his wife, Shannon along with their two children, Ledger and River live happily in Australia since 2015.
References[]
- ^ Dominitz, N (10 July 2009) Welch comes from a land down under Archived 14 July 2012 at archive.today. Savannah Morning News
- ^ "WBC 2009 Roster". Major League Baseball. February 2009. Retrieved 30 June 2009.
- ^ Sedgman, Cassandra (3 September 2009). "ABF Announce 2009 World Cup Team". Australian Baseball Federation. Archived from the original on 6 December 2012. Retrieved 3 September 2009.
- ^ Langosch, Jenifer (23 November 2011). "Pirates sign six players to Minor League deals".
- ^ Lembo, John (6 April 2012). "Bradenton Marauders win 'heart-pumper' opener in 11 innings". Bradenton Herald. Retrieved 9 April 2012.
- ^ Williams, Tim (14 June 2012). "Maggi and Chambers Promoted to Altoona, Plus Other Moves".
- ^ Williams, Tim (7 November 2012). "Pirates Re-Sign Anderson Hernández, Stefan Welch".
- ^ [1][bare URL]
- ^ Welch farewelled in marathon doubleheader
- ^ "The Norwood Morialta High School".
- ^ "Goodwood Baseball Club".
External links[]
- Career statistics and player information from MLB, or Fangraphs, or Baseball-Reference (Minors)
- Stefan Welch – Baseball America
- Minor League Baseball
- 1988 births
- Living people
- Adelaide Bite players
- Altoona Curve players
- Australian expatriate baseball players in the United States
- Baseball first basemen
- Baseball third basemen
- Bradenton Marauders players
- Gulf Coast Mets players
- Kingsport Mets players
- People from Alice Springs
- Portland Sea Dogs players
- Salem Red Sox players
- Savannah Sand Gnats players
- Sportspeople from Adelaide
- St. Lucie Mets players
- 2009 World Baseball Classic players
- 2013 World Baseball Classic players
- 2017 World Baseball Classic players