NOTE: This is a compilation of stats involving players from Southern Arizona and the Arizona Wildcats’ program in MLB-sanctioned leagues (MLB and minor leagues). The list does not include players in foreign leagues or independent leagues in the US.
Right-handed reliever Kevin Stevens, a Class of 2016 Cienega graduate, suffered through injuries that cut his high school career two years short but he has still managed to make a living off baseball. In the summer of 2014, when he was heading into his junior year at Cienega, he partially tore his ulnar collateral ligament (UCL) and found brief relief with a platelet-rich plasma (PRP) injection. Soon after, a hyperextended elbow caused the UCL to partially tear again, costing him his junior season and preventing him from pitching as a senior. Stevens went on to play for Yavapai College, but he was hit with shoulder tendinitis his freshman year. His scholarship was taken away and he was redshirted. He pitched 13.1 innings as a redshirt freshman in 2018 with a fully torn UCL. He accepted his lone offer to continue pitching for a NAIA school after that season, but before reporting, he decided to take a chance on himself instead. He underwent Tommy John surgery in August 2018.
“The day after surgery I was in the gym, in a cast, doing as much as I could. I rehabbed an entire year at home,” Stevens stated on the Texas Rio Grande Valley baseball website. “You learn a lot about yourself, about how bad you want it when you’re on your own, throwing into nets and fences. Year to year, I had two options in those situations: either call it quits or do what you gotta do. It’s been a ride, but I found the drive. It honestly comes from my dad always saying when I was younger, ‘If you want something, you have to work for it.'”
Stevens sent emails to coaches across the country asking them to watch him throw a bullpen. Nobody paid him any attention, except for The Texas Rio Grande Valley head coach Derek Matlock. While in Arizona for the WAC tournament, Matlock made the drive to Tucson to meet Stevens.
“He had a big downhill arm, physical kid, threw a ton of strikes. You could tell he wasn’t 100% because of Tommy John but I got after him right there to get him down here,” Matlock told UTRGV. “We took a chance and called him and said, ‘We can’t give you money, but come walk-on and earn money.’ He showed up on campus and from that minute on, it was over. He kicked the door down.”
On Feb. 14, 2020, Stevens made his first start at the NCAA Division I level over 22 months after his last collegiate outing. Stevens tossed five hitless innings against Kansas State with nine strikeouts. The only baserunner in his outing reached on an error in the second inning, then Stevens retired the next 12 Wildcats he faced. Stevens and Gonzalez combined for a one-hitter as UTRGV rolled to a 5-0 victory.
Stevens remained UTRGV’s Friday night starter for the remainder of his career. He finished with an 18-7 record and 2.99 ERA after pitching 195.2 innings in 33 starts. His 228 career strikeouts are the sixth-most in program history. He boasted a strikeout-to-walk ratio of 4:1 and held opponents to a .226 batting average.
Stevens went from throwing 86-88 miles per hour his first year at UTRGV, to hitting 90-92 MPH, to getting to 92-95 MPH his final season.
Despite his success, Stevens went undrafted. He had a contract in place to play with a Mexican league team and was preparing to run with that opportunity. But that changed with a phone call.
“Brian Rhees, the south Texas scout for the New York Yankees, calls me and says, ‘I’m with the front office right now and I want to get you to be a Yankee,'” Stevens said. “He calls me back, offers me a contract, and says ‘I believe in you.'”
Stevens signed a free agent contract with the Yankees organization on July 19, 2022.
“I thought, ‘here’s one team that wants to give me the chance,'” Stevens said. “The same way I did in college, I went in with a chip on my shoulder believing I’m supposed to be here.”
Stevens made his professional debut on August 22, 2022 with the rookie-level Florida Complex League (FCL) Yankees and was promoted to the single-A Tampa Tarpons in less than two weeks.
His average fastball velocity is at 97 mph. His peak velocity 100.2 mph.
“It’s pretty much the same exact story, my college career and pro baseball journey,” Stevens said. “I just needed a chance. I got that here at UTRGV. And when the Yankees called, it was like, there’s my chance. At this point, it’s all on me, depending on what I do and how I perform. As long as I have this chance, I’m going to run with it.”
The third UCL tear of his career, this time a partial tear, occurred just before the conclusion of spring training last season, sidelining him until the end of summer. By the time he was ready to pitch, the minor league season had ended. Stevens was shipped to the Arizona Fall League, where he posted a 2.25 ERA with 10 strikeouts over 7.1 innings for the Mesa Solar Sox.
Despite Stevens’ limited professional experience, the Yankees assigned him to Double-A Somerset to begin the 2024 season, where he’s been one of the top pitchers in the Eastern League. He is 3-0 with a 2.89 ERA with 44 strikeouts and 10 walks. He earned his fourth save of the season on Wednesday night.
