Anthony Kay

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Anthony Benjamin Kay

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Biographical Information[edit]

Pitcher Anthony Kay was drafted twice by his hometown team, the New York Mets. A product of Long Island, he was first picked in the 29th round in the 2013 amateur draft, coming out of high school, and again in Compensation Round A of the 2016 amateur draft, with the 31st overall pick, out of the University of Connecticut, obtained in compensation for losing Daniel Murphy to free agency. He was the Mets' second selection that year, after fellow pitcher Justin Dunn, who had been plucked with the #19 pick in the 1st round proper. He signed with the Mets that second time.

It took a whole for Anthony to make his professional debut as he underwent Tommy John surgery in the fall of 2016 and then missed all of 2017 recovering from the procedure. In 2018, he was assigned to the Columbia Fireflies of the South Atlantic League, where he went 4-4, 4.54 in 13 starts. He was then promoted to the St. Lucie Mets of the Florida State League on July 3rd and made another 10 starts there, going 3-7, 3.88. Overall, his line was 7-11, 4.26 in 23 starts, with 122 2/3 innings pitched, 124 hits allowed, 49 walks and 123 strikeouts.

He was named to the roster of the National League team for the 2019 Futures Game. Less than a month later, on July 28th, he was traded to the Toronto Blue Jays along with fellow prospect Simeon Woods-Richardson in return for All-Star starting pitcher Marcus Stroman. He was brought up to the majors when rosters expanded in September and made his major league debut as a starting pitcher against the Tampa Bay Rays on September 7th. He was solid during 5 2/3 innings, walking 3 and striking out 8 and leaving with a 3-2 lead, but the bullpen was unable to hold it and he ended up with a no-decision.

On June 24, 2021, he became the first pitcher in Blue Jays history to record the first seven outs of a game via strikeout. It came in a start against the Baltimore Orioles, and it wasn't the crispest of outings, as he stranded the bases loaded in both the 1st and 2nd inning, but he still managed to throw five scoreless innings that day and received credit for his first win of the year as the Blue Jays prevailed, 9-0. He was making a spot start in place of Steven Matz, still sidelined after a positive COVID-19 test earlier that month. It was also his only win of the season as he finished at 1-2, 5.61 in 11 games, including 5 starts. He then made just one appearance with the Jays in 2022 pitching 2 innings in relief against the New York Yankees on April 12th. He was bothered by injuries that year, as he made only 13 appearances in the majors apart from his one game in the Show.

He was claimed off waivers by the Chicago Cubs in December of 2022 and made 13 appearances in relief for them at the start of the 2023 season with no decisions and a 6-35 ERA. On September 14th, he was plucked off waivers again, this time by his original team, the Mets and made 3 more appearances with them, with an ERA of 5.40. Between the two teams, he gave up 13 hits and 9 walks in 14 2/3 innings, while striking out 11. He then headed to Asia for the next two seasons, pitching for the Yokohama Bay Stars of NPB's Central League. He went 6-9, 3.42 in 24 games and 136 2/3 innings in 2024, and 9-6, 1.74 in 24 games and 155 innings in 2025.

Following his success in Japan, Kay once again raised the interest of teams in Major League Baseball. On December 3, 2025, it was announced that he had signed a two-year deal with the Chicago White Sox worth $12 million.

Further Reading[edit]

  • Thomas Harrigan and Scott Merkin: "LHP Kay returns from Japan on 2-year deal with White Sox", mlb.com, December 3, 2025. [1]

Related Sites[edit]

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