Cal Stevenson (born September 12, 1996) is an American professional

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball sport played between two team sport, teams of nine players each, taking turns batting (baseball), batting and Fielding (baseball), fielding. The game occurs over the course of several Pitch ...

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 catch ...

for the

Philadelphia Phillies The Philadelphia Phillies are an American professional baseball team based in Philadelphia. The Phillies compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) East Division. Since 2004, the team's home stadium has ...

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball league composed of 30 teams, divided equally between the National League (baseball), National League (NL) and the American League (AL), with 29 in the United States and 1 in Canada. MLB i ...

(MLB). He has previously played in MLB for the

Oakland Athletics The Oakland Athletics (frequently referred to as the Oakland A's) were an American Major League Baseball (MLB) team based in Oakland, California from 1968 to 2024. The Athletics were a member club of the American League (AL) American League We ...

and

San Francisco Giants The San Francisco Giants are an American professional baseball team based in San Francisco. The Giants compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League West, West Div ...

. Stevenson played

college baseball College baseball is baseball that is played by Student athlete, student-athletes at institutions of higher education. In the United States, college baseball is sanctioned mainly by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA); in Japan, ...

for the

University of Nevada, Reno The University of Nevada, Reno (Nevada, the University of Nevada, or UNR) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Reno, Nevada, United States. It is the state's flagship public university and prim ...

Wolfpack (with whom he was named the 2015 Mountain West Co-Freshman of the Year), Chabot Junior College, and the

University of Arizona The University of Arizona (Arizona, U of A, UArizona, or UA) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Tucson, Arizona, United States. Founded in 1885 by the 13th Arizona Territorial Legislature, it ...

. The

Toronto Blue Jays The Toronto Blue Jays are a Canadian professional baseball team based in Toronto. The Blue Jays compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League East, East Division. Since 1989, the team has p ...

selected Stevenson in the 10th round of the

2018 MLB draft The 2018 Major League Baseball draft began on June 4, 2018. The draft assigned amateur baseball players to MLB teams. The draft order was determined based on the reverse order of the 2017 MLB season final standings. In addition, compensation pi ...

High school and college

Stevenson was born in

Fremont, California Fremont () is a city in Alameda County, California, United States. Located in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area, Bay Area, Fremont has a population of 230,504 as of 2020, making it the fourth List of cities and towns in the San F ...

to Jim and Tanya Stevenson, attended and played baseball under his father who was head coach at John F. Kennedy High School in Fremont. He was named all- Mission Valley Athletic League (MVAL) as an outfielder in 2012 and 2013, and as a utility player in 2014 when he also won the MVAL Player of the Year Award. Over the summer he played for the PUF Capitalists in the California Collegiate League (CLL), led the league in batting average, was named first team All-CLL, and was named Nevada's 2014 summer position player of the year. In 2014, he attended the

, where he played

for the

Nevada Wolf Pack The Nevada Wolf Pack are the athletic teams that represent the University of Nevada, Reno. They are part of NCAA's Division I's Mountain West Conference. It was founded on October 24, 1896 with football as the Sagebrushers in Reno, Nevada. H ...

. He batted .358(4th in the

Mountain West Conference The Mountain West Conference (MW) is a collegiate athletic conference in the Western United States, participating in NCAA Division I. Its football teams compete in the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS). The MW officially began operations on Ja ...

)/.429/.454 in 218 at bats, with 55 runs (4th), 4 triples (2nd), 0 home runs, 25 RBIs, and 10 steals (6th) in 13 attempts. He was named the 2015 Mountain West Co-Freshman of the Year, and a Freshman

All-American The All-America designation is an annual honor bestowed on outstanding athletes in the United States who are considered to be among the best athletes in their respective sport. Individuals receiving this distinction are typically added to an Al ...

