Justin Campbell (born February 14, 2001) is an American professional baseball pitcher in the Cleveland Guardians organization.
| Justin Campbell | |||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cleveland Guardians | |||||||||||||||
| Pitcher | |||||||||||||||
| Born: February 14, 2001 West Hills, California | |||||||||||||||
Bats: Left Throws: Right | |||||||||||||||
Medals
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Amateur career
editCampbell attended Simi Valley High School in Simi Valley, California, where he played baseball.[1][2] As a senior in 2019, he went 8-2 with a 1.17 ERA and 102 strikeouts over 65 innings alongside batting .409 with three home runs.[3] He was selected by the Houston Astros in the 18th round of the 2019 Major League Baseball draft, but did not sign.[4] Campbell originally committed to play college baseball at Tulane University, but due to changes in admission requirements, he was unable to attend, and instead enrolled at Oklahoma State University.[5]
As a freshman at Oklahoma State in 2020, Campbell was named to the team's starting rotation and made four starts before the season was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[6] He returned to the starting rotation for the 2021 season, and on May 8, 2021, he threw the 11th no-hitter in school history in a 19-0 win over the Kansas Jayhawks, striking out 11 batters.[7][8] He finished the 2021 season having started 13 games, going 7-2 with a 2.57 ERA and 102 strikeouts over 84 innings.[9] He also appeared in 42 games as a designated hitter, batting .269 with one home run, and was one of the five finalists for the John Olerud Award.[10] Following the season's end, he was named to the USA Baseball Collegiate National Team.[11] For the 2022 season, Campbell stopped playing as a two-way player, and began focusing only on pitching. Over 17 games (16 starts) for the season, he went 9-2 with a 3.82 ERA and 141 strikeouts over 101 1⁄3 innings.[12]
Professional career
editCampbell was selected by the Cleveland Guardians with the 37th overall selection in the 2022 Major League Baseball draft.[13] He signed with the team for $1.70 million.[14]
Campbell did not play in 2022 after signing, and missed all of the 2023 season after undergoing elbow surgery.[15]
On March 20, 2024, the rookie–level Arizona Complex League Guardians placed Campbell on the full–season injured list. The transaction ended his season before it began, and further delayed his professional debut.[16]
References
edit- ^ Sondheimer, Eric (May 1, 2019). "High school baseball: Justin Campbell hits, pitches Simi Valley to playoff victory". Los Angeles Times.
- ^ "Simi Valley's Justin Campbell voted Southern California Boys Athlete of the Week". Orange County Register. April 19, 2019.
- ^ "The Star's All-County Baseball First Team". Ventura County Star. June 15, 2019.
- ^ Turley, Joe (June 5, 2019). "Simi Valley senior Campbell leads crop of locals picked in Major League Baseball draft". Ventura County Star.
- ^ Breeden, Ryan (April 15, 2021). "Just(in) time: OSU's timing was perfect for Campbell". The O'Colly.
- ^ Unruh, Jacob (March 24, 2022). "'This is the best he's ever been': How Oklahoma State's Justin Campbell improved after no-hitter". The Oklahoman.
- ^ "Oklahoma State's Justin Campbell tosses no-hitter with 11 strikeouts in 19-0 win over Kansas". ESPN. May 8, 2021.
- ^ "OSU's Justin Campbell throws no-hitter". KJRH-TV. May 8, 2021.
- ^ Chester, Michaela (February 17, 2022). "Here are the top college baseball pitchers to watch in 2022". NCAA.com.
- ^ "2021 John Olerud Award finalists announced". MLB.com. June 1, 2021.
- ^ "Cowboy Baseball's Campbell Named To USA Baseball Collegiate National Team". Oklahoma State University Athletics. June 18, 2021.
- ^ "Campbell says goodbye to OSU, shifts focus toward MLB draft". 8 June 2022.
- ^ "MLB Draft 2022: Cleveland selects RHP Justin Campbell with No. 37 pick". 17 July 2022.
- ^ "MLB Draft Tracker". MLB.com.
- ^ "Guardians' Justin Campbell: Could return this season". 27 June 2023.
- ^ "Guardians' Justin Campbell: Out for season". cbssports.com. Retrieved March 21, 2024.
External links
edit- Career statistics from Baseball Reference (Minors)