Nashville Represented Across Major League Baseball On Opening Day

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Former Vanderbilt Commodore Dansby Swanson. Photo: Courtesy of the Atlanta Braves

Though Nashville may not have an MLB team, there are ton of Nashville locals, as well as Vanderbilt and Belmont graduates gearing up for Opening Day on Thursday and Friday.

Tennessee’s Davidson and the surrounding counties will be on full display as players such as Robbie Ray, Mookie Betts, Sony Gray and David Price take the field for their respective teams.

Ray is coming off an incredible comeback season winning the American League Cy Young award for his performance on the mound for the Toronto Blue Jays in 2021. The Brentwood High School alumni, finished his season with a 13–7 record, leading the AL in ERA (2.84), strikeouts (248), innings pitched (193.1), and WHIP (1.04).

Robbie Ray. Photo: Courtesy of the Toronto Blue Jays

In November of 2021, Ray signed a five-year, $115 million contract with the Seattle Mariners.

While at Brentwood High School, Ray faced current Los Angeles Dodger Mookie Betts while he was attending John Overton High School in Nashville. Betts is a five-time All-Star, five-time Gold Glover, four-time Silver Slugger, 2018 AL MVP and a two-time World Series champion both with the Red Sox (2018) and the Dodgers (2020). He will definitely be in the Dodgers’ starting lineup on Opening Day.

Gray and Price are both homegrown stars as well as Vanderbilt alumni. Gray a two-time All Star and Smyrna High School  is heading into his fourth season with the Cincinnati Reds after posting an ERA of 4.19 and striking out 155 in 26 starts.

Price, a graduate of Blackman High School, is a five-time All-Star, a Cy Young winner and a 2018 World Series champion with the Red Sox.

Along with Price and Gray, other Vanderbilt standouts will also be on team’s Opening Day rosters and lineups.

Kyle Wright. Photo: Courtesy of the Atlanta Braves

Dansby Swanson and Kyle Wright are both set to play another season with the Atlanta Braves after winning the World Series with the club in 2021.

Swanson played in 160 regular season games last season and posted a .248 batting average, a .311 on base percentage and 88 RBI’s–a career high. He won the College World Series with Vandy in 2014 and was named Wold Series Most Outstanding Player.

Wright spent most of the 2021 season with the Braves minor league affiliate but was added to the club’s postseason roster. He had a huge outing in Game 4 of the World Series where he pitched 4.5 innings to help secure the Braves win.

Other Vanderbilt standouts in the majors include Dodgers pitcher Walker Buehler, Athletics second baseman Tony Kemp and Giants outfielder Mike Yastrzemski.

Buehler won the World Series with the Dodgers in 2020 and was named to the All-Star team in 2021 posting an ERA of 2.47 in 33 games pitched, both the most of his career. Kemp played in 131 games, the most of his career thus far. Last season for Oakland he posted a. 279 batting average, .382 on base percentage and .418 slugging percentage.

Matt Beaty. Photo: Courtesy of Belmont Athletics

Yastrzemski finished his third season in the major league in 2021 playing in 139 games and hitting 71 RBI’s and 25 home runs. His defense will be a major part of San Fransisco’s success this season.

Vanderbilt isn’t the only school that has a major leaguer. Belmont 2015 graduate Matt Beaty spent three years with the Dodgers and was an important bench player for the club, playing first base, third base and all three outfield positions. In 2021, he played in 120 games and had a batting average of. 270 and on base percentage of .363.

Beaty was traded to the San Diego Padres in March and was recently named to their Opening Day roster.

Steven Boero
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