Austin Riley
Austin Riley | |
---|---|
Atlanta Braves – No. 27 | |
Third baseman | |
Born: Memphis, Tennessee, U.S. | April 2, 1997|
Bats: Right Throws: Right | |
MLB debut | |
May 15, 2019, for the Atlanta Braves | |
MLB statistics (through April 16, 2024) | |
Batting average | .275 |
Home runs | 136 |
Runs batted in | 385 |
Teams | |
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Career highlights and awards | |
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Michael Austin Riley (born April 2, 1997) is an American
Born in Memphis and raised in Mississippi, Riley played football and baseball at DeSoto Central High School. A star pitcher and third baseman in high school, Riley originally committed to play college baseball at Mississippi State University, before being drafted by the Braves and opting to forgo a college baseball career. Riley made his minor league debut in 2015 with the Gulf Coast Braves and would spend the next several seasons in the Braves farm system.
Riley made his MLB debut with the Braves in 2019. He would soon emerge as a star, winning a Silver Slugger Award in 2021, as well as that year's World Series. Following a strong start to the 2022 season, Riley signed a franchise-record ten-year contract extension worth $212 million.
Early life
Austin Riley is the eldest son of Mike and Elisa Riley.
Career
Draft and minor leagues
The
In 2016, Riley played for the
The Braves invited Riley to
He began 2018 with Mississippi, and after batting .333 with six home runs and 20 RBIs in 27 games, and was promoted to the Gwinnett Stripers in May.[24][25] In 75 games with Gwinnett, he hit .282/.346/.464/.810 with 12 home runs and 47 RBI. He opened the 2019 season with Gwinnett.[26]
Atlanta Braves
On May 15, 2019, Riley was called up to the Atlanta Braves prior to their game against the
On August 8, 2019, Riley was placed on the 10-day
In 2019 with the Braves he batted .226/.279/.471 with 18 home runs and 49 RBIs in 274 at bats, as on defense he played 58 games in left field, six at first base, five at third base, and two in right field.[36]
In 2020 he batted .239/.301/.415 with 8 home runs and 27 RBIs in 188 at bats. On defense, he played primarily third base (46 games), with four games each at first base and in left field.[36] His six errors were the third-most among NL third basemen.[36]
After beginning the 2021 season in a hitting slump that saw him go 8-for-44 with no extra-base hits, Riley made a significant change to the mental aspect of his at bats, working with minor league hitting coach
He finished the 2021 season hitting .303 with 33 home runs (10th in the NL), 107 RBIs (2nd), 168 strikeouts (4th), and a .898 OPS, joining Eddie Mathews and Chipper Jones as the only Atlanta third basemen to hit .300 with at least 30 home runs and 100 RBIs in a season at the age of 24 or younger. Ozzie Albies put up similar numbers, and the pair became the fifth set of teammates to individually construct 30-home run, 100-RBI seasons at the age of 24 or younger.[39] On defense, his 14 errors were second-most among NL third basemen, while his 300 assists ranked first.[36]
On October 16, 2021, Riley recorded his first career walk-off hit in Game 1 of the
Riley was eligible for
At the midseason of the 2023 season, Riley for the second consecutive year was nominated as a reserve infielder for the National League in the 2023 Major League Baseball All-Star Game.[53] Riley won the second Silver Slugger Award of his career in 2023.[54][55]
Personal life
Riley and his wife, Anna, were married in November 2018.[56][57] They resided in Coldwater, Mississippi.[58] They announced in October 2021 they were expecting their first child,[59][60] and their son was born in April 2022.[61][62][63] The family later moved to Riley's hometown of Hernando, Mississippi.[64][65]
Riley's cousin Keegan James attended Mississippi State where he played baseball.[6] James was selected by the Colorado Rockies in the 25th round of the 2019 Major League Baseball draft.[66][67]
References
- ^ Hummer, Steve (May 11, 2019). "How long do Braves keep Riley on farm when he's hitting like this?". The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Retrieved May 16, 2019.
- ^ "Austin Riley homers in MLB debut, Braves blank Cardinals 4-0". USA Today. ESPN.com. Associated Press. May 15, 2019. Archived from the original on July 9, 2020. Retrieved May 16, 2019. Alt URL
- ^ Riley's family watches his debut. Busch Stadium: MLB.com. May 15, 2019. Event occurs at 0:02. Retrieved May 16, 2019.
- ^ Olney, Buster (May 26, 2019). "Olney: Braves embrace the instant impact of Austin Riley, power prodigy". ESPN.com. Retrieved May 28, 2019.
- ^ Wickham, Pete (April 17, 2014). "Jags, Lewisburg making push for postseason". The Commercial Appeal. Retrieved May 16, 2019.
- ^ a b c Miller, Scott (October 31, 2021). "Saying Yes to Baseball Meant Leaving Football Behind". The New York Times. Retrieved April 20, 2022.
