J. B. Shuck

Jack Burdett Shuck III (born June 18, 1987) is an American professional baseball outfielder for the Chicago White Sox of Major League Baseball (MLB). He previously played for the Houston Astros, Los Angeles Angels and Cleveland Indians. While primarily a left fielder throughout his career, Shuck has been a fourth outfielder for the White Sox.

Amateur career

Born in Westerville, Ohio and raised in Galion, Shuck went to Galion High School. At Galion High, he batted .576 with a 1.650 OPS and had a 1.12 ERA with 134 strikeouts in 69 innings, and also lettered in basketball. Shuck went to Ohio State University where in 2006, as a freshman, he batted .325 in 123 AB as a hitter, and led the team in ERA as a pitcher. He was named the Big Ten Freshman of the Year. In 2007, he hit .382 and had a 4.89 ERA. He played with the Cotuit Kettleers of the Cape Cod Baseball League in the offseason. In 2008, he hit .356 and had a 4.29 ERA and led the team in strikeouts.^[1] Shuck was drafted in the sixth round, 182nd overall, by the Houston Astros as an outfielder in the 2008 MLB Draft.

Professional career

Minor leagues

Shuck played 2008 with Short-Season Tri-City, where he hit .300 and was a New York-Penn League All-Star. He played with High-A Lancaster in 2009, where he hit .315 with 18 SB and 36 RBI. He started 2010 with Double-A Corpus Christi, where he was a Texas League All-Star, hitting .298 with 28 RBI in 101 games before earning a promotion to Triple-A Round Rock. After the Astros and the Texas Rangers switched affiliates, Shuck started 2011 with Oklahoma City, where he was a Pacific Coast League All-Star, with a .401 OBP in 101 games before earning a promotion.

Houston Astros

On August 5, 2011, Shuck was called up to the majors to replace Luis Durango, who was designated for assignment.^[2] In his first major league at bat, he hit a single off Milwaukee Brewers' Yovani Gallardo and stole second.

Shuck spent all of 2012 with Oklahoma City, hitting .298/.374/.352 in 115 games with 33 RBI. On November 3, Shuck elected to become a free agent after refusing outright minor league assignment.^[3]

Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim

Shuck signed a minor league contract with the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim as a free agent in November 2012 with an invitation to spring training.^[4]

On July 29, 2013, Shuck hit his first career home run against the Texas Rangers. He appeared in 22 games for the Angels in 2014 and hit .167, but he had spent most of the season with the team's Class AAA minor league affiliate, where he hit .320.

Cleveland Indians

On September 5, 2014, Shuck was traded to the Cleveland Indians for cash considerations.^[5]

Chicago White Sox

On November 3, 2014, Shuck was claimed off waivers by Chicago White Sox.^[6]

Personal life

Shuck is the only son of Jack II and Cindy Sheffer. He has one sister, Amanda.

On November 9, 2013, Shuck married Christine Anne Cimino at the University of Notre Dame, making him the second professional baseball player to marry into the Cimino family: Christine's sister, Mary Catherine Cimino, is married to pitcher Mark Melancon.

References

External links

• Career statistics and player information from MLB, or ESPN, or Baseball-Reference, or Fangraphs, or The Baseball Cube, or Baseball-Reference (Minors)
• Ohio State Buckeyes Player Bio