James Aubrey Naile (born February 8, 1993) is an American professional baseball pitcher for the St. Louis Cardinals of Major League Baseball (MLB). He made his MLB debut in 2022.

Amateur career

Naile graduated from Charleston High School in Charleston, Missouri. He attended Parkland College, a

junior college A junior college (sometimes referred to colloquially as a juco, JuCo or JC) is a post-secondary educational institution offering vocational training designed to prepare students for either skilled trades and technical occupations and workers in su ...

, despite receiving offers from Arkansas State University and

Southeast Missouri State University Southeast Missouri State University (SEMO) is a public university in Cape Girardeau, Missouri. In addition to the main campus, the university has four regional campuses offering full degree programs and a secondary campus housing the Holland Col ...

, which both play college baseball in NCAA Division I. After spending two years at Parkland, Naile transferred to the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) to play for the UAB Blazers. Naile 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 ...

to repair the

ulnar collateral ligament of the elbow The ulnar collateral ligament (UCL) or internal lateral ligament is a thick triangular ligament at the medial aspect of the elbow uniting the distal aspect of the humerus to the proximal aspect of the ulna. Structure It consists of two portion ...

in 2013.

Professional career

Oakland Athletics

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 ...

selected Naile in the 20th round of the

2015 MLB draft Fifteen or 15 may refer to: *15 (number), the natural number following 14 and preceding 16 *one of the years 15 BC, AD 15, 1915, 2015 Music *Fifteen (band), a punk rock band Albums * ''15'' (Buckcherry album), 2005 * ''15'' (Ani Lorak album ...

. In 2016, Naile was named the best defensive pitcher in Minor League Baseball.

St. Louis Cardinals

Naile became a free agent and signed with the St. Louis Cardinals organization on November 18, 2021. The Cardinals promoted Naile to the major leagues on June 27, 2022. He made his MLB debut that night versus the

Miami Marlins The Miami Marlins are an American professional baseball team based in Miami. The Marlins compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) East division. The club's home ballpark is LoanDepot Park. The franc ...

, pitching one scoreless inning of relief. He made seven total appearances for the Cardinals in his rookie campaign, posting a 5.00 ERA with five strikeouts in nine innings pitched. On February 8, 2023, Naile was designated for assignment by St. Louis following the acquisition of

Anthony Misiewicz Anthony Misiewicz ( ; born November 1, 1994) is an American professional baseball pitcher for the Arizona Diamondbacks of Major League Baseball (MLB). He has previously played in MLB for the Seattle Mariners and Kansas City Royals. Career Amate ...

. On February 10, Naile cleared waivers and was sent outright to the Triple-A Memphis Redbirds. In 6 games with Memphis, Naile posted a 3-1 record and 2.50 ERA with 19 strikeouts. On May 5, his contract was selected to the active roster.

Personal life

Naile grew up as a fan of the Cardinals. His mother died in 2018.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Naile, James Living people 1993 births People from Cape Girardeau, Missouri Baseball players from Missouri Major League Baseball pitchers St. Louis Cardinals players Parkland Cobras baseball players UAB Blazers baseball players Arizona League Athletics players Vermont Lake Monsters players Beloit Snappers players Stockton Ports players Midland RockHounds players Nashville Sounds players Las Vegas Aviators players Memphis Redbirds players