LOCAL BASEBALL PLAYERS IN THE PROS
Listing of local baseball players either from high school or Arizona currently playing in pro baseball.*Barraza, Sahuarita graduate
*Romero, CDO graduate
*Salazar, Sahuaro graduate
| Player | Pos | Sch | Yrs | Team | Lvl | Org |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nate Baez | 1B | IRHS | 16-19 | Cedar Rapids | A+ | MIN |
| Christopher Barraza | P | UA* | 21-23 | Inland Empire | A | LAA |
| Branden Boissiere | 1B | UA | 19-21 | Wilmington | A+ | WAS |
| Tony Bullard | 3B | UA | 20-23 | Beloit | A+ | MIA |
| Alex Bustamante | P | CDO | 16-18 | Tampa | A | NYY |
| Demetrio Crisantes | SS | Nogales | 19-22 | Visalia | A | ARI |
| Bobby Dalbec | 1B | UA | 14-16 | Boston | AAA | BOS |
| Chase Davis | OF | UA | 21-23 | Palm Beach | A | STL |
| Jose Dicochea | P | Sahuarita | 16-19 | Stockton | A | OAK |
| Matthew Dyer | C | UA | 19-20 | Montgomery | AA | TB |
| German Fajardo | P | Nogales | 16-19 | Modesto | A | SEA |
| Michael Flynn | P | UA | 16-18 | Oklahoma City | AAA | LAD |
| Matt Fraizer | OF | UA | 17-19 | Indianapolis | AAA | PIT |
| Kevin Ginkel | P | UA | 16 | Arizona | MLB | ARI |
| Nick Gonzales | INF | Cienega | 14-17 | Pittsburgh | MLB | PIT |
| Darick Hall | 1B | Buena | 11-13 | Lehigh Valley | AAA | PHI |
| Garrett Irvin | P | UA | 20-22 | Lansing | A+ | OAK |
| Scott Kingery | 2B | UA | 13-15 | Lehigh Valley | AAA | PHI |
| Randy Labaut | P | UA | 17-19 | Columbus | AAA | CLE |
| Gil Luna | P | UA | 18-21 | Birmingham | AA | CHW |
| Nik McClaughry | 2B | UA | 20-23 | Fort Wayne | A+ | SD |
| Tylor Megill | P | UA | 17-19 | NY Mets | AAA | NYM |
| Ian Mejia | P | Sahuarita | 16-19 | Mississippi | AA | ATL |
| Andrew Nardi | P | UA | 19 | Miami | MLB | MIA |
| Kevin Newman | SS | UA | 13-15 | Arizona | MLB | ARI |
| Jared Oliva | OF | UA | 15-17 | Arkansas | AA | SEA |
| Tanner O'Tremba | OF | UA | 21-22 | Eugene | A+ | SF |
| Spencer Packard | OF | CDO | 13-16 | Tacoma | AAA | SEA |
| Rob Refsnyder | OF | UA | 10-12 | Boston | MLB | BOS |
| Alfonso Rivas | 1B | UA | 16-18 | Memphis | AAA | STL |
| Kiko Romero | 1B | UA* | 23 | Hudson Valley | A+ | NYY |
| Milo Rushford | CF | WGHS | 18-21 | ACL Royals | RK | KC |
| César Salazar | C | UA* | 16-18 | Houston | MLB | HOU |
| Chase Silseth | P | UA | 21 | Salt Lake | AAA | LAA |
| Austin Smith | P | UA | 21 | Mississippi | AA | ATL |
| Kevin Stevens | P | Cienega | 13-16 | Somerset | AA | NYY |
| Cal Stevenson | OF | UA | 17-18 | Lehigh Valley | AAA | PHI |
| Daniel Susac | C | UA | 21-22 | Midland | AA | OAK |
| Alex Verdugo | OF | Sahuaro | 11-14 | NY Yankees | MLB | NYY |
| Avery Weems | P | UA | 18-19 | Frisco | AA | TEX |
| Austin Wells | C | UA | 19-20 | NY Yankees | MLB | NYY |
| Donta' Williams | OF | UA | 18-21 | Bowie | AA | BAL |
LOCAL BATTERS IN THE PROS
Through games of July 5*Injuries
Boissiere (60-day/arm)
Oliva (7-day/leg)
Dyer (7-day/undisclosed)
| Player | Team | Lvl | G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | SB | AVG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Baez | MIN | A+ | 48 | 154 | 26 | 39 | 4 | 2 | 9 | 23 | 0 | .253 |
| *Boissiere | WAS | A+ | 33 | 112 | 11 | 24 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 15 | 0 | .214 |
