Jacob Robert Woodford (born October 28, 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

Chicago White Sox The Chicago White Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The White Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. The team is owned by Jerry Reinsdorf, and p ...

organization. He has previously played in

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) for the

St. Louis Cardinals The St. Louis Cardinals are an American professional baseball team based in St. Louis. The Cardinals compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) Central division. Since the 2006 season, the Cardinals hav ...

. He made his MLB debut in 2020.

Amateur career

Woodford graduated from

Plant High School H.B. Plant High School is a public high school located in the neighborhood of South Tampa in Tampa, Florida, United States. It opened in 1927 between South Himes Avenue on the east and Dale Mabry Highway on the west. The school is named in honor o ...

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 ...

, where he played baseball and was teammates with

Kyle Tucker Kyle Daniel Tucker (born January 17, 1997) is an American professional baseball right fielder for the Houston Astros of Major League Baseball (MLB). The Astros selected Tucker with the fifth pick in the first round of the 2015 MLB draft, and he ...

. As a senior at Plant, Woodford was 7–0 with a 0.67 ERA. He committed to the

University of Florida The University of Florida (Florida or UF) is a public land-grant research university in Gainesville, Florida. It is a senior member of the State University System of Florida, traces its origins to 1853, and has operated continuously on its ...

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 ...

. He was drafted by the

with the 39th overall pick in the

2015 Major League Baseball draft The 2015 Major League Baseball (MLB) First-Year Player Draft was held from June 8 through June 10, 2015, to assign amateur baseball players to MLB teams. The draft order is the reverse order of the 2014 MLB season standings. As the Diamondbacks ...

and signed, forgoing his commitment to Florida.

Professional career

St. Louis Cardinals

Woodford made his professional debut with the

Gulf Coast Cardinals The Florida Complex League Cardinals are a Rookie-level affiliate of the St. Louis Cardinals, competing in the Florida Complex League of Minor League Baseball. Prior to 2021, the team was known as the Gulf Coast League Cardinals. The team plays i ...

and spent all of 2015 there, pitching to a 1–0 record and a 2.39 ERA in eight games. He spent the 2016 season with the

Peoria Chiefs The Peoria Chiefs are a Minor League Baseball team of the Midwest League and the High-A affiliate of the St. Louis Cardinals. The team was established in 1983 as the Peoria Suns. They are located in Peoria, Illinois, and are named for the Peori ...

where was named a

Midwest League The Midwest League is a Minor League Baseball league established in 1947 and based in the Midwestern United States. A Class A league for most of its history, the league was promoted to High-A as part of Major League Baseball's 2021 reorganizat ...

All-Star and posted a 5–5 record with a 3.31 ERA and 82 strikeouts in 21 starts, and 2017 with the

Palm Beach Cardinals The Palm Beach Cardinals are a Minor League Baseball team of the Florida State League and the Single-A affiliate of the St. Louis Cardinals. They are located in the town of Jupiter in Palm Beach County, Florida, and play their home games at Roge ...

, where he went 7–6 with a 3.10 ERA in 23 games (21 starts). Woodford was a non-roster invitee to 2018 spring training. Woodford began the 2018 season with the

Springfield Cardinals The Springfield Cardinals are a Minor League Baseball team based in Springfield, Missouri. They compete as a member of the Texas League's North Division. The Cardinals began play in 2005. The team is owned by the 11-time Major League Baseball ...

, with whom he was named a

Texas League The Texas League is a Minor League Baseball league which has operated in the South Central United States since 1902. It is classified as a Double-A league. Despite the league's name, only its five South Division teams are actually based in the ...

All-Star, and was promoted to the

Memphis Redbirds The Memphis Redbirds are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League and the Triple-A affiliate of the St. Louis Cardinals. They are located in Memphis, Tennessee, and are named for their Major League Baseball affiliate. The Redbir ...

during the season. In 16 starts for Springfield he compiled a 3–8 record with a 5.22 ERA, and in 12 starts for Memphis he was 5–5 with a 4.50 ERA. He returned to Memphis to begin 2019, earning

Pacific Coast League The Pacific Coast League (PCL) is a Minor League Baseball league that operates in the Western United States. Along with the International League, it is one of two leagues playing at the Triple-A (baseball), Triple-A level, which is one grade bel ...

All-Star honors. Over 26 starts for Memphis, Woodford went 9–8 with a 4.15 ERA, striking out 131 batters over innings. Woodford was added to St. Louis' 40–man roster following the 2019 season. On July 28, 2020, Woodford was promoted to the major leagues. On August 15, he made his major league debut against the

, pitching three innings, giving up one earned run and striking out three. For the 2020 season, Woodford went 1-0 with a 5.57 ERA and 16 strikeouts over 21 innings. In 2021, Woodford worked mainly as a reliever but also started 8 games in the second half. He went 3-4 with a 3.99 ERA and 50 strikeouts over innings. Woodford spent 2022 being recalled and optioned multiple times from the Memphis Redbirds, appearing in 11 games with the Redbirds (10 starts) and 27 games (1 start) with the Cardinals, where he went 4-0 with a 2.23 ERA across innings. He was reassigned to the minor leagues on October 9, 2022, and activated by the Cardinals again on January 17, 2023. On November 17, 2023 Jake was non-tendered by the Cardinals.

Chicago White Sox

On January 10, 2024, Woodford signed a minor league contract with the

.https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2024/01/white-sox-to-sign-jake-woodford-to-minor-league-deal.html

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Woodford, Jake 1996 births Living people Baseball players from St. Petersburg, Florida Major League Baseball pitchers St. Louis Cardinals players Gulf Coast Cardinals players Peoria Chiefs players Palm Beach Cardinals players Springfield Cardinals players Memphis Redbirds players Henry B. Plant High School alumni