| Desmond Jennings | |
|---|---|
| Tampa Bay Rays – No. 8 | |
| Outfielder | |
| Born: October 30, 1986 Birmingham, Alabama |
|
| Bats: Right | Throws: Right |
| MLB debut | |
| September 1, 2010 for the Tampa Bay Rays | |
| Career statistics (through September 28, 2011) |
|
| Batting average | .254 |
| Home runs | 10 |
| Runs batted in | 27 |
| Stolen bases | 22 |
| Teams | |
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Desmond Delane Jennings (born October 30, 1986, in Birmingham, Alabama) is an outfielder for the Tampa Bay Rays.
Jennings was taken by the Cleveland Indians in the 18th round of the 2005 amateur draft out of high school but did not sign. He decided to go to Itawamba Community College to play baseball and football, he led all junior college wide receivers with 54 receptions while scoring 6 touchdowns and netting 848 yards in 8 games. On the diamond, he hit .378 with 29 steals. Desmond was picked by the Tampa Bay Devil Rays in the 10th round of the 2006 amateur draft and signed.
He was the Rays fifth-best prospect heading into the 2009 season according to Baseball America,[1] and the 18th-best prospect overall in their midseason top 25.[2]
Jennings entered 2010 ranked among the top 20 prospects in baseball.[3] He was named to the 2010 All-Star Futures Game.
In 2010, he batted .278 for the season in AAA Durham, and .190 in 21 at bats with Tampa Bay.[4]
Jennings was called up from AAA-Durham on July 23, 2011, as the Rays optioned Reid Brignac to Durham. At the time of his call-up, Jennings was batting .275 and leading the International League in runs scored, with 68.[5] On July 28, 2011, Jennings blasted his first career home run, a two-run shot against the Oakland Athletics. On September 7, 2011, Jennings hit his first career walk-off home run off Mark Lowe to give the Rays a 5-4 win over the Texas Rangers and give them their 1,000th win in franchise history.