| Bullard | MIA | A+ | 22 | 73 | 6 | 22 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 8 | 2 | .301 |
| Crisantes | ARI | A | 17 | 63 | 14 | 26 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 11 | 3 | .413 |
| Dalbec | BOS | AAA | 36 | 140 | 31 | 37 | 8 | 0 | 11 | 33 | 3 | .255 |
| Davis | STL | A | 62 | 218 | 30 | 48 | 17 | 0 | 7 | 40 | 5 | .220 |
| *Dyer | TB | AA | 39 | 118 | 17 | 25 | 6 | 2 | 1 | 9 | 5 | .212 |
| Fraizer | PIT | AAA | 34 | 111 | 15 | 27 | 7 | 1 | 2 | 15 | 3 | .243 |
| Gonzales | PIT | MLB | 48 | 178 | 22 | 48 | 9 | 1 | 5 | 28 | 3 | .270 |
| Hall | PHI | AAA | 62 | 242 | 27 | 58 | 6 | 0 | 8 | 36 | 1 | .240 |
| Kingery | PHI | AAA | 70 | 247 | 40 | 62 | 8 | 2 | 14 | 37 | 11 | .250 |
| McClaughry | SD | A+ | 52 | 156 | 18 | 26 | 8 | 2 | 0 | 10 | 4 | .167 |
| Newman | ARI | MLB | 62 | 175 | 25 | 51 | 10 | 1 | 2 | 19 | 3 | .280 |
| O'Tremba | SF | A+ | 51 | 167 | 31 | 34 | 8 | 1 | 4 | 24 | 10 | .204 |
| *Oliva | SEA | AA | 42 | 113 | 23 | 24 | 3 | 0 | 5 | 15 | 18 | .212 |
| Packard | SEA | AAA | 14 | 53 | 9 | 17 | 5 | 0 | 2 | 9 | 0 | .321 |
| Refsnyder | BOS | MLB | 51 | 151 | 18 | 46 | 12 | 1 | 3 | 20 | 1 | .305 |
| Rivas | STL | AAA | 56 | 186 | 29 | 43 | 11 | 2 | 1 | 20 | 0 | .231 |
| Romero | NYY | A+ | 43 | 134 | 17 | 30 | 8 | 0 | 5 | 16 | 5 | .224 |
| Rushford | KC | RK | 7 | 24 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 2 | .125 |
| Salazar | HOU | MLB | 7 | 19 | 5 | 7 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 0 | .368 |
| Stevenson | PHI | AAA | 71 | 215 | 40 | 59 | 17 | 3 | 4 | 31 | 20 | .274 |
| Susac | OAK | AA | 48 | 189 | 23 | 57 | 11 | 0 | 6 | 26 | 4 | .296 |
| Verdugo | NYY | MLB | 86 | 324 | 40 | 79 | 19 | 1 | 9 | 43 | 1 | .244 |
| Wells | NYY | MLB | 54 | 149 | 21 | 33 | 9 | 0 | 4 | 15 | 1 | .221 |
| Williams | BAL | AA | 37 | 109 | 8 | 19 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 9 | .174 |
WEDNESDAY’S HOME RUNS
None.
WEDNESDAY’S STANDOUTS
SS Demetrio Crisantes (Nogales), Diamondbacks A, 3-5, run, double, 2 RBIs, stolen base
CF Cal Stevenson (Arizona), Phillies AAA, (doubleheader) 3-7, 2 runs, 2 doubles, 2 RBIs
3B Tony Bullard (Arizona), Marlins A+, 2-4
CF Chase Davis (Arizona), Cardinals A, 1-3, double, 2 walks
LOCAL PITCHERS IN THE PROS
Through games of July 5*Injuries:
Bustamante (60-day/arm)
Weems (7-day/arm)
| Player | Team | Lvl | W-L | G | GS | SV | IP | H | R | ER | BB | SO | ERA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Barraza | LAA | A | 0-2 | 23 | 0 | 1 | 30 | 24 | 11 | 9 | 22 | 29 | 2.70 |
| *Bustamante | NYY | A | 0-0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.00 |
| Dicochea | OAK | A | 1-5 | 12 | 7 | 0 | 39.1 | 41 | 31 | 26 | 19 | 44 | 5.95 |
| Fajardo | SEA | A | 2-1 | 20 | 0 | 0 | 40.2 | 30 | 22 | 15 | 24 | 51 | 3.32 |
| Flynn | LAD | AAA | 1-1 | 23 | 0 | 3 | 31.1 | 24 | 22 | 20 | 12 | 44 | 5.74 |
| Ginkel | ARI | MLB | 6-1 | 36 | 0 | 5 | 35.1 | 34 | 16 | 11 | 7 | 30 | 2.80 |
| Irvin | OAK | A+ | 1-2 | 20 | 0 | 1 | 23.2 | 26 | 22 | 18 | 16 | 29 | 6.85 |
| Labaut | CLE | AAA | 2-6 | 22 | 3 | 1 | 35.2 | 31 | 26 | 20 | 27 | 34 | 5.05 |
| Luna | CHW | AA | 3-1 | 25 | 0 | 2 | 26.2 | 17 | 10 | 6 | 25 | 29 | 2.02 |
| Megill | NYM | AAA | 1-0 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 12.2 | 11 | 2 | 2 | 6 | 20 | 1.42 |
