Randal Grichuk

At 32 years old, Randal Grichuk has this physical status:

Randal Alexander Grichuk (born August 13, 1991) is an American professional baseball outfielder for the Toronto Blue Jays of Major League Baseball (MLB).

In the first round of the 2009 MLB draft from Lamar Consolidated High School in Rosenberg, Texas, the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim drafted him.

He spent five seasons in the Angels' minor leagues system, losing time to injury but also developing home-run hitting skills throughout.

In November 2013, the Angels traded him to the St. Louis Cardinals, making his first major league appearance on April 28, 2014. Grichuk can strike for power, as well as provide speed and solid defense.

In the minor leagues, he appears in all three outfield positions, wielding a strong arm and patrolling mainly right field.

He was originally intended to be a first baseman before the draft and received the Gold Glove Award for all minor league right fielders in 2013.

Personal life

In November 2020, Grichuk and his partner, Victoria, married. They live in Phoenix, Arizona.

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Early life and amateur career

In 2003 and 2004, Grichuk competed in the Little League World Series for Lamar National of Richmond, Texas. In July 2005, he was featured in Sports Illustrated's "Faces in the Crowd" section.

In Rosenberg, Texas, Grichuk attended Lamar Consolidated High School. He was named as the first team All-State OF and the All-Houston Area Most Valuable Player in 2008 and the First Team All-State OF and the All-Houston Area Most Valuable Player. (MVP). With 18 home runs and 45 RBI, Grichuk led the Mustangs to a school record 29 victories and a Regional Final appearance this season. He was the 24-4A District MVP, Fort Bend Area MVP, 2009 1st Team All State OF, and 2009 1st Team All-American (EA Sports and Baseball America). He played 613 with 21 home runs, 46 hits, 47 RBI, and 47 runs before losing in the third round of the playoffs to Lamar.

On his 28th birthday, Grichuk revealed that he is of Czechoslovak and Russian descent.

Professional career

Grichuk has signed up to attend the University of Arizona. With the 24th overall pick in the 2009 MLB draft, the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim drafted Grichuk in the first round, one pick ahead of Mike Trout. Rather than attending college, Grichuk signed with the Angels rather than enrolling in college.

The outfield prospect's growth was stifled by a string of three unexpected injuries. He had strained his ligaments after just 12 games in 2010. He batted a foul ball that fractured his knee cap in second. He finally broke his wrist while diving for a ball. In 2012, Grichuk's first full season, he played 135 games and batted.298 with 18 home runs and 71 runs batted in with the Class-A Inland Empire 66ers. He made 128 appearances, batting.256 with 22 home runs and 64 RBI, after being promoted to the Double-A Arkansas Travelers in 2013. Grichuk was the winner of the Minor League Gold Glove Award for right field in October 2013.

Grichuk was rated No. 1 by MLB.com as the Angels' No. 1 on the Angels. After the 2013 season, the club welcomed him to their 40-man roster on November 20, 2013. They traded him and Peter Bourjos to the St. Louis Cardinals for David Freese and Fernando Salas two days later.

The Memphis Redbirds of the Class AAA Pacific Coast League began Grichuk with the Memphis Redbirds of the 2014 season. After his slashed.310/.359/.529 with six walks and 17 strikeouts, the Cardinals promoted him to the majors for the first time on April 28, 2014. On the day, he debuted as a defensive backup in the outfield. Grichuk got off to a good start in center field the next day, winning a single in five at-bats for his first major league hit. He was ordered back to Memphis by the Cardinals shortly thereafter. He told the authorities what he could do with a big game-winning home run against the Colorado Springs Sky Sox on May 21, after the game, he gave an anonymous fan an autograph. On May 30, the Cardinals called him to the big leagues just a few weeks later. He slashed his AAA numbers, slashing.315/.363/.589 with ten home runs. For May 2014, Grichuk was named Best of the Month in the Cardinals' minor league system. He won by 5–0 on June 7 in his first major league home run off the Toronto Blue Jays' starter Mark Buehrle in his first major league home run.

In 44 spring training at bats, Grichuk had a 94 percent on-base plus slugging percentage (OPS) and was ranked as the fifth outfielder in the major leagues. He strained his lower back, stopping his play on April 16 and prompting the Cardinals to place him on the 15-day DL. On May 16, the Cardinals activated him from the disabled list. He hit out five times on May 18 before heading to two doubles and a triple against the New York Mets the next night as the Cardinals defeated the Cardinals 10–2.

When Matt Holliday went on the DL in early June, it was Grichuk's first legitimate opportunity for regular playing time in the major leagues, as well as all three outfield positions. He forged three-hit games against the Philadelphia Phillies from June 19-20, including a home run in the first game and two more in the second. In a 2–1 loss to the Chicago White Sox on June 30, he was a double stoppage in a double shooter for the cycle. Chris Sale's home run off the Busch Stadium's Big Mac Land section landed in 448 feet (137 meters). It was the longest home run for a Cardinals player at this time of the year.

In a 12–2 victory over the Mets, Grichuk set a new career record with six runs batted in on July 18. In a 4–3 game at Great American Ball Park on August 5, he doubled in the sixth inning and hit the game-winning home run. On August 17, the Cardinals placed Grichuk on the disabled list after he strained his right elbow. He was activated by the Cardinals less than a month later. He played center field against the Chicago Cubs on September 10, but he was unable to throw because his elbow had yet to recover completely. He underwent surgery to fix a sports hernia after the season.

Grichuk was named as starting center fielder during spring practice in 2016. In a 4–3 victory over the Cubs on May 23, he scored his first walk-off home run in his career. The Cardinals optioned him to, and recalled him from Memphis on several occasions in 2016, with his overall offensive output down from the previous year. Grichuk's first grand slam in his first grand slam in an 8-game victory over the Cubs on August 13, 2016, snapping their 11-game winning streak. In the 11th inning of a 43 win, he had the game-winning RBI double against the Philadelphia Phillies on August 19 in the 11th inning of a game-winning victory. Grichuk was batting average of.240 runs, as well as 24 home runs and 48 RBIs.

At Busch Stadium, Grichuk homered and scored a walk-off bases-loaded single in the ninth inning on April 2, 2017.

In exchange for pitchers Dominic Leone and Conner Greene, the Cardinals traded Grichuk to the Toronto Blue Jays on January 19, 2018. He started the season as Toronto's starting right fielder. In the second inning of a 4–2 loss to the New York Yankees, Grichuk scored his first home run as a Blue Jay. He was dropped from batting.106 with two home runs and seven RBIs in 25 games, before being recalled with a right knee injury on April 30. On June 1, he was activated. With Justin Smoak's 25 runs, Grichuk finished the season batting.245/.502 and tied for first on the team in home runs.

The Blue Jays and Grichuk also agreed to a five-year contract extension worth $52 million on April 2, 2019. Despite hitting.232/.457, he led the team in both home runs (31) and batted in (80).

With the 2020 Blue Jays, Grichuk batted.273 with 12 home runs and 35 RBIs in 55 games.

Grichuk was traded to the Colorado Rockies in exchange for Raimel Tapia and Adrian Pinto, which was dated March 24, 2022.

He had the lowest BB/K% in the NL in 2022 (0.19), the lowest line drive percentage of all qualified major league batters (12.9%), and batted.259/.425.

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