Duane Lee Underwood Jr. (born July 20, 1994) 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 ...
for the
Pittsburgh Pirates
The Pittsburgh Pirates are an American professional baseball team based in Pittsburgh. The Pirates compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) Central division. Founded as part of the American Associati ...
of
Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...
(MLB). He has previously played in MLB for the
Chicago Cubs
The Chicago Cubs are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The Cubs compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as part of the National League (NL) Central division. The club plays its home games at Wrigley Field, which is located ...
.
Career
Amateur career
Underwood attended
Alan C. Pope High School in
Marietta, Georgia
Marietta is a city in and the county seat of Cobb County, Georgia, United States. At the 2020 census, the city had a population of 60,972. The 2019 estimate was 60,867, making it one of Atlanta's largest suburbs. Marietta is the fourth largest ...
. He committed to play
college baseball
College baseball is baseball that is played on the intercollegiate level at institutions of higher education. In comparison to football and basketball, college competition in the United States plays a smaller role in developing professional pl ...
for the
Georgia Bulldogs
The Georgia Bulldogs are the athletic teams that represent the University of Georgia. The female athletic teams are sometimes referred to as Lady Bulldogs. The Bulldogs compete in NCAA Division I and are members of the Southeastern Conference ( ...
.
Chicago Cubs
The
Chicago Cubs
The Chicago Cubs are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The Cubs compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as part of the National League (NL) Central division. The club plays its home games at Wrigley Field, which is located ...
selected Underwood in the second round of the
2012 MLB draft
The 2012 Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft was held from June 4 through June 6, 2012, from Studio 42 of the MLB Network in Secaucus, New Jersey. The Houston Astros, with the first overall pick, selected Carlos Correa from the Puerto R ...
. He signed with the Cubs, making his professional debut that same year with the
Arizona League Cubs
The Arizona Complex League Cubs are a Rookie-level affiliate of the Chicago Cubs, competing in the Arizona Complex League of Minor League Baseball. The team plays it home games at Sloan Park in Mesa, Arizona. The team is composed mainly of player ...
. He spent 2013 with the
Boise Hawks
The Boise Hawks are an independent baseball team of the Pioneer League, which is not affiliated with Major League Baseball (MLB) but is an MLB Partner League. Home games are played at Memorial Stadium in Garden City, Idaho, a small city surround ...
and 2014 with the
Kane County Cougars
The Kane County Cougars are an independent professional baseball team located in Geneva, Illinois and are members of the American Association of Professional Baseball, an official Partner League of Major League Baseball (MLB). They play their ho ...
. For 2015, Underwood was promoted to the Myrtle Beach Pelicans, where he posted a 2.58
earned run average
In baseball statistics, earned run average (ERA) is the average of earned runs allowed by a pitcher per nine innings pitched (i.e. the traditional length of a game). It is determined by dividing the number of earned runs allowed by the number ...
(ERA) in
innings pitched
In baseball, innings pitched (IP) are the number of innings a pitcher has completed, measured by the number of batters and baserunners that are put out while the pitcher is on the pitching mound in a game. Three outs made is equal to one innin ...
. Underwood spent 2016 with the
Tennessee Smokies
The Tennessee Smokies are a Minor League Baseball team based in Kodak, Tennessee, a suburb of Knoxville. The team, which plays in the Southern League, is the Double-A affiliate of the Chicago Cubs. They play at Smokies Stadium, directly off Int ...
,
South Bend Cubs
The South Bend Cubs are a Minor League Baseball team of the Midwest League and the High-A affiliate of the Chicago Cubs. They are located in South Bend, Indiana, and play their home games at Four Winds Field at Coveleski Stadium.
The team was or ...
, and
Myrtle Beach Pelicans
The Myrtle Beach Pelicans are a Minor League Baseball team in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, and the Single-A affiliate of the Chicago Cubs. The Pelicans compete in the Carolina League. Home games are played at TicketReturn.com Field, which open ...
, where he posted an 0–6 record with a 4.32 ERA. After the season, Underwood played for the
Mesa Solar Sox
The Mesa Solar Sox are a baseball team that plays in the East Division of the Arizona Fall League. They play their home games in Mesa, Arizona, at Sloan Park, which is also the spring training facility of the Chicago Cubs. The team was established ...
of the
Arizona Fall League
The Arizona Fall League (AFL) is an off-season sports league owned and operated by Major League Baseball (MLB) which operates during the autumn in Arizona, United States, at six different baseball complexes. Arizona Fall League rosters are fill ...
and was added to the Cubs 40-man roster.
