Steve Pearce (baseball)

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**Steve Pearce**

Pittsburgh Pirates — No. 51
Outfielder / First baseman
Born: April 13, 1983 (1983-04-13) (age 25)
Bats: Right	Throws: Right
Major League Baseball debut
September 1, 2007 for the Pittsburgh Pirates
Selected MLB statistics (through 2007)
Batting average	.294
Home runs	0
Runs batted in	6
Teams
Pittsburgh Pirates (2007)

Steven Wayne Pearce (born April 13, 1983 in Lakeland, Florida) is a professional baseball player with the Pittsburgh Pirates. He began the 2007 season with the Lynchburg Hillcats (the Pirates A affiliate), then onto the Altoona Curve (AA), Indianapolis Indians (AAA), and finally on September 1, Pearce made his Major League debut for the Pirates against the Milwaukee Brewers.

Selected by Pittsburgh in the 8th round of the June 2005 draft and was signed by Pirates' scout Jack Powell. Pearce was selected twice in the MLB June Draft, but did not sign; taken in the 45th round in 2003 by Minnesota and in the 10th round in 2004 by Boston. He played two seasons (2004-05) of NCAA baseball at the University of South Carolina and led the Gamecocks in batting average, home runs and RBI both years and hit 42 home runs in his two seasons with USC to become the first player in school history to reach the 40-homer plateau that quickly. As a senior in 2005, hit .358 with 21 HR and 63 RBIs and was a Second-Team All-SEC selection, a Baseball America Second-Team All-American and the NCBWA District IV Player of the Year. Pearce was named to the watch lists for both the Golden Spikes Award (USA Baseball's top amateur baseball player) and the Dick Howser Trophy (top collegiate baseball player) prior to the 2005 season. As a transfer junior in 2004, hit .346 with 21 Home runs and 70 RBI to lead the Gamecocks to their third consecutive appearance in the College World Series and was named USC's Rookie of the Year and was selected to both the NCAA Regional All-Tournament Team and the College World Series All-Tournament Team. He set a South Carolina school record with a 1.000 fielding percentage (416 PO, 22 A, 0 E) in 50 games at first base. Played for the Cotuit Kettlers of the Cape Cod League in the summer of 2004 and hit .275 with one home run. Pearce transferred to South Carolina after playing two seasons (2002-03) at Indian River Community College (Fla.) leading Indian River in batting average both seasons and combined to hit 17 home runs. Pearce is a 2001 graduate of Lakeland High School (Fla.), where he was a four-year letterman in baseball and posted a career .400 average.