Zach Kroenke
Encyclopedia
Zachary B. Kroenke is a professional baseball
Baseball
Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each. The aim is to score runs by hitting a thrown ball with a bat and touching a series of four bases arranged at the corners of a ninety-foot diamond...

 pitcher
Pitcher
In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throwsthe baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of retiring a batter, who attempts to either make contact with the pitched ball or draw a walk. In the numbering system used to record defensive plays, the...

 for the Arizona Diamondbacks
Arizona Diamondbacks
The Arizona Diamondbacks are a professional baseball team based in Phoenix. They play in the West Division of Major League Baseball's National League. From 1998 to the present, they have played in Chase Field...

 organization.

High School

Zach went to Omaha Northwest High School
Omaha Northwest High School
Omaha Northwest High Magnet School at 8204 Crown Point Avenue in Omaha, Nebraska is located on a campus in northwest Omaha. Completed in 1971, it is the newest of the seven high schools in the OPS district. Further renovations were completed in 2004, adding several classrooms and improving the...

. In his senior year he went 4-5 with a 3.42 ERA
Earned run average
In baseball statistics, earned run average is the mean of earned runs given up by a pitcher per nine innings pitched. It is determined by dividing the number of earned runs allowed by the number of innings pitched and multiplying by nine...

 and led the state with 90 strike outs in 53 innings. Team One Baseball rated him in the top 200 players in the country. He chose to go to Nebraska after looking at Kansas and Winthrop.

Nebraska

Kroenke played at Nebraska
Nebraska Cornhuskers baseball
The Nebraska Cornhuskers baseball team is a member of the Big Ten Conference in the NCAA, and is currently coached by Darin Erstad. The program started in 1889....

 for 3 years. He was one of the Big 12's best freshman pitchers in 2003. He made 10 starts in 15 appearances going 6-2 with a 2.72 ERA in 59.2 innings striking out 35 batters and walking 19. As a sophomore he went 7-5 with a 3.03 ERA averaging 7 innings in 15 starts. He struck out 73 batters in 104 innings. Zach helped the huskers reach the 2005 College World Series
2005 College World Series
The 2005 College World Series was held June 17 through 27, 2005 in Omaha, Nebraska. Eight NCAA Division I college baseball teams met after having played their way through a 64-team bracket to play at historic Johnny Rosenblatt Stadium. It was won by Texas, which defeated Florida in the championship...

 as a junior going 7-2 with a 2.78 ERA and a save in 20 appearances and 97 innings. He started in 16 games including 4 complete games. He struck out 88 and walking 28 opponents. He was drafted in the 5th round by the New York Yankees
New York Yankees
The New York Yankees are a professional baseball team based in the The Bronx, New York. They compete in Major League Baseball in the American League's East Division...

 in the 2005 Major League Baseball Draft
2005 Major League Baseball Draft
The 2005 First-Year Player Draft, Major League Baseball's annual amateur draft, was held on June 7 and 8. It was conducted via conference call with representatives from each of the league's 30 teams...

.

Awards

  • 2002 First-Team All-Nebraska
  • 2003 Big 12 Pitcher of the Week (4/10/03)
  • 2003 NCAA Lincoln Regional All-Tournament Team
  • 2004 Big 12 Co-Pitcher of the Week (4/5/04)
  • 2004 Second-Team All-Big 12
  • 2005 Second-Team All-Big 12

Minor League

In , he started his professional career appearing in 11 games with Class-A Staten Island
Staten Island Yankees
The Staten Island Yankees are a minor league baseball team, located in the New York City borough of Staten Island. Nicknamed the "Baby Bombers," the Yankees are a Short-Season A classification affiliate of the New York Yankees and play in the New York - Penn League at Richmond County Bank Ballpark...

 and made one start for the Gulf Coast Yankees
Gulf Coast Yankees
The Gulf Coast League Yankees are the Rookie League affiliate of Major League Baseball's New York Yankees. The GCL Yankees play in Tampa, Florida at the Yankee Complex...

, going 1-2 with a 2.63 ERA with both teams. he was placed on the disabled list on August 28 with an injury to his right hand and missed the NY-Penn League playoffs.

Zach went 8-9 with a 4.11 ERA in pitching in 127 innings. He made four starts with the Tampa Yankees
Tampa Yankees
The Tampa Yankees are a minor league baseball team based in Tampa, Florida. They are currently members of the Florida State League and are the Class A-Advanced affiliate of the New York Yankees Major League Baseball team. Home games are played at George M. Steinbrenner Field, a miniature replica of...

 from April 10 to April 26 and was 0-3 with an 8.36 ERA before being transferred to Charleston
Charleston RiverDogs
The Charleston RiverDogs are a Minor League Baseball team based in Charleston, South Carolina. They play in the class A South Atlantic League and are an affiliate of the New York Yankees. Their home stadium is at Joseph P. Riley, Jr. Park...

. He appeared in 25 games with the Riverdogs, going 8-6 with a 3.58 ERA and ranked second on the club with 86 strikeouts.

He started with the Trenton Thunder
Trenton Thunder
The Trenton Thunder are an American Minor League Baseball team and are the Double-A affiliate of the New York Yankees. The Thunder play in the Eastern Division of the Eastern League, and are the two-time defending league champions...

 in the Eastern League going 0-1 with a 9.42 ERA and 2 saves in 15 games. He was demoted back to Tampa where he went 2-2 with a 2.27 ERA and 33 strike outs in 29 games.

He started the 2008 season with the Trenton Thunder
Trenton Thunder
The Trenton Thunder are an American Minor League Baseball team and are the Double-A affiliate of the New York Yankees. The Thunder play in the Eastern Division of the Eastern League, and are the two-time defending league champions...

, where he went 6-0 with an ERA of 3.09. After a great performance there, he was promoted to the Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes Barre Yankees late in the year. he made only 4 appearances with a 1.80 ERA and 10 strikeouts in 10 innings.

On December 11, 2008, Kroenke was selected by the Florida Marlins in the Rule 5 draft
Rule 5 draft
The Rule 5 draft is a Major League Baseball player draft that occurs each year in December, at the annual Winter Meeting of general managers. The Rule 5 draft aims to prevent teams from stockpiling too many young players on their minor league affiliate teams when other teams would be willing to...

. However, the Marlins returned him to the New York Yankees
New York Yankees
The New York Yankees are a professional baseball team based in the The Bronx, New York. They compete in Major League Baseball in the American League's East Division...

 on March 16. Kroenke came back to the Scranton/Wilkes Barre Yankees for the season. He is 5-1 with a 1.03 ERA and 43.2 innings in 24 games.

On December 10, 2009, Kroenke was selected by the Arizona Diamondbacks in the Rule 5 draft. He did not make the team out of spring training, but he remained with the Diamondbacks with the Triple-A Reno Aces
Reno Aces
The Reno Aces are a minor league baseball franchise based in Reno, Nevada, in the United States. The team is a member of the Pacific Coast League and is the Triple-A affiliate of the Arizona Diamondbacks....

, as players selected in the Rule 5 draft and returned to their previous team twice are able to elect free agency.

External links

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