Jacob Daniel McGee (born August 6, 1986) 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 ...
who is currently a free agent. McGee was selected by
Tampa Bay Devil 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) East division. Since its inception, the team's home venu ...
in the fifth round of the
2004 MLB draft. He made his MLB debut in 2008. He previously played for 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 ...
,
Colorado Rockies
The Colorado Rockies are an American professional baseball team based in Denver. The Rockies compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. The team plays its home baseball games at Coors Fie ...
,
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 ...
,
San Francisco Giants
The San Francisco Giants are an American professional baseball team based in San Francisco, California. The Giants compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Founded in 1883 as the New Yor ...
and
Milwaukee Brewers
The Milwaukee Brewers are an American professional baseball team based in Milwaukee. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) National League Central, Central division. The Brewers are named for t ...
.
Early life
McGee was born in
San Jose, California
San Jose, officially San José (; ; ), is a major city in the U.S. state of California that is the cultural, financial, and political center of Silicon Valley and largest city in Northern California by both population and area. With a 2020 popul ...
. He grew up in
Sparks, Nevada
Sparks is a city in Washoe County, Nevada, United States. It was founded in 1904, incorporated on March 15, 1905, and is located just east of Reno. The 2020 U.S. Census counted 108,445 residents in the city. It is the fifth most populous city in ...
, where he attended
Edward C. Reed High School
Edward C. Reed High School is a public secondary school in Sparks, Nevada and is one of three public high schools run by the Washoe County School District within the city of Sparks. The school was founded in the winter of 1974 to accommodate the ...
. McGee was selected by the
Tampa Bay Devil 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) East division. Since its inception, the team's home venu ...
in the fifth round (135th overall) of the
2004 MLB draft.
Professional career
Tampa Bay Rays
![Jake McGee on May 11, 2012](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/9c/Jake_McGee_on_May_11%2C_2012.jpg)
McGee made his minor league debut in , and spent 2004 and with the
Princeton Devil Rays
Princeton University is a private research university in Princeton, New Jersey. Founded in 1746 in Elizabeth as the College of New Jersey, Princeton is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and one of the nine ...
and the
Hudson Valley Renegades
Hudson may refer to:
People
* Hudson (given name)
* Hudson (surname)
* Henry Hudson, English explorer
* Hudson (footballer, born 1986), Hudson Fernando Tobias de Carvalho, Brazilian football right-back
* Hudson (footballer, born 1988), Hudson ...
. In , McGee spent the year with the
Southwest Michigan Devil Rays
The Southwest Michigan Devil Rays were an affiliate of the Tampa Bay Devil Rays in the Midwest League in 2005 and 2006. The club began play in 1995 and was previously known as the Michigan Battle Cats and the Battle Creek Yankees. They played th ...
. He played with both the
Vero Beach Devil Rays
The Vero Beach Devil Rays, originally the Vero Beach Dodgers, were a minor league baseball team based in Vero Beach, Florida. They played in the Class A-Advanced Florida State League from 1980–2008, at which point they relocated to Port Charlott ...
and the
Montgomery Biscuits
The Montgomery Biscuits are a Minor League Baseball team based in Montgomery, Alabama. They are the Double-A affiliate of the Tampa Bay Rays and play in the Southern League. The team was founded in Orlando, Florida, in 1973 as the Orlando Twins ...
in . he spent the entire with the Montgomery Biscuits, going 6–4 with 3.94 ERA. McGee was rated by ''
Baseball America
''Baseball America'' is a sports enterprise that covers baseball at every level, including MLB, with a particular focus on up-and-coming players in the MiLB, college, high school, and international leagues. It is currently published in the form o ...
'' as the third-best organizational prospect for Tampa Bay Rays and 15th overall MLB prospect in 2008. In 2007, he was ranked 5th in the Rays' organization and 37th overall in all of baseball.
McGee is nicknamed "Clockhands".
He earned the nickname due to his unconventional windup.
McGee had
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 ...
on July 8, 2008.
McGee was promoted to the MLB for the first time on September 14, 2010. He made his MLB debut that night against the
New York Yankees
The New York Yankees are an American professional baseball team based in the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of the Bronx. The Yankees compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Amer ...
, walking three batters and striking out
Derek Jeter
Derek Sanderson Jeter ( ; born June 26, 1974) is an American former professional baseball shortstop, businessman, and baseball executive. As a player, Jeter spent his entire 20-year Major League Baseball (MLB) career with the New York Yankees ...
for his first MLB strikeout. McGee made the Rays MLB roster after spring training in 2011, but he was sent down to the team's Class AAA minor league affiliate after 11 appearances.