- ^ Bonner, Michael (June 16, 2015). "Austin Riley expected to sign with Braves on Wednesday". USA Today. Retrieved May 16, 2019 – via The Clarion Ledger.
- ^ Bonner, Michael (June 18, 2015). "MSU signee Riley receives bigger bonus than slot value". The Clarion-Ledger. Retrieved May 16, 2019.
- ^ Bakken, Bob (June 8, 2015). "DeSoto Central's Riley picked in MLB Draft". DeSoto Times Tribune. Retrieved April 12, 2016.
- ^ Bowman, Mark (June 9, 2015). "Braves turn to power-packed Riley at No. 41". MLB.com. Retrieved April 12, 2016.
- ^ Bonner, Michael (June 10, 2015). "MLB drafts six MSU signees, one already agrees to terms". Clarion Ledger. Retrieved April 12, 2016.
- ^ Bonner, Michael (June 17, 2015). "MSU signee Austin Riley's MLB contract pending approval". Clarion Ledger. Retrieved April 12, 2016.
- ^ Dykstra, Sam (March 8, 2016). "Braves' Riley ready to build on first season". MILB.com. Retrieved April 12, 2016.
- ^ O'Brien, David (February 25, 2015). "Braves have a slugging prospect; Top 50 Albums of 2015". The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Retrieved April 12, 2016.
- ^ Dykstra, Sam (February 22, 2016). "Farm System Rankings: Position players". MILB.com. Retrieved April 12, 2016.
- ^ a b "Austin Riley Minor & Fall Leagues Statistics & History". Baseball-Reference.com.
- ^ O'Brien, David (March 4, 2017). "Another 19-year-old, Austin Riley, impresses in Braves camp". The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Retrieved October 15, 2017.
- ^ Krzus, Thaddeus (April 4, 2017). "Fire Frogs Announce Opening Day Roster". MILB.com. Retrieved October 15, 2017.
- ^ Shanks, Bill (July 12, 2017). "Atlanta Braves promote outfielder Ronald Acuna to Triple-A Gwinnett". Macon Telegraph. Retrieved October 15, 2017.
- ^ Hudgison, Chris (July 13, 2017). "Ronald Acuna promoted to Gwinnett, Austin Riley promoted to M-Braves". WLBT. Archived from the original on October 15, 2017. Retrieved October 15, 2017.
- ^ Boor, William (October 12, 2017). "Riley, Braves prospects break out bats in AFL win". MLB.com. Retrieved October 15, 2017.
- ^ Bowman, Mark (February 28, 2018). "Mind game: Mental side is Riley's focus". MLB.com. Retrieved March 1, 2018.
- ^ "The Top 100 Prospects". Baseball America. Retrieved March 14, 2018.
- ^ Dykstra, Sam (May 7, 2018). "Braves' Riley earns promotion to Triple-A". MILB.com. Retrieved February 22, 2019.
- ^ Wilborn, Nubyjas (May 17, 2018). "Riley wants to be next young star in Braves' lineup". Marietta Daily Journal. Retrieved May 16, 2019 – via Daily Citizen-News.
- ^ "Gwinnett Stripers announce 2019 opening night roster". Gwinnett Daily Post. April 3, 2019. Retrieved May 15, 2019.
- ^ Bowman, Mark (May 15, 2019). "Riley almost misses call to big leagues, literally". MLB.com. Retrieved May 16, 2019.
- ^ "Braves prospect Riley to debut; Inciarte to IL". ESPN. Associated Press. May 15, 2019. Retrieved May 15, 2019.
- ^ "Braves prospect Riley homers in second at-bat". ESPN. May 15, 2019. Retrieved May 16, 2019.
- ^ Bowman, Mark (May 15, 2019). "Braves prospect Riley homers in 2nd MLB AB". MLB.com. Retrieved May 16, 2019.
- ^ "Sánchez sparkles as Nationals pound Gausman, Braves 14-4". Yahoo Sports. Archived from the original on November 24, 2021. Retrieved June 21, 2019.
- ^ Burns, Gabriel (June 3, 2019). "Braves' Austin Riley named NL Rookie of the Month". The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Retrieved April 20, 2022.
- ^ "Austin Riley Named NL Rookie of the Month". MILB.com. June 4, 2019. Retrieved August 2, 2022.
- ^ "Austin Riley goes on IL with knee sprain". MLB.com. Retrieved September 2, 2019.
- ^ Tim Tucker, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. "Austin Riley begins rehab assignment Friday after chance to 'reset'". The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Retrieved September 2, 2019.
- ^ a b c d "Austin Riley Stats". Baseball-Reference.com.
- ^ Law, Keith (September 6, 2021). "How Austin Riley became the Braves' most valuable player: Keith Law". The Athletic. Retrieved October 12, 2021.
