Kevin Scott Cron (born February 17, 1993) 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 leagues and associated farm teams throughout the world. Modern professional ...

first baseman A first baseman, abbreviated 1B, is the player on a baseball or softball team who fields the area nearest first base, the first of four bases a baserunner must touch in succession to score a run. The first baseman is responsible for the majori ...

who is a free agent. 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

Arizona Diamondbacks The Arizona Diamondbacks (colloquially known as the D-backs) are an American professional baseball team based in Phoenix. The Diamondbacks compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. The ...

, in

Nippon Professional Baseball or NPB is the highest level of baseball in Japan. Locally, it is often called , meaning ''Professional Baseball''. Outside Japan, it is often just referred to as "Japanese baseball". The roots of the league can be traced back to the formation ...

(NPB) for the

Hiroshima Toyo Carp The is a professional baseball team based in Hiroshima, Hiroshima, Hiroshima, Japan. They compete in the Central League of Nippon Professional Baseball. The team is primarily owned by the Matsuda family, led by , who is a descendant of Mazda ...

, and in the

KBO League The KBO League (), officially the Shinhan Bank SOL KBO League, is the highest level league of baseball in South Korea. The KBO League was founded with six franchises in 1982 and is the most popular sports league in South Korea. The Kia Tigers ar ...

for the

SSG Landers SSG Landers () are a South Korean professional baseball team. The team was originally established as the SK Wyverns but was renamed as the SSG Landers in 2021 after Shinsegae acquired the team from SK Group. They are a member of the KBO League. ...

Amateur career

Cron attended

Mountain Pointe High School Mountain Pointe High School is a secondary school located in Ahwatukee, Arizona one of eight public high schools serving the Tempe Union High School District. History The Ahwatukee area of Phoenix experienced explosive growth in the 1990s. The ...

in Ahwatukee, Phoenix,

Arizona Arizona ( ; nv, Hoozdo Hahoodzo ; ood, Alĭ ṣonak ) is a state in the Southwestern United States. It is the 6th largest and the 14th most populous of the 50 states. Its capital and largest city is Phoenix. Arizona is part of the Fou ...

. He played for the school's baseball team as a

catcher Catcher is a position in baseball and softball. When a batter takes their turn to hit, the catcher crouches behind home plate, in front of the ( home) umpire, and receives the ball from the pitcher. In addition to this primary duty, the ca ...

, and had a .560

batting average Batting average is a statistic in cricket, baseball, and softball that measures the performance of batters. The development of the baseball statistic was influenced by the cricket statistic. Cricket In cricket, a player's batting average is ...

in 2011, his senior year. He set Arizona state high records for

home run In baseball, a home run (abbreviated HR) is scored when the ball is hit in such a way that the batter is able to circle the bases and reach home plate safely in one play without any errors being committed by the defensive team. A home run i ...

s in a season (27) and a career (60). He was named to the ''

USA Today ''USA Today'' (stylized in all uppercase) is an American daily middle-market newspaper and news broadcasting company. Founded by Al Neuharth on September 15, 1982, the newspaper operates from Gannett's corporate headquarters in Tysons, Virgi ...

''s All-USA high school baseball team. Prior to the 2011 Major League Baseball (MLB) draft, '' Baseball America'' ranked him as the 133rd best prospect available. He was selected in the third round of the draft by the

Seattle Mariners The Seattle Mariners are an American professional baseball team based in Seattle. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West division. The team joined the American League as an expansion team ...

, but opted not to sign. Cron enrolled at

Texas Christian University Texas Christian University (TCU) is a private research university in Fort Worth, Texas. It was established in 1873 by brothers Addison and Randolph Clark as the Add-Ran Male & Female College. It is affiliated with the Christian Church (Disciple ...

(TCU), where he played

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 p ...

for the

TCU Horned Frogs baseball The TCU Horned Frogs baseball team represents Texas Christian University in NCAA Division I baseball. The Frogs have competed in the Big 12 Conference since 2013 and previously competed in the Mountain West, Conference USA, Western Athletic Confe ...

team. He suffered a back injury that cost him playing time as a freshman, but batted .338 with six home runs and 34

runs batted in A run batted in (RBI; plural RBIs ) is a statistic in baseball and softball that credits a batter for making a play that allows a run to be scored (except in certain situations such as when an error is made on the play). For example, if the ba ...

(RBIs) in 43 games. As a sophomore. Cron struggled, batting only .208, with two home runs, and 20 RBIs. After his sophomore season, he played collegiate summer baseball for the

Falmouth Commodores The Falmouth Commodores are a collegiate summer baseball team based in Falmouth, Massachusetts. The team is a member of the Cape Cod Baseball League (CCBL) and plays in the league's West Division. The Commodores play their home games at Arnie Alle ...

of the Cape Cod Baseball League (CCBL), where he improved his performance, Cron's .350 batting average was second in the CCBL, and he was named the west division's most valuable player in the league's

All-Star Game An all-star game is an exhibition game that purports to showcase the best players (the "stars") of a sports league. The exhibition is between two teams organized solely for the event, usually representing the league's teams based on region or d ...

. He hit six home runs in 2014, his junior year, including one in the

2014 College World Series The 2014 NCAA Division I baseball tournament began on Friday, May 30, 2014 as part of the 2014 NCAA Division I baseball season. The 64 team double elimination tournament concluded with the 2014 College World Series in Omaha, Nebraska, which start ...

. He was named the first baseman on the College World Series All-Tournament Team.

