Thaddeus Ward
Ward in 2023
Washington Nationals – No. 68
Pitcher
Born: (1997-01-16) January 16, 1997 (age 27)
Fort Myers, Florida, U.S.
Bats: Right
Throws: Right
MLB debut
April 1, 2023, for the Washington Nationals
MLB statistics
(through 2023 season)
Win–loss record0–0
Earned run average6.37
Strikeouts30
Teams

Thaddeus J. Ward (born January 16, 1997) is an American professional baseball pitcher for the Washington Nationals of Major League Baseball (MLB). Listed at 6 feet 3 inches (1.91 m) and 182 pounds (83 kg), he both throws and bats right-handed.

Career

Amateur career

Ward attended Bishop Verot High School in Fort Myers, Florida, where he was a member of the school’s baseball and basketball teams and played college baseball at the University of Central Florida.[1] He was drafted by the Boston Red Sox in the fifth round of the 2018 Major League Baseball draft.[2][3]

Boston Red Sox

Ward made his professional debut with the Lowell Spinners during the 2018 season, appearing in 11 games (all starts) with an 0–3 record and 3.77 ERA with 27 strikeouts in 31 innings.[4] He spent 2019 with the Greenville Drive and Salem Red Sox,[5][6][7] pitching to an overall 8–5 record with 2.14 ERA and 157 strikeouts in 126+1⁄3 innings.[4] He was named the Red Sox' minor league pitcher of the year for 2019.[8] After the 2020 minor league season was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic, he was invited to participate in the Red Sox' fall instructional league.[9] Following the 2020 season, Ward was ranked by Baseball America as the Red Sox' number 10 prospect.[10] Ward began the 2021 season in Double-A with the Portland Sea Dogs. He made two starts, striking out 11 batters in eight innings while allowing five runs (5.63 ERA),[4] before undergoing Tommy John surgery in early June, ending his season.[11] Ward began the 2022 season on the injured list with Portland.[12] He made 13 appearances on the year with various Red Sox affiliates, accumulating a 2.28 ERA with 66 strikeouts in 51.1 innings pitched.

After the season, he was selected to play in the Arizona Fall League.[13]

Washington Nationals

On December 7, 2022, Ward was selected by the Washington Nationals with the first pick in the 2022 Rule 5 draft.[14] Ward made the Nationals’ roster out of spring training in 2023.[15]

See also

References

  1. ^ Cooney, Bryan (April 2, 2019). "Bishop Verot grad Thad Ward helps his alma mater while continuing trek up Red Sox system". The News-Press. Fort Myers, Florida.
  2. ^ Reed, Ed; Regan, Adam (June 5, 2018). "Boston Red Sox select Bishop Verot grad, UCF pitcher Thad Ward in 5th round of MLB draft". The News-Press. Fort Myers, Florida.
  3. ^ Pence, Owen (July 5, 2018). "Former Red Sox bat boy Thad Ward is living the dream". Boston.com.
  4. ^ a b c "Thad Ward Stats, Highlights, Bio". MiLB.com. Retrieved November 7, 2021.
  5. ^ Smith, Christopher (May 25, 2019). "Thad Ward: Meet Boston Red Sox prospect with 2.50 ERA (and new cutter) who had David Ortiz Fathead on bedroom wall". masslive.com.
  6. ^ Hosea, Myron (June 12, 2019). "Greenville Drive pitcher Thad Ward credits cutter, approach to SAL All-Star first half". The Greenville News. Greenville, South Carolina.
  7. ^ Speier, Alex (July 19, 2019). "An umpire's son is making a striking impression as a Red Sox prospect". The Boston Globe.
  8. ^ @alexspeier (September 18, 2019). "Red Sox announce their minor league players of the year:" (Tweet). Retrieved September 18, 2019 – via Twitter.
  9. ^ Hatfield, Chris (October 4, 2020). "Red Sox 2020 Fall Instructional Camp roster and details". SoxProspects.com. Retrieved October 15, 2020.
  10. ^ Speier, Alex (November 12, 2020). "Ranking the top prospects in the Red Sox' farm system". The Boston Globe. Retrieved November 12, 2020.
  11. ^ Polishuk, Mark (June 4, 2021). "AL East Notes: Zombro, Choi, Kluber, Blue Jays, Ward". mlbtraderumors.com.
  12. ^ Callis, Jim (April 6, 2022). "Here's where Red Sox Top 30 prospects are starting '22". MLB.com. Retrieved April 10, 2022.
  13. ^ Crowell, Jim (October 10, 2022). "Fall/Winter League Roundup: Arizona Fall League begins; Yorke and Ward impress". soxprospects.com. Retrieved October 15, 2022.
  14. ^ Mayo, Jonathan (December 7, 2022). "2022 Rule 5 Draft results: Pick by pick". MLB.com. Retrieved December 11, 2022.
  15. ^ "Ward thankful for opportunity to debut with Nats". masnsports.com. April 2023. Retrieved 2023-04-01.

External links

Washington Nationals current roster
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