Maxwell Steven Muncy (born August 25, 1990) 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 ...

infielder An infielder is a baseball player stationed at one of four defensive "infield" positions on the baseball field. Standard arrangement of positions In a game of baseball, two teams of nine players take turns playing offensive and defensive roles. ...

for 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 ...

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). 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 pl ...

for the

Baylor Bears The Baylor Bears are the athletic teams that represent Baylor University. The teams participate in Division I of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) as one of only two private school members of the Big 12 Conference. Prior to j ...

. He was selected by 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 ...

in the fifth round of the

2012 Major League Baseball draft The 2012 Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft was held from June 4 through June 6, 2012, from Studio 42 of the MLB Network in Secaucus, New Jersey. The Houston Astros, with the first overall pick, selected Carlos Correa from the Puerto R ...

. He played in MLB for the Athletics in 2015 and 2016, and later joined the Dodgers in 2018.

Career

Amateur career

Muncy attended

Keller High School Keller High School is a public high school located in the city of Keller, Texas and is served by the Keller Independent School District. The school educates students in the majority of the city of Keller, western Southlake, northwestern Colleyv ...

Keller, Texas Keller is a city in Tarrant County, Texas, in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. According to the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census, the city's population is 45,776, making Keller the List of municipalities in Texas, 71st most populated cit ...

. The

Cleveland Indians The Cleveland Guardians are an American professional baseball team based in Cleveland. The Guardians compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. Since , they have played at Progressive F ...

selected him in the 41st round of the 2009 Major League Baseball draft. He did not sign with Cleveland and attended

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 ...

. He played

for the

from 2010 to 2012, and also 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 ...

for the

Wareham Gatemen The Wareham Gatemen are a collegiate summer baseball team based in Wareham, Massachusetts. The team is a member of the Cape Cod Baseball League (CCBL) and plays in the league's West Division. The Gatemen play their home games at Clem Spillane Fi ...

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 ...

in 2010 and 2011. In his three years at Baylor, Muncy had a .311

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 ...

with 27

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. He was twice chosen to the All-

Big 12 Conference The Big 12 Conference is a college athletic conference headquartered in Irving, Texas, USA. It consists of ten full-member universities. It is a member of Division I of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) for all sports. Its ...

team.

Oakland Athletics

The

selected Muncy in the fifth round of the

. He made his professional debut with the

Burlington Bees The Burlington Bees are a collegiate summer baseball team of the Prospect League. They are located in Burlington, Iowa, and have played their home games at Community Field since 1947. Founded in 1889, the Bees played in Minor League Basebal ...

of the Class 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 ...

, hitting .275/.383/.432 with four home runs in 64 games. He started the 2013 season with the

Stockton Ports The Stockton Ports are a Minor League Baseball team of the California League and the Single-A affiliate of the Oakland Athletics. They are located in Stockton, California, and are named for the city's seaport. The team plays its home games at Ba ...

of the

Class A-Advanced High-A (officially Class High-A, formerly known as Class A-Advanced, and sometimes abbreviated "A+" in writing) is the third-highest level of play in Minor League Baseball in the United States and Canada, below Triple-A and Double-A, and abov ...

California League The California League is a Minor League Baseball league that operates in California. Having been classified at various levels throughout its existence, it operated at Class A-Advanced from 1990 until its demotion to Single-A following Major Leag ...

before being promoted to the

Midland RockHounds The Midland RockHounds are a Minor League Baseball team based in Midland, Texas. The team, which plays in the Texas League, is the Double-A affiliate of the Oakland Athletics major league club. The RockHounds play in Momentum Bank Ballpark, whic ...

of the

Class AA Double-A (officially Class AA) is the second-highest level of play in Minor League Baseball in the United States since 1946, below only Triple-A. There are currently 30 teams classified at the Double-A level, one for each team in Major League ...

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 ...

. At the time of his promotion he was leading the California League with 21 home runs and 76

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 bat ...

(RBIs). In total, Muncy hit .273/.381/.476 with 25 home runs and 100 RBIs. After the season, he played for the

Mesa Solar Sox The Mesa Solar Sox are a baseball team that plays in the East Division of the Arizona Fall League. They play their home games in Mesa, Arizona, at Sloan Park, which is also the spring training facility of the Chicago Cubs. The team was established ...

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 fill ...