Professional career

Arizona Diamondbacks

The

selected Cron in the 14th round of the

2014 MLB draft The 2014 Major League Baseball (MLB) First-Year Player Draft was held from June 5 through June 7, 2014, to assign amateur baseball players to MLB teams. The first two rounds were conducted on June 5, followed by rounds three through ten on June ...

, and signed. Cron made his professional debut with the

Missoula Osprey The Missoula PaddleHeads are an independent baseball team of the Pioneer League, which is not affiliated with Major League Baseball (MLB) but is an MLB Partner League. They are located in Missoula, Montana, and play their home games at Ogren Par ...

of the Rookie-level Pioneer League, and received a midseason promotion to the

Hillsboro Hops The Hillsboro Hops are a Minor League Baseball team in the northwest United States, located in Hillsboro, Oregon, a city in the Portland metropolitan area. The Hops are members of the Northwest League as an affiliate of the Arizona Diamondbacks. ...

of the Low–A

Northwest League The Northwest League is a Minor League Baseball league that operates in the Northwestern United States and Western Canada. A Class A Short Season league for most of its history, the league was promoted to High-A as part of Major League Basebal ...

. Cron finished 2014 with a combined .291

along with 12 home runs and 45 RBIs. He played for the

Visalia Rawhide The Visalia Rawhide are a Minor League Baseball team of the California League and the Single-A affiliate of the Arizona Diamondbacks. They are located in Visalia, California, and have played their home games at Valley Strong Ballpark since thei ...

of the High–A California League in 2015 where he batted .272 with 27 home runs and 97 RBIs, and the

Mobile BayBears The Mobile BayBears were a Minor League Baseball team based in Mobile, Alabama, United States. The team, which played in the Southern League, served as the Double-A affiliate of the San Diego Padres (1997–2006), Arizona Diamondbacks (2007–2 ...

of the Double–A Southern League in 2016 where he batted .222 with 26 home runs and 88 RBIs. After the 2016 season, the Diamondbacks assigned Cron to the

Salt River Rafters The Salt River Rafters are a baseball team that plays in the East Division of the Arizona Fall League. They play their home games at Salt River Fields at Talking Stick near Scottsdale, Arizona. The ballpark is also the spring training facility o ...

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 fille ...

. In 2017, Cron played for the

Jackson Generals The Jackson Generals were a professional baseball team located in Jackson, Tennessee. From 1998 to 2020, they were a part of Minor League Baseball's Southern League (SL) as the Double-A affiliate of the Chicago Cubs (1998–2006), Seattle Mari ...

of the Southern League, and was named the league's most valuable player after batting .283 with 25 home runs and 91 RBIs. The Diamondbacks assigned Cron to the

Reno Aces The Reno Aces are a Minor League Baseball team of the Pacific Coast League (PCL) and the Triple-A affiliate of the Arizona Diamondbacks. They are located in Reno, Nevada, and play their home games at Greater Nevada Field, which opened in 2009. ...

of the Triple–A Pacific Coast League in 2018 where he spent the whole season hitting .309 with 22 home runs and 97 RBIs. The Diamondbacks added Cron to their 40-man roster after the 2018 season. He began the 2019 season with Reno. On May 24, the Diamondbacks promoted Cron to the major leagues. At the time of his call up, Cron was leading all of the minor leagues with 21 home runs and 62 RBIs. He made his debut that same day in an 18-2 win in San Francisco over the Giants. In 71 at bats he hit .211/.269/.521. He led the minor leagues in home runs in 2019, with 39, and was second in RBIs, with 107. On October 31, 2020, Cron was released by the Diamondbacks organization and his rights were sold to a team in

Hiroshima Toyo Carp

On November 16, 2020, Cron officially agreed to a one-year, $1.1 million deal with the

. In 42 games, Cron hit 6 home runs and earned 16 RBIs while striking out 47 times. He became a free agent after the season.

SSG Landers

On December 4, 2021, Cron signed a one-year, $1 million deal with the

of the

. Cron played in 67 games for SSG, batting .222/.255/.420 with 11 home runs and 35 RBI. He was released on July 8, 2022.

Oakland Athletics

On November 3, 2022, Cron signed a minor league deal with the Oakland Athletics. He began the year with the Triple-A

Las Vegas Aviators The Las Vegas Aviators, formerly known as the Las Vegas 51s and Las Vegas Stars, are a Minor League Baseball team of the Pacific Coast League (PCL) and the Triple-A affiliate of the Oakland Athletics. They are located in Summerlin South, Nevada ...

, playing in 10 games and hitting just .133/.152/.156 with no home runs and 6 RBI. He was released by the Athletics organization on May 1, 2023.

Personal life

Cron's father, Chris Cron, was an MLB player and his brother C. J. Cron also plays in MLB. The Crons are cousins with

Chad Moeller Chad Edward Moeller OE-ler(born February 18, 1975) is an American former professional baseball catcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) from 2000 through 2010 for the Minnesota Twins, Arizona Diamondbacks, Milwaukee Brewers, Cincinna ...

. Chris managed Kevin with Reno in 2019.

References

External links

*
Career statistics - NPB.jp
{{DEFAULTSORT:Cron, Kevin Living people 1993 births Baseball players from Phoenix, Arizona Major League Baseball first basemen Arizona Diamondbacks players TCU Horned Frogs baseball players Missoula Osprey players Hillsboro Hops players Visalia Rawhide players Mobile BayBears players Salt River Rafters players Jackson Generals (Southern League) players Reno Aces players Falmouth Commodores players Nippon Professional Baseball infielders Hiroshima Toyo Carp players