Louisville Slugger Louisville is the most populous city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky, sixth-most populous city in the Southeast, and the 27th-most-populous city in the United States. By land area, it is the country's 24th-largest city; however, by populatio ...

and ''

Baseball America ''Baseball America'' (BA) is a sports publication company that covers baseball at every level, including Major League Baseball (MLB), with a particular focus on up-and-coming players in Minor League Baseball (MiLB) college, high school, and inte ...

''. In the summer of 2015, he played for the

Duluth Huskies The Duluth Huskies are an Amateur baseball in the United States, amateur baseball team playing in the Northwoods League, a Collegiate summer baseball, collegiate summer baseball league. They have been operating in Duluth, Minnesota since 2003. T ...

in the

Northwoods League The Northwoods League is a collegiate summer baseball wooden bat league. All players in the league must have National Collegiate Athletic Association, NCAA eligibility remaining in order to participate. The league is amateur, and players are not ...

, batting .326/.481(leading the league)/.393 in 178 at bats, with 4 triples (4th), one home runs, 41 RBIs, 53 walks (2nd), and 16 stolen bases in 21 attempts. He transferred to Chabot Junior College in 2015, where he was First-Team CCCAA in 2016 after batting .287/.432/.377 in 167 at bats with 57 runs (leading the league), five triples (4th), no home runs, 26 RBIs, 40 walks (2nd), and 21 stolen bases (6th) in 25 attempts. That summer 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

Cotuit Kettleers The Cotuit Kettleers are a collegiate summer baseball team based in the village of Cotuit, Massachusetts, which is in the southwest corner of the town of Barnstable, Massachusetts, Barnstable. The team is a member of the Cape Cod Baseball League ...

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 1,000 forme ...

, with whom he batted .254/.364/.263 in 118 at bats, with 21 walks (6th in the league), and 10 steals (8th) in 13 attempts. He then transferred to the

, where he was honorable mention All-

Pac-12 The Pac-12 Conference is a collegiate athletic conference in the Western United States. It participates at the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I level for all sports, and its football teams compete in the Football Bowl ...

in 2017, after batting .311/.448(4th in the conference)/.461 in 193 at bats, leading the conference with 61 runs and 48 walks, and stealing five bases without being caught. In 2018 with Arizona he batted .293/.416/.397 in 174 at bats with one home run, 26 RBIs, and 35 walks (9th in the conference) and six sacrifice flies (leading the conference). In college he played 101 games in center field, 56 games in

right field A right fielder, abbreviated RF, is the outfielder in baseball or softball who plays defense in right field. Right field is the area of the outfield to the right of a person standing at home plate and facing towards the pitcher's mound. In t ...

, four games in

left field In baseball, a left fielder, abbreviated LF, is an outfielder who plays defense in left field. Left field is the area of the outfield to the left of a person standing at home plate and facing towards the pitcher's mound. In the numbering syst ...

, and pitched in three games.

Professional career

Toronto Blue Jays

The

selected Stevenson in the 10th round of the

, and he signed for a signing bonus of $5,000. Stevenson split his debut 2018 campaign between two teams, playing briefly for the rookie-level Gulf Coast Blue Jays, with whom he batted .474/.645/.579 in 19 at bats. And playing the bulk of the season for the

Bluefield Blue Jays The Bluefield Blue Jays were a minor league baseball team of the Rookie Appalachian League representing the twin cities of Bluefield, West Virginia, and Bluefield, Virginia. The team played their home games at Bowen Field at Peters Park, a histori ...

, with whom he was named an

Appalachian League The Appalachian League is a Collegiate summer baseball, collegiate summer baseball league that operates in the Appalachian regions of Tennessee, Virginia, West Virginia, and North Carolina. Designed for rising freshmen and sophomores using wooden ...

Post-Season All Star, hit .359(4th in the

)/.494(2nd)/.518 in 195 at bats, and led the league with 65 runs and 53 walks, with 13 doubles (7th), 6 triples (3rd), 2 home runs, 29 RBIs, with 20 stolen bases in 22 attempts. He was named an MiLB Organization All Star. He began the 2019 season with the High-A

Dunedin Blue Jays The Dunedin Blue Jays are a Minor League Baseball team of the Florida State League and are the Single-A affiliate of the Toronto Blue Jays Major League Baseball club. They are located in Dunedin, Florida, and play their home games at TD Ballpark, ...

