It was unique debut season for 212 MLB players during pandemic-altered 2020
There were 212 players who made their MLB debuts during the 2020 season that was delayed until late July and shortened to 60 games because of the pandemic.
It was certainly the most unique season in which to begin a big league career. All players were constantly being tested for COVID-19 while encouraged to remain socially distanced, and every game during the regular season was played in empty stadiums without fans.
With all the minor leagues shut down that summer, MLB teams carried a pool of 60 players that made up their active roster, a three-player taxi squad for road trips and the remaining players at an alternate training site.
A look at some of names, numbers and notes about the debuts:
All-Star nods
There was no Midsummer Classic in 2020, but 17 players who made their debuts that season have gone on to become All-Stars.
Six of those were first-time All-Stars this season: Philadelphia third baseman Alec Bohm, Chicago White Sox left-hander Garrett Crochet, Washington closer Kyle Finnegan, Boston right-handed starter Tanner Houck, Tampa Bay third baseman Isaac Paredes ( since traded to the Chicago Cubs ), and Detroit lefty Tarik Skubal.
San Diego infielder Jake Cronenworth, Milwaukee catcher William Contreras and Tampa Bay pitcher Shane McClanahan have all been selected twice.
The other All-Stars have been Jazz Chisolm Jr., Santiago Espinal, Andres Gimenez, Jonah Heim, Alejandro Kirk, Luis Robert Jr., Trevor Rogers and Brent Rooker.
Haven’t been back
There were 24 players who made it to the majors for the first time in 2020, and haven’t been back since that season. They never played in an MLB game with fans in the stands.
According to data reviewed on Baseball Reference, only four of those players are still in the minors on MLB-affiliated teams: Left-handed pitcher Rob Kaminsky (Seattle Mariners), catcher Brian Navarreto (Milwaukee Brewers), right-hander Joey Gerber (New York Yankees) and right-hander Elliott Soto (Los Angeles Angels). Five others played in independent leagues this year, and four played professionally in South Korea or Mexico.
Like a college intrasquad
Dean Kremer was the first Israeli ever taken in baseball’s amateur draft when the San Diego Padres got him in the 38th round in 2015. Kremer stayed in school then, but signed the following year after the Dodgers got him in the 14th round. He went to Baltimore as part of the 2018 trade that sent Manny Machado to Los Angeles, and made his big league debut with four starts for Baltimore in 2020.
Those four games without any fans in the stands felt like the first year in college for Kremer. While redshirting in 2014 as a freshman at San Joaquin Delta College in California, the right-hander would throw five innings against the starting lineup during intrasquad games every Monday.
“That’s kind of what it reminded me of,” Kremer said. “Obviously a different level, but it’s still like I treated that Monday like it was my game day, even though the stats didn’t matter or anything. I knew I was facing our everyday lineup at the time and so still had to compete.”
They have rings
Left-handed reliever Victor González appeared in four World Series games for the Los Angeles Dodgers in 2020, and was the winning pitcher in the Game 6 victory that clinched their first championship since 1988.
González was the first of 10 players who made their MLB debuts during the pandemic season that have won World Series rings. Right-hander Ian Anderson and Tucker Davison, catcher William Contreras, and outfielder Cristian Pache were part of Atlanta’s title in 2021, while Cristian Javier and Luis Garcia pitched for the Houston Astros when winning the 2022 World Series. Texas had three last season, outfielder Leody Taveras, along with right-hander Dane Dunning and catcher Jonah Heim, who both played their first big-league games for other teams.
Weird silence
When New York Mets pitcher David Peterson is in a zone, he insists he doesn’t hear too much even when the stands are full. Still, it was odd in 2020 without any fans while he went 6-2 with a 3.44 ERA in his first 10 career games.
“I’m at my best when I don’t really hear or see anything else besides the catcher. So there’s been times where I’ve had the same feeling in terms of focus of a game in 2020 the past couple of years,” Peterson said. “But then like it was almost weird in 2020 where we were kind of pumping noise in to have something. Yeah, it was an odd year.”
For comparison
During the 162-game season in 2019, there were 261 players who made their MLB debuts. In the next full season after the pandemic, there were 265 debuts in 2021, followed by 303 in 2022 and 261 again in 2023. Baseball Reference listed 247 first-time players for this season through mid-September.
Lots of mask-covered new faces
The Miami Marlins had the most debuts in 2020, with infielder Jazz Chisolm Jr. among 18 players appearing in their first big-league games. St. Louis had 13, the Chicago White Sox 12, and the Philadelphia Phillies 10.
While the average was seven newcomers per team, the Chicago Cubs had the fewest with two. The Los Angeles Angels had three.
Oldest and youngest
Right-hander Shun Yamaguchi had already pitched 14 seasons in Japan and was 33 years old when he appeared in 17 games as a reliever for Toronto in 2020, making him the oldest MLB first-timer that season.
Those were Yamaguchi’s only big league games. He was released by the Blue Jays the following spring, signed as a free agent with the San Francisco Giants and made five appearances for their Triple-A team before returning to Japan.
Washington infielder Luis García Jr. was the youngest, debuting three months after his 20th birthday. He is now in his fifth season with Nationals, and is their starting second baseman.
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AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb
