Reid Evan Gorecki (born December 22, 1980, in

Queens, New York Queens is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Queens County, in the U.S. state of New York. Located on Long Island, it is the largest New York City borough by area. It is bordered by the borough of Brooklyn at the western tip of Long I ...

) is a former

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), ...

outfielder An outfielder is a person playing in one of the three defensive positions in baseball or softball, farthest from the batter. These defenders are the left fielder, the center fielder, and the right fielder. As an outfielder, their duty is to cat ...

who played for 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 2009.

Amateur career

Gorecki grew up in

East Rockaway, New York East Rockaway is a village in Nassau County, on the South Shore of Long Island, in New York, United States. The population was 9,818 at the 2010 census. The Incorporated Village of East Rockaway is at the edge of Rockaway Peninsula Proper in t ...

, and graduated from

Kellenberg Memorial High School Kellenberg Memorial High School is a Roman Catholic college-preparatory school in Uniondale, New York, on Long Island, United States. Kellenberg Memorial is a Marianist school on Long Island, alongside St. Martin de Porres Marianist School in Uni ...

. He attended the

University of Delaware The University of Delaware (colloquially UD or Delaware) is a public land-grant research university located in Newark, Delaware. UD is the largest university in Delaware. It offers three associate's programs, 148 bachelor's programs, 121 mas ...

, and in 2000 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

Harwich Mariners The Harwich Mariners are a collegiate summer baseball team based in Harwich, Massachusetts. The team is a member of the Cape Cod Baseball League (CCBL) and plays in the league's East Division. The Mariners play their home games at Whitehouse Fiel ...

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 ...

Minor league career

Gorecki was drafted in the 13th round of the

2002 Major League Baseball draft The 2002 First-Year Player Draft, Major League Baseball's annual amateur draft, was held on June 4 and 5. It is featured in Michael Lewis' 2003 book '' Moneyball''. First round selections Supplemental first round compensation selections * ...

by the St. Louis Cardinals and started as a rookie in the Low-A

New York–Penn League The New York–Penn League (NYPL) was a Minor League Baseball league that operated in the northeastern United States from 1939 to 2020. Classified as a Class A Short Season league, its season started in June, after major-league teams signed th ...

. While in the Penn League he played with top prospect Herb Green. He also spent time in High-A Palm Beach, Double-A

Springfield Springfield may refer to: * Springfield (toponym), the place name in general Places and locations Australia * Springfield, New South Wales (Central Coast) * Springfield, New South Wales (Snowy Monaro Regional Council) * Springfield, Queenslan ...

, and Triple-A

Memphis Memphis most commonly refers to: * Memphis, Egypt, a former capital of ancient Egypt * Memphis, Tennessee, a major American city Memphis may also refer to: Places United States * Memphis, Alabama * Memphis, Florida * Memphis, Indiana * Memp ...

before being called up to MLB as a 40-man roster addition. In , he was released from the Cardinals organization due to injuries. On May 10, 2008, he was signed by the Atlanta Braves as a minor league

free agent In professional sports, a free agent is a player who is eligible to sign with other clubs or franchises; i.e., not under contract to any specific team. The term is also used in reference to a player who is under contract at present but who is a ...

, and assigned to the

Mississippi Braves The Mississippi Braves, or M-Braves as they are referred to locally, are a Minor League Baseball team based in Pearl, Mississippi, a suburb of Jackson. The team is the Double-A affiliate of the Atlanta Braves and plays in the Southern League. T ...

of the Double-A Southern League. Gorecki re-signed with the Braves after the 2008 season.

Major league career

Atlanta Braves

On August 17, 2009, the Braves called him up to the majors. On August 19, 2009, Gorecki recorded his first major league hit and run batted in against his hometown team, 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 ...

New York Yankees

Gorecki was granted free agency at the end of the season. On January 11, 2010, Gorecki signed a minor league contract with 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 ...

with an invitation to spring training. In 107 games in the minors split between Double-A Trenton and Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre, he hit .254 with 5 home runs, 45 runs batted in and 20 stolen bases.

Long Island Ducks/Camden Riversharks/Sugar Land Skeeters

After not playing professionally in 2011, Gorecki played in the Atlantic League during 2012, first with

Long Island Long Island is a densely populated island in the southeastern region of the U.S. state of New York (state), New York, part of the New York metropolitan area. With over 8 million people, Long Island is the most populous island in the United Sta ...

, then with Camden. In 108 games, he hit .271 with 11 home runs, 51 runs batted in and 27 stolen bases. On June 7, 2013, Gorecki signed with

Sugar Land Sugar Land is the largest city in Fort Bend County, Texas, United States, located in the southwestern part of the metropolitan area. Located about southwest of downtown Houston, Sugar Land is a populous suburban municipality centered around th ...

of the Atlantic League.

Oil City Sports

After retiring from professional baseball, Gorecki opened up a baseball and softball training complex in

Oceanside, New York Oceanside is a hamlet and census-designated place (CDP) located in the southern part of the town of Hempstead, Nassau County, New York, United States. The population was 32,109 at the 2010 census. History Originally known as South Bay, the Eng ...

called Oil City Sports, so named because the facility is in an area by the shore known for its Oil Companies. The year round complex is used for baseball training, group and private lessons, and travel team development in the Long Island area.

References

External links

Stats and Bio at CBS SportsLine
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gorecki, Reid 1980 births Living people New Jersey Cardinals players Peoria Chiefs players Palm Beach Cardinals players Tennessee Smokies players Springfield Cardinals players Memphis Redbirds players Gulf Coast Cardinals players Mississippi Braves players Richmond Braves players Gwinnett Braves players Atlanta Braves players Trenton Thunder players Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Yankees players Long Island Ducks players Camden Riversharks players Sugar Land Skeeters players Harwich Mariners players People from East Rockaway, New York