. With them he batted .298(8th in the league)/.388(8th)/.393 in 336 at bats with 59 runs(9th), 4 triples (9th), 5 home runs, 50 RBIs, 50 walks (8th), and 11 stolen bases in 90 games, and was named a

Florida State League The Florida State League (FSL) is a Minor League Baseball league based in the state of Florida. Having been classified at various levels throughout its existence, it operated at Class A-Advanced from 1990 until its demotion to Single-A following ...

Post-Season All Star.

Houston Astros

On July 31, 2019, the Blue Jays traded Stevenson and pitchers Aaron Sanchez and Joe Biagini to the

Houston Astros The Houston Astros are an American professional baseball team based in Houston. The Astros compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League West, West Division. They are one of two major leag ...

for outfielder

Derek Fisher Derek Lamar Fisher (born August 9, 1974) is an American professional basketball coach and former player. Fisher played professionally in the National Basketball Association (NBA) for 18 seasons, spending the majority of his career with the Los ...

. He played in 23 games for the High-A

Fayetteville Woodpeckers The Fayetteville Woodpeckers are a Minor League Baseball team of the Carolina League and the Single-A affiliate of the Houston Astros. They are located in Fayetteville, North Carolina, and play their home games at Segra Stadium. From 2017 to 201 ...

down the stretch, posting a slash of .247/.390/.346 in 81 at bats with 18 runs, no home runs, 9 RBIs, and 19 walks.

Tampa Bay Rays

On January 9, 2020, the Astros traded Stevenson and pitcher

Peyton Battenfield Peyton Cole Battenfield (born August 10, 1997) is an American professional baseball pitcher who is a free agent. He has previously played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Cleveland Guardians. Amateur career Battenfield attended Verdigris H ...

to the

Tampa Bay Rays The Tampa Bay Rays are an American professional baseball team based in the Tampa Bay area. The Rays compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League East, East Division. They are one of two major ...

for pitcher

Austin Pruitt Austin Daniel Pruitt (born August 31, 1989) is an American professional baseball pitcher who is a free agent. He has previously played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Tampa Bay Rays, Houston Astros, Miami Marlins, and Texas Rangers (baseba ...

. Stevenson did not play in a game in 2020 due to the cancellation of the minor league season because of the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...

. Stevenson spent the 2021 season with the Double-A

Montgomery Biscuits The Montgomery Biscuits are a Minor League Baseball team based in Montgomery, Alabama. They are the Double-A affiliate of the Tampa Bay Rays and play in the Southern League. The team was founded in Orlando, Florida, in 1973 as the Orlando Twins ...

. He slashed .254/.368/.403 in 295 at bats with 9 home runs, 41 RBIs, and 17 stolen bases (7th in the Double-A South) in 94 games. He began the 2022 season with the Triple-A

Durham Bulls The Durham Bulls are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League and the Triple-A affiliate of the Tampa Bay Rays. They are located in Durham, North Carolina, and play their home games at Durham Bulls Athletic Park, which opened ...

. He played in 57 games and hit .265/.376/.353 in 170 at bats with 29 runs, 2 home runs, 17 RBIs, and 9 stolen bases in 11 attempts.

