Tanner Scott Rainey (born December 25, 1992) 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 ...

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 ...

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 ...

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 was drafted by the Cincinnati Reds in the second round of the

2015 Major League Baseball draft The 2015 Major League Baseball (MLB) First-Year Player Draft was held from June 8 through June 10, 2015, to assign amateur baseball players to MLB teams. The draft order is the reverse order of the 2014 MLB season standings. As the Diamondbacks f ...

. He made his MLB debut with the Reds in 2018.

Career

Rainey attended St. Paul's School in

Covington, Louisiana Covington is a city in, and the parish seat of, St. Tammany Parish, Louisiana, United States. The population was 11,564 at the 2020 United States census. It is located at a fork of the Bogue Falaya and the Tchefuncte River. Covington is part o ...

. 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 ...

Southeastern Louisiana University Southeastern Louisiana University (Southeastern) is a public university in Hammond, Louisiana. It was founded in 1925 by Linus A. Sims as Hammond Junior College. Sims succeeded in getting the campus moved to north Hammond in 1928, when it becam ...

and the

University of West Alabama The University of West Alabama (UWA) is a public university in Livingston, Alabama. Founded in 1835, the school began as a church-supported school for young women called Livingston Female Academy. The original Board of Trustees of Livingston Fe ...

as a pitcher and

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 ...

. He was drafted by the Cincinnati Reds as a pitcher in the second round of the

Cincinnati Reds

Rainey signed with the Reds, made his professional debut with the

Billings Mustangs The Billings Mustangs 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 Billings, Montana, and have played their home games at Dehler ...

, and spent the whole season there, pitching to a 2-2 record and 4.27 ERA in 15 starts. He pitched 2016 with the

Dayton Dragons The Dayton Dragons are a Minor League Baseball team of the Midwest League and the High-A affiliate of the Cincinnati Reds. They are located in Dayton, Ohio, and play their home games at Day Air Ballpark, formerly known as Fifth Third Field. I ...

and was 5-10 with a 5.57 ERA in 29 games (20 starts), and 2017 with the

Daytona Tortugas The Daytona Tortugas are a Minor League Baseball team of the Florida State League and the Single-A affiliate of the Cincinnati Reds. They are located in Daytona Beach, Florida, and play their home games at Jackie Robinson Ballpark; opened in ...

and

Pensacola Blue Wahoos The Pensacola Blue Wahoos are a Minor League Baseball team of the Southern League and the Double-A affiliate of the Miami Marlins. They are based in Pensacola, Florida, and play their home games at Admiral Fetterman Field. In 2012, the team rel ...

, compiling a combined 3-3 record and 3.19 ERA in 53 relief appearances along with 104 strikeouts in 62 innings (15.1 per nine innings). The Reds invited him to spring training in 2018. On April 10, 2018, Rainey's contract was purchased by the Reds. He made his major league debut that same day against the Philadelphia Phillies, pitching one inning of relief and giving up a grand slam to

Scott Kingery Scott Michael Kingery (born April 29, 1994) is an American professional baseball utility player in the Philadelphia Phillies organization. The Phillies selected Kingery in the second round, 48th overall, of the 2015 Major League Baseball Draft, ...

Washington Nationals

On December 12, 2018, the Reds traded Rainey to the

for

Tanner Roark Tanner B. Roark ( ; born October 5, 1986) is an American professional baseball pitcher who is a free agent. He has previously played in Major League Baseball for the Washington Nationals, Cincinnati Reds, Oakland Athletics, and Toronto Blue Jays. ...

. Rainey was called up to the Nationals from the Class-AAA

Fresno Grizzlies The Fresno Grizzlies are a Minor League Baseball team of the California League and the Single-A affiliate of the Colorado Rockies. They are located in Fresno, California, and play their home games at Chukchansi Park, which was opened in 2002 in d ...

on May 18, 2019, and swiftly became one of manager

Dave Martinez David Martinez (born September 26, 1964) is an American professional baseball coach and former outfielder who is the manager for the Washington Nationals of Major League Baseball (MLB). He previously served as the bench coach for the Tampa Bay ...

's go-to relievers. He earned his first career win in relief on June 1, beating Roark and the Reds at

Great American Ball Park Great American Ball Park is a baseball stadium in Cincinnati, Ohio. It served as the home stadium of the Cincinnati Reds of Major League Baseball (MLB), and opened on March 31, 2003, replacing Cinergy Field (formerly Riverfront Stadium), the Reds ...

. In 2019 he was 2-3 with a 3.91 ERA in 52 relief appearances, as he struck out 74 batters in 48.1 innings (13.8 per nine innings). The Nationals finished the 2019 year with a 93-69 record, clinched a wild card spot, and won the

World Series The World Series is the annual championship series of Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada, contested since 1903 between the champion teams of the American League (AL) and the National League (NL). The winner of the World ...

over the Houston Astros. Rainey pitched 6.2 innings in the 2019 playoffs including throwing 2 strikeouts and finishing Game 3 of the 2019 NLCS, the first ever NLCS game at

Nationals Park Nationals Park is a baseball stadium along the Anacostia River in the Navy Yard neighborhood of Washington, D.C. Home to Major League Baseball's Washington Nationals since its completion in 2008, it was the first LEED-certified green major profe ...

and in

Washington, DC ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan ...

history. Rainey pitched 20.1 innings of 2.66 ERA ball in 2020, going along with 32 strikeouts and a 1-1 record, however after experiencing forearm tightness in mid-September 2020, Rainey sat out the remainder of the season.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Rainey, Tanner 1992 births Living people Sportspeople from Hammond, Louisiana Baseball players from Louisiana Major League Baseball pitchers Cincinnati Reds players Washington Nationals players Southeastern Louisiana Lions baseball players West Alabama Tigers baseball players Billings Mustangs players Dayton Dragons players Daytona Tortugas players Pensacola Blue Wahoos players Louisville Bats players Fresno Grizzlies players