. He returned to Midland in 2014. Muncy began the 2015 season with the

Nashville Sounds The Nashville Sounds are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League and the Triple-A (baseball), Triple-A affiliate of the Milwaukee Brewers. They are located in Nashville, Tennessee, Nashville, Tennessee, and are named for the ci ...

of the

Class AAA Triple-A (officially Class AAA) has been the highest level of play in Minor League Baseball in the United States since 1946. Currently, two leagues operate at the Triple-A level, the International League (IL) and the Pacific Coast League (PCL ...

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 ...

(PCL), but was promoted to the major leagues on April 25 after second baseman

Ben Zobrist Benjamin Thomas Zobrist (; born May 26, 1981), is an American former professional baseball second baseman and outfielder. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Tampa Bay Devil Rays/Rays, Oakland Athletics, Kansas City Royals, and Chi ...

was placed on the 15-day disabled list. On May 17, 2015, Muncy hit his first major league home run off of

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 ...

pitcher

Jeff Samardzija Jeffrey Alan Samardzija (; born January 23, 1985), nicknamed "Shark", is an American professional former baseball pitcher. He played college baseball and football for the University of Notre Dame, and was recognized as a two-time All-American w ...

. He batted .206 in 45 games for Oakland in 2015. He split the 2016 season between Nashville and Oakland, batting .186 in 51 major league games in 2016. The Athletics released Muncy toward the end of

spring training Spring training is the preseason in Major League Baseball (MLB), a series of practices and exhibition games preceding the start of the regular season. Spring training allows new players to try out for Schedule (workplace), roster and position spo ...

in 2017.

Los Angeles Dodgers

Muncy signed a minor league contract with the

on April 27, 2017, and the organization assigned him to the

Oklahoma City Dodgers The Oklahoma City Dodgers are a Minor League Baseball team of the Pacific Coast League (PCL) and the Triple-A affiliate of the Los Angeles Dodgers. They are located in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, and play their home games at Chickasaw Bricktown Bal ...

of the PCL. In 109 games, he hit .309 with 12 homers and 44 RBIs.

2018: Breakout season

Muncy was called up to the Dodgers on April 17, 2018. He hit his 20th home run for the Dodgers in his 183rd

at bat In baseball, an at bat (AB) or time at bat is a batter's turn batting against a pitcher. An at bat is different from a plate appearance. A batter is credited with a plate appearance regardless of what happens during their turn at bat, but a batt ...

, setting a franchise record. Muncy was chosen as a candidate for the

All-Star Final Vote The All-Star Final Vote was an annual Internet and text message ballot by Major League Baseball (MLB) fans to elect the final player for each team that participates in the Major League Baseball All-Star Game, after all other selections were m ...

for the 2018 MLB All-Star Game, but he finished in third place in the voting. He also accepted an offer to participate in the Home Run Derby during the All-Star break. After beating

Javier Báez Ednel Javier Báez (born December 1, 1992), nicknamed "El Mago" (Spanish for "The Magician"), is a Puerto Rican professional baseball shortstop for the Detroit Tigers of Major League Baseball (MLB). He previously played in MLB for the Chicago Cu ...

in the first round of the Derby, he lost to eventual champion

Bryce Harper Bryce Aron Max Harper (born October 16, 1992) is an American professional baseball right fielder and designated hitter for the Philadelphia Phillies of Major League Baseball (MLB). Prior to his arrival in Philadelphia, Harper played for the Wash ...

in the semi-finals. Muncy batted .263 and led the Dodgers in home runs and was fifth in the National League with 35. He was second in runs batted in for the Dodgers with 79, despite only playing in 137 games. Muncy also exhibited his versatility as he started games at first base (58), third base (30) and second base (13) and also played six games in the outfield. In the playoffs, he hit only .182 in both the

Division Series The Division Series is the quarterfinal round of the Major League Baseball playoffs. Four series are played in this round, two each for both the American League and the National League. 1981 season The first use of the term "Division Series" date ...

and the

National League Championship Series The National League Championship Series (NLCS) is a best-of-seven playoff and one of two League Championship Series comprising the penultimate round of Major League Baseball's (MLB) postseason. It is contested by the winners of the two National ...

, though he did hit two home runs in the Division Series against the

Atlanta Braves The Atlanta Braves are an American professional baseball team based in the Atlanta metropolitan area. The Braves compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) National League East, East division. The Braves ...

. In the third game of 2018 World Series against the

Boston Red Sox The Boston Red Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Boston. The Red Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. Founded in as one of the American League's eight ...