He spent 2017 with the
Tennessee Smokies
The Tennessee Smokies are a Minor League Baseball team based in Kodak, Tennessee, a suburb of Knoxville. The team, which plays in the Southern League, is the Double-A affiliate of the Chicago Cubs. They play at Smokies Stadium, directly off Int ...
where he went 13–7 with a 4.43 ERA and a 1.30 WHIP in 25 games.
Underwood started the 2018 season with the
Iowa Cubs
The Iowa Cubs are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League and the Triple-A (baseball), Triple-A affiliate of the Chicago Cubs. They are located in Des Moines, Iowa, and are named for their Major League Baseball (MLB) affiliate. The ...
. On June 25, 2018, the Cubs promoted Underwood to the major leagues to make his first start against the
Los Angeles Dodgers
The Los Angeles Dodgers are an American professional baseball team based in Los Angeles. The Dodgers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Established in 1883 in the city of Brooklyn ...
. He was optioned back to Iowa after the game, and spent the remainder of the year in Iowa. He returned to Iowa to begin 2019. He returned to the Chicago Cubs on August 6, 2019, and struck out all six batters he faced in his first appearance. Underwood appeared in 17 games for the Cubs in 2020 and pitched to a 5.66 ERA with 27 strikeouts in innings pitched.
On March 2, 2021, Underwood was designated for assignment after the signing of
Ryan Tepera
Dennis Ryan Tepera (born November 3, 1987) is an American professional baseball pitcher for the Los Angeles Angels of Major League Baseball (MLB). He previously played for the Toronto Blue Jays, Chicago Cubs, and Chicago White Sox. He attended Br ...
was made official.
Pittsburgh Pirates
On March 7, 2021, the Cubs traded Underwood to the
Pittsburgh Pirates
The Pittsburgh Pirates are an American professional baseball team based in Pittsburgh. The Pirates compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) Central division. Founded as part of the American Associati ...
in exchange for Shendrik Apostel. On September 6, Underwood was placed on the 60-day injured list with right shoulder inflammation.
On January 13, 2023, Underwood agreed to a one-year, $1.025 million contract with the Pirates, avoiding salary arbitration.
International career
During the
2023 World Baseball Classic
The 2023 World Baseball Classic (WBC), an international professional baseball tournament, is set to be the fifth iteration of the World Baseball Classic. It was originally set for 2021 (as per tradition to hold the event every four years), but wa ...
(WBC), Underwood pitched for the
Puerto Rico national team. On March 13, 2023, he pitched in relief versus
Israel
Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...
and retired every batter faced in the eighth inning, after
José De León started and
Yacksel Ríos,
Edwin Díaz
Edwin Orlando Díaz Laboy (born March 22, 1994) is a Puerto Rican professional baseball pitcher for the New York Mets of Major League Baseball (MLB). He previously played for the Seattle Mariners.
Within two months of his MLB debut, Díaz brok ...
kept the
perfect game
Perfect game may refer to:
Sports
* Perfect game (baseball), a complete-game win by a pitcher allowing no baserunners
* Perfect game (bowling), a 300 game, 12 consecutive strikes in the same game
* Perfect Game Collegiate Baseball League, New York ...
intact, and
Martín Maldonado caught on the way to a
10–0 win. The contest ended when Maldonado scored on a walk-off hit in the bottom of the eighth inning that invoked the tournament's
mercy rule
A mercy rule, slaughter rule, knockout rule, or skunk rule ends a two-competitor sports competition earlier than the scheduled endpoint if one competitor has a very large and presumably insurmountable scoring lead over the other. It is called th ...
. However, it did not qualify as an official perfect game per the
Elias Sports Bureau The Elias Sports Bureau is a privately held company providing historical and current statistical information for the major professional sports leagues operating in the United States and Canada.
Elias is the official statistician for Major League Ba ...
, due to lasting fewer than nine innings.
References
External links
{{DEFAULTSORT:Underwood, Duane
1994 births
Living people
African-American baseball players
Arizona League Cubs players
Baseball players from Raleigh, North Carolina
Boise Hawks players
Chicago Cubs players
Criollos de Caguas players
Iowa Cubs players
Kane County Cougars players
Liga de Béisbol Profesional Roberto Clemente pitchers
Major League Baseball pitchers
Mesa Solar Sox players
Myrtle Beach Pelicans players
Pittsburgh Pirates players
South Bend Cubs players
Tennessee Smokies players
2023 World Baseball Classic players