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Zak Kent

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Zak Kent
Cleveland Guardians
Pitcher
Born: (1998-02-24) February 24, 1998 (age 26)
Henrico, Virginia
Bats: Right
Throws: Right

Zachary Allen Kent (born February 24, 1998) is an American professional baseball pitcher in the Cleveland Guardians organization.

Amateur career

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Kent attended Northumberland High School in Heathsville, Virginia.[1][2] As a sophomore Kent was a member of their 1A State Championship team in 2014; a season in which he hit .315 and posted a 1.96 ERA.[3][4] Kent was named VHSL 1A All-State as a pitcher in his senior season of 2016.[5] Undrafted out of high school, Kent attended the Virginia Military Institute to play college baseball for the VMI Keydets for three seasons. Kent enjoyed his best season as a junior in 2019, when he went 5–5 with a 4.64 ERA and 132 strikeouts over 97 innings.[6]

Professional career

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Texas Rangers

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Kent was drafted by the Texas Rangers in the 9th round, with the 265th overall selection, of the 2019 MLB draft.[7][8] He signed with Texas for a $140,000 signing bonus.[9]

Kent split his professional debut season of 2019 between the AZL Rangers of the Rookie-level Arizona League and the Spokane Indians of the Class A Short Season Northwest League, going combined 0–1 with a 5.12 ERA and 18 strikeouts over 19+1⁄3 innings.[6] Kent did not play in 2020 due to the cancellation of the Minor League Baseball season because of the COVID-19 pandemic. He opened the 2021 season with the Hickory Crawdads of the High-A East, going 6–2 with a 2.83 ERA and 78 strikeouts over 60+1⁄3 innings.[10][11] After being promoted to the Frisco RoughRiders of the Double-A Central in August, he posted a 0–4 record with a 5.34 ERA and 39 strikeouts over 28+2⁄3 innings.[12][13] Kent split the 2022 season between Frisco and the Round Rock Express of the Triple-A Pacific Coast League, going a combined 3–4 with a 3.94 ERA and 110 strikeouts over 109+2⁄3 innings.[14][15]

On November 15, 2022, the Rangers selected Kent to their 40-man roster to protect him from the Rule 5 draft.[12][verification needed] Kent was optioned to Triple-A Round Rock to begin the 2023 season but was placed on the injured list after one game due to an oblique strain.[16] In just 10 games due to injury, Kent posted a 0–1 record with a 3.97 ERA, and 34 strikeouts over 34 innings. Following the 2023 season, Kent played for the Surprise Saguaros of the Arizona Fall League.[17]

Cleveland Guardians

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On March 28, 2024, Kent was traded to the Cleveland Guardians in exchange for international bonus pool space. He was subsequently optioned to the Triple-A Columbus Clippers.[18] Kent was designated for assignment by the Guardians on June 29.[19] After clearing waivers, Kent was released by the Guardians on July 5. He re-signed with the organization on a minor league contract on July 16.[20]

References

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  1. ^ "Zak Kent (2016, RHP) Commits to VMI". www.mysite.com. Retrieved 2021-10-04.
  2. ^ Hinton-Valdrighi, Lisa (April 10, 2019). "NHS grad Zak Kent pitches into the spotlight". Rappahannock Record. Retrieved 2021-10-04.
  3. ^ "Rangers make eight selections on day two of 2019 First-Year Player Draft". MLB.com. June 4, 2019. Retrieved 2021-10-04.
  4. ^ "Zak Kent - 2018-19 - Baseball". Virginia Military Institute. Retrieved 2021-10-04.
  5. ^ "VHSL 1A All-State Baseball teams". USA Today. June 21, 2016. Retrieved 2021-10-04.
  6. ^ a b "Zak Kent College & Minor Leagues Statistics & History". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved 2021-10-04.
  7. ^ Hinton-Valdrighi, Lisa (June 12, 2019). "Zak Kent is drafted by Texas Rangers". Rappahannock Record. Retrieved 2021-10-04.
  8. ^ "VMI Baseball: Zak Kent taken in ninth round of 2019 MLB Draft by Texas". June 5, 2019.
  9. ^ Grant, Evan (2021-08-13). "Rangers' top 20 prospects: Post-trade deadline, midseason reshuffle after a busy July in Texas". The Dallas Morning News. Retrieved 2021-10-04.
  10. ^ Reports (August 6, 2021). "Kent dazzles as Crawdads blank Grasshoppers 7-0". The News Herald. Retrieved 2021-10-04.
  11. ^ Newberg, Jamey (August 16, 2021). "Texas Rangers 2021 midseason prospect rankings: Nos. 72 through 43". The Athletic. Retrieved 2021-10-04.
  12. ^ a b Weaver, Levi (September 30, 2021). "How Rangers prospect Zak Kent went from unheralded draft pick to grabbing attention in 2021". The Athletic. Retrieved 2021-10-04.
  13. ^ Grant, Evan (August 8, 2021). "'Best stuff I've seen this year': Hickory trio flashes potential of Rangers' minor-league pitchers". The Dallas Morning News. Retrieved 2021-10-04.
  14. ^ Hinton-Valdrighi, Lisa (September 7, 2022). "Zak Kent moves up the ladder to Round Rock Express | Rappahannock Record". Rappahannock Record. Retrieved 2022-11-20.
  15. ^ Postins, Matthew (October 12, 2022). "Rangers Top 30 Prospect Wraps: Zak Kent". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved 2022-11-20.
  16. ^ "Rangers' Zak Kent: Out with oblique strain". CBSSports.com. 20 April 2023. Retrieved 2023-05-12.
  17. ^ "Rangers Select Prospects for Arizona Fall League". 23 September 2023.
  18. ^ "Guardians Acquire Peter Strzelecki From D-backs, Zak Kent From Rangers". MLB Trade Rumors. 2024-03-28. Retrieved 2024-03-28.
  19. ^ "Guardians Activate Eli Morgan, Designate Zak Kent". mlbtraderumors.com. Retrieved June 29, 2024.
  20. ^ https://www.milb.com/transactions/2024-07-16
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