Kevin Alexander Russo (born July 8, 1984) is a former

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 ...

player. He 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

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 ...

in 2010.

Early years

Russo attended Fairview High School in

Boulder, Colorado Boulder is a home rule city that is the county seat and most populous municipality of Boulder County, Colorado, United States. The city population was 108,250 at the 2020 United States census, making it the 12th most populous city in Color ...

. As a running back on the Fairview High School football team, Russo rushed for 2,416 yards during his senior year, leading the team to a state title. He and

LenDale White LenDale Anthony White (born December 20, 1984) is a former American football running back. He was drafted by the Tennessee Titans in the second round (45th overall) of the 2006 NFL Draft. He has also been a member of the Seattle Seahawks and Den ...

were named as the two all-state running backs by the

Rocky Mountain News The ''Rocky Mountain News'' (nicknamed the ''Rocky'') was a daily newspaper published in Denver, Colorado, United States, from April 23, 1859, until February 27, 2009. It was owned by the E. W. Scripps Company from 1926 until its closing. As ...

. He attended

San Jacinto College San Jacinto College is a public community college in the Greater Houston with its campuses in Pasadena and Houston, Texas. Established in 1961, San Jacinto College originally consisted of the independent school districts (ISD) of Channelview, De ...

before transferring to

Baylor University Baylor University is a private Baptist Christian research university in Waco, Texas. Baylor was chartered in 1845 by the last Congress of the Republic of Texas. Baylor is the oldest continuously operating university in Texas and one of the fir ...

. At Baylor, he helped the Baylor Bears baseball team reach the

2005 College World Series The 2005 NCAA Division I baseball tournament was held from May 30 through June 26, . Sixty-four NCAA Division I college baseball teams met after having played their way through a regular season, and for some, a conference tournament, to play in t ...

. In 2005, he played

collegiate summer baseball Collegiate summer baseball leagues are amateur baseball leagues in the United States and Canada featuring players who have attended at least one year of college and have at least one year of athletic eligibility remaining. Generally, they operat ...

with the Wareham Gatemen of the

Cape Cod Baseball League The Cape Cod Baseball League (CCBL or Cape League) is a collegiate summer baseball wooden bat league located on Cape Cod in the U.S. state of Massachusetts. One of the nation's premier collegiate summer leagues, the league boasts over one thousan ...

Professional career

New York Yankees

Russo was drafted by the Yankees in the 20th round (614th overall) of the 2006 Major League Baseball draft. In 2007, he was a Mid-Season All-Star with the

Tampa Yankees 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 ...

. In 2009, he was named an

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

All-Star and a Triple-A All-Star. Following the 2009 season, Russo was added to the 40-man roster to protect him from the Rule 5 draft. He was called up to the major leagues for the first time on May 8, 2010. He recorded his first hit in the Majors on May 21, 2010, in an interleague game against the

New York Mets The New York Mets are an American professional baseball team based in the New York City borough of Queens. The Mets compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the National League (NL) East division. They are one of two major league ...

and added the decisive two-run double later in the game to lead the Yankees to a 2–1 win over the Mets. The Yankees designated him for assignment on May 6, 2011, to make room for Jess Todd on the 40-man roster.

Detroit Tigers

On November 18, 2012, Russo signed a minor league deal with the

Detroit Tigers The Detroit Tigers are an American professional baseball team based in Detroit. The Tigers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the American League (AL) Central division. One of the AL's eight charter franchises, the club was f ...

with an invitation to spring training. Russo spent the 2013 season with the

Toledo Mud Hens The Toledo Mud Hens are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League and the Triple-A affiliate of the Detroit Tigers. They are located in Toledo, Ohio, and play their home games at Fifth Third Field. A Mud Hens team has played in ...

. He was re-signed for the 2014 season but was released by the end of March.

Sugar Land Skeeters

Russo signed with the Sugar Land Skeeters of the

Atlantic League of Professional Baseball The Atlantic League of Professional Baseball (ALPB) is a professional independent baseball league based in the United States. It is an official MLB Partner League based in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern United States. The Atlantic League's ...

for the 2015 season. He became a free agent after the 2015 season.

Coaching career

After retiring, Russo has served as a coach and insructor for Slammers North.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Russo, Kevin 1984 births Living people New York Yankees players Baylor Bears baseball players Major League Baseball second basemen People from West Babylon, New York Baseball players from Suffolk County, New York Gulf Coast Yankees players Tampa Yankees players Trenton Thunder players Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Yankees players Toledo Mud Hens players Peoria Javelinas players Sugar Land Skeeters players Wareham Gatemen players