- ^ O'Brien, David (September 2, 2021). "Braves' Austin Riley credits behind-the-scenes 'hitting guru' for his breakthrough". The Athletic. Retrieved October 12, 2021.
- ^ Bowman, Mark (October 8, 2021). "Riley makes Braves history in MVP-like year". MLB.com. Advanced Media Group. Retrieved October 12, 2021.
- ^ "Riley plays G1 hero with HR, walk-off knock". MLB.com.
- ^ "MLB Baseball Scores - MLB Scoreboard - ESPN". ESPN.com. Retrieved October 24, 2021.
- ^ "Atlanta Braves win 2021 World Series". MLB. Retrieved November 2, 2021.
- ^ Harrigan, Thomas (November 11, 2021). "'21 Silver Slugger Award winners announced". MLB.com. Retrieved November 23, 2021.
- ^ "Atlanta Braves beat 3B Austin Riley, St. Louis Cardinals defeat OF Tyler O'Neill in arbitration". ESPN.com. Associated Press. May 11, 2022. Retrieved May 12, 2022.
- ^ "Corey Seager, Austin Riley named Players of the Week presented by Chevrolet". MLB.com. July 11, 2022. Retrieved July 16, 2022.
- ^ Murphy, Brian (July 11, 2022). "Seager, Riley take home Player of the Week honors". Retrieved July 16, 2022.
- ^ Werle, Andy (July 16, 2022). "Riley, Cronenworth among 4 new All-Stars". MLB.com. Retrieved July 16, 2022.
- ^ a b Burns, Gabriel (August 2, 2022). "Austin Riley wins National League Player of Month after historic July". The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Retrieved August 2, 2022.
- ^ "July's top players no surprise: Judge, Riley". MLB.com. August 2, 2022. Retrieved August 2, 2022.
- ^ Bowman, Mark (August 1, 2022). "Braves sign MVP candidate Riley to 10-year deal". MLB.com. Retrieved August 1, 2022.
- ^ "Atlanta Braves extend Austin Riley with massive contract". ESPN.com. August 1, 2022. Retrieved August 1, 2022.
- ^ Burkhardt, Molly (August 9, 2022). "Riley socks the Sox with 30th homer, 5 RBIs". MLB.com. Retrieved August 10, 2022.
- ^ Toscano, Justin. "Great Eight: Braves set franchise record with eight All-Stars". The Atlanta Journal-Constitution – via AJC.com.
- ^ "Rangers haul in Silver Slugger Awards, including team honor". ESPN.com. Reuters. November 9, 2023. Retrieved November 9, 2023.
- ^ Murphy, Brian (November 9, 2023). "Power and glory: Here are your 2023 Silver Slugger winners". MLB.com. Retrieved November 9, 2023.
- ^ Bakken, Bob (December 7, 2021). "County adds Austin Riley Day declaration". DeSoto County News. Retrieved April 20, 2022.
- ^ "Anna Harrington and Austin Riley". DeSoto Magazine. June 2019. Retrieved April 20, 2022.
- ^ "From T-Ball to the Big Leagues". January 28, 2020.
- ^ Ackerman, Thais (November 21, 2019). "Braves third baseman Austin Riley, wife announce they're pregnant". WXIA. Retrieved April 20, 2022.
- ^ "Braves World Series champ Austin Riley, wife announce pregnancy". WSBTV. November 21, 2021. Retrieved April 20, 2022.
- ^ "'Our biggest blessing' Braves third baseman Austin Riley, wife Anna welcome baby boy". WBS-TV. April 22, 2022. Retrieved April 24, 2022.
- ^ Raymond, Jonathan (April 22, 2022). "Braves star Austin Riley, wife Anna welcome baby boy". WXIA-TV. Retrieved April 24, 2022.
- ^ "Atlanta Braves' Austin Riley, wife Anna welcome baby son". WAGA-TV. April 22, 2022. Retrieved April 24, 2022.
- ^ Bowman, Mark (February 23, 2023). "With a work ethic like his dad's, it's no surprise Riley's a Top 20 player". MLB.com. Retrieved March 7, 2023.
- ^ Burns, Gabriel (August 13, 2022). "How Austin Riley's small-town roots in northern Mississippi shaped him". Atlanta Journal Constitution. Retrieved March 7, 2023.
- ^ Newman, Kyle (June 5, 2019). "Rockies' picks on the final day of 2019 MLB draft, Rounds 11-40". Denver Post. Retrieved April 20, 2022.
- ^ Ducote, Nick (June 5, 2019). "8 MSU Players Selected on Final Day of Major League Baseball First Year Draft". WDAM. Retrieved April 20, 2022.
External links
- Career statistics and player information from MLB, or ESPN, or Baseball Reference, or Fangraphs, or Baseball Reference (Minors), or Retrosheet
- Austin Riley on Twitter