Gunnar Thomas Hoglund (born December 17, 1999) 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

Oakland Athletics The Oakland Athletics (often referred to as the A's) are an American professional baseball team based in Oakland, California. The Athletics compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West division. The te ...

organization. Hoglund played college baseball for the

Ole Miss Rebels The Ole Miss Rebels are the 18 men's and women's intercollegiate athletic teams that are funded by and represent the University of Mississippi, located in Oxford. The first was the football team, which began play in 1893. Originally known as th ...

Amateur career

Hoglund graduated from Dayspring Academy in

Port Richey, Florida Port Richey is a city in Pasco County, Florida, United States. It is a suburban city included in the Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, Florida Metropolitan Statistical Area. History In 1883, Aaron M. Richey arrived from St. Joseph, Missouri, and ...

, but since they do not offer any athletic teams, he played baseball for Fivay High School in

Hudson, Florida Hudson is a census-designated place (CDP) located at the westernmost end of Pasco County, Florida, United States, and is included in the Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, Florida Metropolitan Statistical Area. As of the 2010 census, Hudson's po ...

. As a senior in 2018, he had a 7–0

win–loss record In sports, a winning percentage is the fraction of games or matches a team or individual has won. The statistic is commonly used in standings or rankings to compare teams or individuals. It is defined as wins divided by the total number of match ...

with a 0.27

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). He was selected 36th overall by 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 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 ...

, but did not sign and instead chose to enroll at the

University of Mississippi The University of Mississippi (byname Ole Miss) is a public research university that is located adjacent to Oxford, Mississippi, and has a medical center in Jackson. It is Mississippi's oldest public university and its largest by enrollment. ...

and 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

. In 2019, Hoglund's freshman year at Ole Miss, he appeared in 17 games (with 16

games started In baseball statistics, games started (denoted by GS) indicates the number of games that a pitcher has started for his team. A pitcher is credited with starting the game if he throws the first pitch to the first opposing batter. If a player is lis ...

), going 3–3 with a 5.29 ERA,

striking out ''Striking Out'' is an Irish television legal drama series, broadcast on RTÉ, that first aired on 1 January 2017. Produced by Bl!nder F!lms for RTÉ Television, ''Striking Out'' stars Amy Huberman as Dublin-based solicitor Tara Rafferty, who is ...

53 and

walking Walking (also known as ambulation) is one of the main gaits of terrestrial locomotion among legged animals. Walking is typically slower than running and other gaits. Walking is defined by an 'inverted pendulum' gait in which the body vaults o ...

14 in 68

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 ...

. As a sophomore in 2020, he went 3–0 with a 1.16 ERA and 37 strikeouts over innings before the season was ended due to the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...

. On May 11, 2021, it was announced that Hoglund would require

Tommy John surgery Ulnar collateral ligament reconstruction, colloquially known as Tommy John surgery (TJS), is a surgical graft procedure where the ulnar collateral ligament in the medial elbow is replaced with either a tendon from elsewhere in the patient's bo ...

, thus ending his junior season prematurely. Over 11 starts, he pitched innings, striking out 96 batters while going 4–2 with a 2.87 ERA.

Professional career

The

Toronto Blue Jays The Toronto Blue Jays are a Canadian professional baseball team based in Toronto. The Blue Jays compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. Since 1989, the team has played its home games ...

selected Hoglund in the first round, with the 19th overall selection, in the

2021 Major League Baseball draft The 2021 Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft took place on July 11–13, 2021. In conjunction with the 2021 Major League Baseball All-Star Game, the draft was held in Denver. The draft assigned amateur baseball players to MLB teams. The ...

. He signed with the Blue Jays for a $3.2 million

signing bonus A signing bonus or sign-on bonus is a sum of money paid to a new employee (including a professional sports person) by a company as an incentive to join that company. They are often given as a way of making a compensation package more attractive ...

, forgoing his senior year of college baseball. On March 16, 2022, the Blue Jays traded Hoglund,

Kevin Smith Kevin Patrick Smith (born August 2, 1970) is an American filmmaker, actor, comedian, comic book writer, author, YouTuber, and podcaster. He came to prominence with the low-budget comedy buddy film ''Clerks'' (1994), which he wrote, directed, co ...

Zach Logue Zach Michael Logue (born April 23, 1996) is an American professional baseball pitcher for the Detroit Tigers of Major League Baseball (MLB). He made his MLB debut in 2022 with the Oakland Athletics. Amateur career Logue attended Archbishop Moe ...

, and

Kirby Snead William Kirby Snead (born October 7, 1994) is an American professional baseball pitcher who is a free agent. He made his Major League Baseball (MLB) debut in 2021 for the Toronto Blue Jays and also played for the Oakland Athletics. Amateur caree ...

to the

for

Matt Chapman Matthew James Chapman (born April 28, 1993) is an American professional baseball third baseman for the Toronto Blue Jays of Major League Baseball (MLB). He previously played for the Oakland Athletics. Chapman made his MLB debut with Oakland in ...

. Hoglund made his professional debut in mid-July while on a rehab start with the

Arizona Complex League The Arizona Complex League (ACL) is a rookie-level Minor League Baseball league that operates in and around Phoenix, Arizona, since 1988. Prior to 2021, it was known as the Arizona League (AZL). Along with the Florida Complex League (FCL), it f ...

Athletics before being assigned to the

Stockton Ports The Stockton Ports are a Minor League Baseball team of the California League and the Single-A affiliate of the Oakland Athletics. They are located in Stockton, California, and are named for the city's seaport. The team plays its home games at Ba ...

after two games.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hoglund, Gunnar 1999 births Living people Baseball pitchers Ole Miss Rebels baseball players People from Dunedin, Florida Baseball players from Florida Arizona Complex League Athletics players Stockton Ports players