| Mejia | ATL | AA | 6-2 | 14 | 14 | 0 | 75.2 | 57 | 23 | 22 | 27 | 81 | 2.62 |
| Nardi | MIA | MLB | 1-1 | 41 | 0 | 0 | 33.1 | 32 | 19 | 18 | 10 | 41 | 4.86 |
| Silseth | LAA | AAA | 0-3 | 4 | 4 | 0 | 18 | 29 | 20 | 19 | 13 | 10 | 9.50 |
| Smith | ATL | AA | 0-0 | 9 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 14 | 11 | 11 | 8 | 9 | 12.38 |
| Stevens | NYY | AA | 3-0 | 24 | 0 | 5 | 29 | 25 | 10 | 10 | 11 | 45 | 3.10 |
| *Weems | TEX | AA | 0-0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.00 |
WEDNESDAY’S STANDOUTS
Pinstriped Profiles: Kevin Stevens, RHP
Signed by the Yankees as an undrafted free agent in 2022 out of UTRGV, where he went from walk-on to ace, the Tucson, AZ native has not allowed a run over his last 12 outings with Somerset. | @RWJBarnabas pic.twitter.com/Edx5NL0t8D
— Somerset Patriots (@SOMPatriots) June 13, 2024
RHP Jose Dicochea (Sahuarita), Athletics A, 4 IP, 5H, 1R, 1ER, 0BB, 6K (no decision)
RHP Kevin Ginkel (Arizona), Diamondbacks MLB, 1.1 IP, 1H, 0R, 0ER, 1BB, 1K (no decision)
LHP Gil Luna (Arizona), White Sox AA, 1.2 IP, 0H, 0R, 0ER, 1BB, 2K (no decision)
LHP Andrew Nardi (Arizona), Marlins MLB, 0.2 IP, 0H, 0R, 0ER, 1BB, 1K (no decision)
RHP Kevin Stevens (Cienega), Yankees AA, 1 IP, 1H, 0R, 0ER, 0BB, 1K (save)
RECENT TRANSACTIONS (LAST 14 DAYS)
On today’s show, @FinkelsteinRyan discusses the Mets’ bullpen collapse against the Astros in Saturday’s game.
Ryan also talks about Tylor Megill being optioned to Triple-A following the game and how the Mets can continue to shore up the bullpen during Díaz’s suspension. pic.twitter.com/5v7BJEfQax
— Locked On Mets (@LockedOnMets) June 30, 2024
Wednesday, July 3
Matthew Dyer- IL-7 Injured (Tampa Bay Rays)
Sunday, June 30
Tylor Megill – Assigned to Syracuse Mets (AAA) (New York Mets)
Friday, June 28
Daniel Susac – Activated from IL-7 (undisclosed) (Oakland Athletics)
Wednesday, June 26
Donta’ Williams – Assigned to Bowie Baysox (AA) (Baltimore Orioles)
Chase Silseth (elbow) activated from IL, optioned to Triple-A https://t.co/xFIeDO8yBB via @Koslow_ari #RepTheHalo
— FantasyPros (@FantasyProsMLB) June 25, 2024
Tuesday, June 25, 2024
Chase Silseth – Assigned to Salt Lake Bees (AAA) (Los Angeles Angels)
Chase Silseth – Activated from injured list (Los Angeles Angels)
The WooSox added Bobby Dalbec to their roster and placed outfielder Corey Rosier on the development list. pic.twitter.com/Cdce13QKYQ
— Beyond the Monster (@BeyondtheMnstr) June 23, 2024
Saturday, June 22
Bobby Dalbec – Assigned to Worcester (AAA) (Boston Red Sox)
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ALLSPORTSTUCSON.com publisher, writer and editor Javier Morales is a former Arizona Press Club award winner. He is a former Arizona Daily Star beat reporter for the Arizona basketball team, including when the Wildcats won the 1996-97 NCAA title. He has also written articles for CollegeAD.com, Bleacher Report, Lindy’s Sports, TucsonCitizen.com, The Arizona Republic, Sporting News and Baseball America, among many other publications. He has also authored the book “The Highest Form of Living”, which is available at Amazon. He became an educator five years ago and is presently a special education teacher at Sunnyside High School in the Sunnyside Unified School District.
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