| Grae Kessinger | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Kessinger with the Ole Miss Rebels | |
| Arizona Diamondbacks – No. 16 | |
| Infielder | |
| Born: (1997-08-25)August 25, 1997 (age 27) Oxford, Mississippi, U.S. | |
Bats: Right Throws: Right | |
| MLB debut | |
| June 7, 2023, for the Houston Astros | |
| MLB statistics (through 2024 season) | |
| Batting average | .145 |
| Home runs | 1 |
| Runs batted in | 1 |
| Teams | |
Graeber Crawley Kessinger (born August 25, 1997) is an American professionalbaseballinfielder for theArizona Diamondbacks ofMajor League Baseball (MLB). He has previously played in MLB for theHouston Astros. He made his MLB debut in 2023.
Kessinger attendedOxford High School inOxford, Mississippi.[1] He was drafted out of high school in the2016 MLB draft, going in the 26th round to theSan Diego Padres, but did not sign with the Padres, instead choosing to attend theUniversity of Mississippi to playcollege baseball for theOle Miss Rebels.
As a freshman at Ole Miss in 2017, Kessingerbatted only .175 with twohome runs and 16runs batted in (RBIs). In his sophomore year at Ole Miss, Kessinger improved to hit .300 with 8 home runs and 37 RBIs. After the 2018 season, he briefly playedcollegiate summer baseball with theBourne Braves of theCape Cod Baseball League.[2] In Kessinger's junior and final year at Ole Miss, he hit .330 with seven home runs and 50 RBIs.[3] In his junior year at Ole Miss he was named First Team All-SEC shortstop, a Third Team All-American byCollegiate Baseball, and named toABCA All-South Region First Team.[4] He won theBrooks Wallace Award, given annually to the nation's top shortstop.[5]
TheHouston Astros selected Kessinger in the second round of the2019 Major League Baseball (MLB) draft. He made hisminor league debut with the Low–ATri-City ValleyCats on June 20, 2019, where he saw his first professional hit, a two-out double in the 6th inning, in that initial game.[6] Kessinger was called up to Single–A on July 4, to play for theQuad Cities River Bandits.[7] He did not play in a game in 2020 due to the cancellation of the minor league season because of theCOVID-19 pandemic.[8]
Kessinger returned to action in 2021 with theDouble-ACorpus Christi Hooks.[9] Across 86 games, he slashed .209/.287/.330 with 9 home runs, 26 RBI, and 12 stolen bases. For the 2022 season, Kessinger remained with Corpus Christi, playing in 121 games and batting .211/.327/.366 with career-highs in home runs (16), RBI (58), and stolen bases (23).[10]
Kessinger began the2023 season with theTriple-ASugar Land Space Cowboys, playing in 52 games and hitting .284/.400/.443 with 6 home runs and 32 RBI.[11] On June 5, 2023, Kessinger was selected to the40-man roster and promoted to the major leagues for the first time. The promotion was made with the intention for Kessinger to fill in forJose Altuve, who was dealing with an oblique issue.[12] He made his debut on June 7, against theToronto Blue Jays at theRogers Centre, playing third base and hitting ninth. Kessinger hit his first career home run, accounting for his first career run batted in, on July 4, offKyle Freeland of theColorado Rockies atMinute Maid Park. Kessinger joined his grandfather,Don, and uncle,Keith, as the third generation of his family to hit a home run in Major League Baseball.[13] In 26 games during his rookie campaign, Kessinger batted .200/.289/.325 with one home run and one RBI.
Kessinger made 22 appearances for Houston in2024, going 0–for–21 with 3 walks. He wasdesignated for assignment by the Astros following the signing ofChristian Walker on December 23, 2024.[14]
On January 7, 2025, the Astros traded Kessinger to theArizona Diamondbacks in exchange for minor league pitcher Matthew Linskey.[15] He was optioned to the Triple-AReno Aces to begin the season.[16]
Kessinger's grandfather,Don, is a former six-timeAll-Star and two-timeGold Glove shortstop over 16 major league seasons, predominantly for theChicago Cubs, former major leaguemanager, and former head coach for Ole Miss. His uncle,Keith, appeared in 11 games at shortstop for theCincinnati Reds in1993 andcoached in college baseball. His father, Kevin, was drafted by the Cubs, but retired from professional baseball due to injury before playing in the major leagues. Each of the four Kessingers played baseball for Ole Miss.[17]
