Nathan Alan Karns (born November 25, 1987) is an American 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 leagues and associated farm teams throughout the world. Modern professional ...

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 ...

. 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

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 ...

Tampa Bay Rays The Tampa Bay Rays are an American professional baseball team based in St. Petersburg, Florida. The Rays compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. Since its inception, the team's home v ...

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 ...

, Kansas City Royals, and

Baltimore Orioles The Baltimore Orioles are an American professional baseball team based in Baltimore. The Orioles compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. As one of the American League's eight charter ...

Career

Amateur

Karns attended James W. Martin High School in Arlington, Texas, where he played for the school's baseball team. He enrolled at

Texas Tech University Texas Tech University (Texas Tech, Tech, or TTU) is a public research university in Lubbock, Texas. Established on , and called Texas Technological College until 1969, it is the main institution of the five-institution Texas Tech University Sy ...

, 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

Texas Tech Red Raiders baseball The Texas Tech Red Raiders baseball team represents Texas Tech University in NCAA Division I college baseball. The team competes in the Big 12 Conference and plays at Dan Law Field at Rip Griffin Park. Their head coach is Tim Tadlock and is enter ...

team. In 2008, he played collegiate summer baseball with 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.

Washington Nationals

The

selected Karns in the 12th round of the 2009 Major League Baseball draft. His professional career was delayed as he had shoulder surgery in 2010, and didn't make his minor league debut until 2011. In 2012, he started at Class A Hagerstown, and then was promoted to Class A Advanced Potomac. His combined record was 11–4, and was named the Nationals Minor Pitcher of the Year in 2012. He was added to the 40-man roster on November 20, 2012. When Ross Detwiler suffered an injury, Karns was called up to take his place in the pitching rotation, and made his major league debut on May 28, 2013. He started, and lasted innings, allowing three earned runs, five hits, and two walks, in a game the Nats won, 9–3.

Tampa Bay Rays

On February 13, 2014, Karns was traded to the

in exchange for

José Lobatón José Manuel Lobatón (born October 21, 1984) is a Venezuelan professional baseball catcher who is a free agent. He has played in Major League Baseball (MLB)for the San Diego Padres, Tampa Bay Rays, Washington Nationals, New York Mets and Chicag ...

, Felipe Rivero and Drew Vettleson. Karns spent the majority of the season in the Rays' AAA system. He finished the season appearing in two starts. Nathan Karns on April 15, 2016

Due to numerous injuries to begin the 2015 season, the Rays gave Karns a rotation spot for opening day. On July 21, 2015, pitching against the Philadelphia Phillies in Philadelphia, Karns hit his first Major League home run as Rays defeated the Phillies, 1–0. It was the first time since 1962 that an American League pitcher had homered in a 1–0 game. Karns appeared in 26 starts for the Rays, averaging nine strikeouts per nine innings despite logging just under six innings per start.

Seattle Mariners

On November 5, 2015, the Rays traded Karns, C. J. Riefenhauser, and

Boog Powell John Wesley "Boog" Powell (born August 17, 1941) is an American former professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball as a first baseman and left fielder from through , most prominently as a member of the Baltimore Orioles dyna ...

to the

for Brad Miller,

Danny Farquhar Daniel Andres Farquhar ( ; born February 17, 1987) is an American former professional baseball pitcher. He played for the Toronto Blue Jays, Seattle Mariners, Tampa Bay Rays and Chicago White Sox before retiring on July 31, 2019. Amateur career ...

, and Logan Morrison. Karns began the Mariners season in the rotation but was then demoted to the bullpen after struggling. He made eight relief appearances before being shut down for the season in early August with a back strain. Karns finished the season with a 6–2 record, 5.15 ERA, and 101 strikeouts in 94 innings.

Kansas City Royals

On January 6, 2017, Karns was traded to the Kansas City Royals for Jarrod Dyson. His 2017 season with Kansas City was cut short due to injury, undergoing surgery for thoracic outlet syndrome in July. Karns finished the season 2–2 with a 4.17 ERA in nine games (eight starts). He missed the entire 2018 season with right elbow inflammation. Karns elected free agency after the Royals outrighted him to the minors on October 31, 2018.

Baltimore Orioles

Karns signed a one-year contract with the

on February 7, 2019. The deal was worth a reported $800,000 guaranteed, with $200,000 in incentive bonuses for 100 innings pitched. He appeared in four games before being placed on the disabled list with a forearm strain. On July 26, Karns was designated for assignment and outrighted on August 2. Karns was released on August 7, 2019.

Personal life

Nathan Karns got married in December 2015 to Jennifer Karns (formerly Jennifer Boecker). Karns is currently a realtor for real estate firm Rogers Healy and Associates Real Estate in

Dallas, Texas Dallas () is the third largest city in Texas and the largest city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States at 7.5 million people. It is the largest city in and seat of Dallas County ...

References

External links

Texas Tech Red Raiders bio
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Karns, Nathan 1987 births Living people People from Franklin, Pennsylvania Baseball players from Pennsylvania Major League Baseball pitchers Washington Nationals players Tampa Bay Rays players Seattle Mariners players Kansas City Royals players Baltimore Orioles players Texas Tech Red Raiders baseball players Falmouth Commodores players Gulf Coast Nationals players Auburn Doubledays players Hagerstown Suns players Potomac Nationals players Harrisburg Senators players Durham Bulls players Martin High School (Arlington, Texas) alumni