Oakland Athletics

On July 9, 2022, the Rays traded Stevenson and Christian Fernandez to the

for Christian Bethancourt. He was assigned to the Triple-A

Las Vegas Aviators The Las Vegas Aviators, formerly known as the Las Vegas 51s and Las Vegas Stars, are a Minor League Baseball team of the Pacific Coast League (PCL) and the Triple-A affiliate of the Athletics. They are located in Summerlin South, Nevada, a comm ...

upon being acquired, with whom he batted .322/.414/.529 in 87 at bats, with 23 runs, 4 home runs, 19 RBIs, 14 walks, and 7 steals in 8 attempts. The Athletics promoted Stevenson to the major leagues for the first time on August 10. He recorded his first career hit that night, an infield single off of

Los Angeles Angels The Los Angeles Angels are an American professional baseball team based in the Greater Los Angeles, Greater Los Angeles area. The Angels compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League West, ...

reliever

Aaron Loup Aaron Christopher Loup (born December 19, 1987) is an American professional baseball pitcher who is a free agent. He has previously played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Toronto Blue Jays, Philadelphia Phillies, San Diego Padres, Tampa B ...

. He played in 23 games for Oakland, hitting .167/.261/.217 in 60 at bats with 5 runs, no home runs, 1 RBI, 8 walks, and 1 stolen base. He began the 2023 season with the Triple-A Las Vegas Aviators, hitting .348/.483/.435 in 23 at bats with 7 runs, 2 RBIs and 3 stolen bases without being caught in 7 games. On April 14, 2023, he was

designated for assignment Designated for assignment (DFA) is a contractual term used in Major League Baseball (MLB). A player who is designated for assignment is immediately removed from the team's 40-man roster, after which the team must, within seven days, return the pla ...

after Tyler Wade’s contract was selected. In the minor leagues to this point in his career, on defense he had played 186 games in center field, 128 games in left field, and 28 games in right field. On offense he had hit .294/.409/.420 in 1,471 plate appearances with 260 runs, more walks (240) than strikeouts (222), and 70 steals in 88 attempts.

San Francisco Giants

On April 19, 2023, Stevenson was traded to the

in exchange for cash considerations, and was optioned to the Triple-A

Sacramento River Cats The Sacramento River Cats are a Minor League Baseball team of the Pacific Coast League (PCL) and are the Triple-A (baseball), Triple-A affiliate of the San Francisco Giants. Prior to 2015, the River Cats were the Triple-A affiliate of the Oakland ...

. Stevenson played in 6 games for San Francisco, going hitless in 9 at-bats while walking 3 times. On May 19, Stevenson was designated for assignment following the promotions of Patrick Bailey and Ryan Walker.

Philadelphia Phillies

On May 26, 2023, Stevenson was claimed off waivers by the

. Stevenson went hitless in two games for the Triple-A

Lehigh Valley IronPigs The Lehigh Valley IronPigs are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League (IL) and the Triple-A affiliate of the Philadelphia Phillies. They are located in Allentown, Pennsylvania, and they are named in reference to pig iron, used ...

before he was designated for assignment on June 1. He cleared waivers and was sent outright to Triple–A on June 7. Stevenson began 2024 with Triple–A Lehigh Valley, slashing .307/.420/.488 with seven home runs, 39 RBI, and 27 stolen bases over 91 games. On August 9, 2024, Stevenson had his contract selected to the active roster to replace an injured Austin Hays. On September 14, in a game against the

New York Mets The New York Mets are an American professional baseball team based in the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of Queens. The Mets compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National ...

, Stevenson hit a go-ahead two-run double in the seventh inning and made a spectacular leaping catch to rob a home run in the eighth as the Phillies registered a 6-4 win. In 18 appearances for the Phillies, he batted .250/.333/.375 with 6 RBI and 3 walks. Stevenson was optioned to Triple-A Lehigh Valley to begin the 2025 season.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Stevenson, Cal 1996 births Living people Arizona Wildcats baseball players Baseball players from Fremont, California Bluefield Blue Jays players Chabot Gladiators baseball players Cotuit Kettleers players Duluth Huskies players Dunedin Blue Jays players Durham Bulls players Fayetteville Woodpeckers players Gulf Coast Blue Jays players Las Vegas Aviators players Lehigh Valley IronPigs players 21st-century American sportsmen Major League Baseball outfielders Montgomery Biscuits players Nevada Wolf Pack baseball players Oakland Athletics players Philadelphia Phillies players Sacramento River Cats players San Francisco Giants players