Cooper Criswell (born July 24, 1996) is an American

professional baseball Professional baseball is organized baseball in which players are selected for their talents and are paid to play for a specific team or club system. It is played in baseball league, leagues and associated farm teams throughout the world. Mod ...

pitcher In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throws ("pitches") the baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of retiring a batter, who attempts to either make contact with the pitched ball or draw ...

in the

Tampa Bay Rays The Tampa Bay Rays are an American professional baseball team based in St. Petersburg, Florida. The Rays compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League East, East division. Since its inception ...

organization. He made his MLB debut in 2021 with the Los Angeles Angels.

Early career

Criswell grew up in Carrollton, Georgia and attended Carrollton High School. Criswell began his college baseball career at

Southern Union State Community College Southern Union State Community College is a public community college in Wadley, Alabama. Southern Union offers academic, technical, health science, and social science programs to the east-central Alabama and west-central Georgia regions. South ...

. As a sophomore, he compiled a 10–1 record with a 2.54 ERA and committed to continue his college career at the

University of North Carolina The University of North Carolina is the multi-campus public university system for the state of North Carolina. Overseeing the state's 16 public universities and the NC School of Science and Mathematics, it is commonly referred to as the UNC Sy ...

. In his lone season with the Tar Heels, Criswell went 6–2 with a 2.99 ERA and 86 strikeouts in innings.

Professional career

Los Angeles Angels

Criswell was selected in the 13th round by the Los Angeles Angels in the

2018 Major League Baseball draft The 2018 Major League Baseball (MLB) First-Year Player Draft began on June 4, 2018. The draft assigned amateur baseball players to MLB teams. The draft order was determined based on the reverse order of the 2017 MLB season final standings. In a ...

. He began his professional career the following year with the Inland Empire 66ers of the Class A-Advanced

California League The California League is a Minor League Baseball league that operates in California. Having been classified at various levels throughout its existence, it operated at Class A-Advanced from 1990 until its demotion to Single-A following Major Leag ...

. Criswell was assigned to the Double-A

Rocket City Trash Pandas The Rocket City Trash Pandas are a Minor League Baseball team of the Southern League and the Double-A affiliate of the Los Angeles Angels. They are located in Madison, Alabama, and play their home games at Toyota Field. History In November 20 ...

at the beginning of the 2021 minor league season. Criswell made 12 starts for Double-A Rocket City, going 6–4 with a 3.71 ERA and 85 strikeouts. On July 31, Criswell was promoted to the Triple-A Salt Lake Bees. After going 2–1 with a 3.98 ERA and 27 strikeouts through four starts, on August 27, the Angels selected Criswell's contract. He made his debut the same night, giving up three runs in 1.1 innings pitched. He was optioned back to Salt Lake the next day. On April 7, 2022, Criswell was placed on the 10-day injured list with a right shoulder strain and was moved to the 60-day injured list the next day to make room on the 40-man roster for

Kyle Tyler Kyle Wade Tyler (born December 27, 1996) is an American professional baseball pitcher who is currently a free agent. He previously played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Los Angeles Angels and San Diego Padres. Amateur career Tyler atten ...

Tampa Bay Rays

On July 16, 2022, Criswell was claimed off waivers by the

. He was designated for assignment on July 19. He cleared waivers and was sent outright to the Triple-A

Durham Bulls The Durham Bulls are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League and the Triple-A affiliate of the Tampa Bay Rays. They are located in Durham, North Carolina, and play their home games at Durham Bulls Athletic Park, which opened in ...

on July 21. He was added back as a

COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by a virus, the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The first known case was COVID-19 pandemic in Hubei, identified in Wuhan, China, in December ...

replacement player on September 12, 2022, and returned to Triple-A the next day.

References

External links

North Carolina Tar Heels bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Criswell, Cooper 1996 births Living people People from Carrollton, Georgia Baseball players from Georgia (U.S. state) Major League Baseball pitchers Los Angeles Angels players Tampa Bay Rays players North Carolina Tar Heels baseball players Inland Empire 66ers of San Bernardino players Rocket City Trash Pandas players Salt Lake City Bees players Durham Bulls players