In the last few months of the 2014 season, McGee became the Rays' closer. He finished the season with 19 saves. After undergoing elbow surgery to remove "loose bodies" in December 2014, McGee spent the early portion of the 2015 season with the Class AAA
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 ...
.
He underwent knee surgery for a torn meniscus in late August, ending his season.
Colorado Rockies
On January 28, 2016, McGee and
Germán Márquez
Germán Andres Márquez (born February 22, 1995) is a Venezuelan professional baseball pitcher for the Colorado Rockies of Major League Baseball (MLB). He won a Silver Slugger Award in 2018.
Career Tampa Bay Rays
Márquez signed with the Tampa Ba ...
were traded to the
Colorado Rockies
The Colorado Rockies are an American professional baseball team based in Denver. The Rockies compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. The team plays its home baseball games at Coors Fie ...
for
Corey Dickerson
McKenzie Corey Dickerson (born May 22, 1989) is an American professional baseball outfielder for the Washington Nationals of Major League Baseball (MLB). He has played in MLB for the Colorado Rockies (2013–2015), Tampa Bay Rays (2016–2017), ...
and
Kevin Padlo
Kevin Michael Padlo (born July 15, 1996) is an American professional baseball third baseman in the Los Angeles Angels organization. The Colorado Rockies selected Padlo in the fifth round of the 2014 Major League Baseball draft. He made his MLB ...
. McGee had a 4.73 ERA in the 2016 season. McGee and the Rockies avoided salary arbitration on December 3, 2016, by agreeing to a $5.9 million contract for the 2017 season. In 2017, McGee had an 0–2 win–loss record, a 3.61 ERA, and three saves in 62 games.
[
McGee signed a three-year, $27 million contract with the Rockies after the 2017 season.] In 2018, McGee posted a career-worst 6.49 ERA in 61 games.[ McGee spent time on the disabled list in 2019, posting an ERA of 4.35 in 45 games.] McGee was released by the Rockies on July 17, 2020.
Los Angeles Dodgers
On July 21, 2020, McGee signed a one-year contract with 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 ...
. In the pandemic shortened season, he appeared in 24 games with a 3–1 record and 2.66 ERA.[ McGee allowed one run in innings over three games in the 2020 NLCS and pitched one scoreless inning in the ]2020 World Series
The 2020 World Series was the championship series of Major League Baseball's 2020 season. The 116th World Series was a best-of-seven-playoff between the American League (AL) champion Tampa Bay Rays and the National League (NL) champion Los Ang ...
as the Dodgers won the championship.[
]
San Francisco Giants
McGee signed a two-year contract with the San Francisco Giants
The San Francisco Giants are an American professional baseball team based in San Francisco, California. The Giants compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Founded in 1883 as the New Yor ...
worth $7 million, with a club option for the 2023 season, on February 17, 2021. McGee was named National League Reliever of the Month for July 2021, after not allowing a run in 11 innings and recording seven saves. He finished the 2021 season with 31 saves in 36 chances, as well as a 2.72 ERA and a 0.91 WHIP.
On July 14, 2022, McGee was released by the Giants.
Milwaukee Brewers
On July 22, 2022, McGee signed a one-year contract with the Milwaukee Brewers
The Milwaukee Brewers are an American professional baseball team based in Milwaukee. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) National League Central, Central division. The Brewers are named for t ...
. On August 7, 2022, McGee was designated for assignment.
Washington Nationals
On August 9, 2022, McGee was claimed off waivers by the Washington Nationals
The Washington Nationals are an American professional baseball team based in Washington, D.C.. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the National League (NL) East division. From 2005 to 2007, the team played in RFK Stadiu ...
. On September 9, McGee was designated for assignment. He was released on September 11, 2022.
Personal life
Jake and Morgan McGee have been married since December 2009. As of late 2015, they live in Tampa, Florida
Tampa () is a city on the Gulf Coast of the United States, Gulf Coast of the U.S. state of Florida. The city's borders include the north shore of Tampa Bay and the east shore of Old Tampa Bay. Tampa is the largest city in the Tampa Bay area and ...
. For the last several years, the couple has purchased Christmas presents for foster children in Reno and Tampa.
References
External links
{{DEFAULTSORT:McGee, Jake
1986 births
Living people
Baseball players from San Jose, California
Charlotte Stone Crabs players
Colorado Rockies players
Gulf Coast Rays players
Hudson Valley Renegades players
Los Angeles Dodgers players
Major League Baseball pitchers
Milwaukee Brewers players
Montgomery Biscuits players
Princeton Devil Rays players
San Francisco Giants players
Southwest Michigan Devil Rays players
Tampa Bay Rays players
Vero Beach Devil Rays players
Washington Nationals players
World Baseball Classic players of the United States
2017 World Baseball Classic players