, Muncy scored the tying run in the 13th inning and then hit a

walk-off home run In baseball, a walk-off home run is a home run that ends the game. For a home run to end the game, it must be hit in the bottom of the final inning of the game and generate enough runs to exceed the opponent's score. Because the opponent will not ...

in the 18th, concluding the longest game in World Series history after seven hours and 20 minutes. In the five games of the series, he hit .235 (four hits in 17 at-bats) with the one home run.

2019: First all-star appearance

In 2019, Muncy was selected to the 2019 Major League Baseball All-Star Game as an injury replacement, his first all-star appearance, replacing

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 ...

third baseman

Anthony Rendon Anthony Michael Rendon (, ; born June 6, 1990) is an American baseball third baseman for the Los Angeles Angels of Major League Baseball (MLB). He has previously played for the Washington Nationals and was a member of the Nationals' 2019 World S ...

. On August 30, 2019, Muncy was placed on injured list with a wrist fracture. He finished the 2019 regular season, playing in 142 games, hitting .251/.374/.515 with 35 home runs (for the second season in a row) and a career-high 98 RBIs. Muncy also received two MVP votes.

2020: World Series championship

On February 6, 2020, the Dodgers and Muncy agreed to a three-year, $26 million contract extension with a $13 million option for a fourth year. The 2020 season was delayed due to the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...

in North America. Muncy played in 58 of the Dodgers' 60 games and hit .192/.331/.389 with 12 homers and 27 RBIs. In Game 3 of the 2020 NLCS, Muncy hit a grand slam off of

Grant Dayton Grant Arthur Dayton (born November 25, 1987) is an American professional baseball pitcher who is a free agent. He has played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Los Angeles Dodgers and the Atlanta Braves. He made his MLB debut in 2016. Dayton ...

, capping off scoring 11 runs in the first inning. Eventually the Dodgers broke the record in that game hitting 5 home runs. They won 15–3 as they won the NLCS in seven games against the Atlanta Braves before advancing to the World Series for the third time in four years. 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 ...

, he batted .318 with one home run and six RBIs and helped the Dodgers win the championship.

2021: 100 career home runs and second all-star appearance

On May 30, 2021, Muncy hit his 100th career home run off of

Zack Littell Zachary Stuart Littell (born October 5, 1995), nicknamed Lit, is an American professional baseball pitcher in the Texas Rangers organization. He was drafted by the Seattle Mariners in the 11th round of the 2013 Major League Baseball draft. He ma ...

of 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 ...

. In July, he was selected to represent the Dodgers at the

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 div ...

. Muncy finished the 2021 season batting .249/.368/.527 with 36 home runs and 94 RBIs. In the final game of the regular season, Muncy dislocated his elbow when

Jace Peterson Jace Ryan Peterson (born May 9, 1990) is an American professional baseball second baseman for the Oakland Athletics of Major League Baseball (MLB). He has previously played in MLB for the San Diego Padres, Atlanta Braves, New York Yankees, Baltim ...

of 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 ...

collided with his arm while he was attempting to field the ball at first base, making him unavailable for the playoffs.

2022

On August 22, 2022, Muncy signed a one-year contract extension worth $13.5 million for the 2023 season, which also included a $10 million club option for 2024, with incentives. He played in 136 games in 2022, with most of his starts at third base after the team acquired

Freddie Freeman Frederick Charles Freeman (born September 12, 1989) is an American-Canadian professional baseball first baseman for the Los Angeles Dodgers of Major League Baseball (MLB). Previously, Freeman played for the Atlanta Braves for 12 seasons. He mad ...

to play first. He hit a career low .196 with 21 homers and 69 RBIs.

Personal life

Muncy and his wife, Kellie, married in November 2018. They welcomed a daughter in July 2021.

References

External links

* *
Baylor Bears bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Muncy, Max 1990 births Living people Baseball players from Texas Baylor Bears baseball players Burlington Bees players Los Angeles Dodgers players Major League Baseball first basemen Major League Baseball second basemen Major League Baseball third basemen Mesa Solar Sox players Midland RockHounds players Nashville Sounds players National League All-Stars Oakland Athletics players Oklahoma City Dodgers players People from Tarrant County, Texas Stockton Ports players Wareham Gatemen players

Career

Amateur career

Oakland Athletics

Los Angeles Dodgers

2018: Breakout season

2019: First all-star appearance

2020: World Series championship

2021: 100 career home runs and second all-star appearance

2022

Personal life

See also

References

External links