David Hamilton

Note: This page is for infielder David Hamilton who made his debut in 2023; for the pitcher in the 1970s, click here.

David Lewis Hamilton

• Bats Left, Throws Right
• Height 5' 10", Weight 188 lb.
• School University of Texas at Austin
• High School San Marcos (TX) High School
• Debut June 21, 2023

• Born September 29, 1997 in San Marcos, TX USA

BR page

Biographical Information

Infielder David Hamilton missed all of his junior season at the University of Texas in 2019 recovering from surgery to repair a torn Achilles tendon. In spite of this, he was selected in the 8th round of the 2019 amateur draft by the Milwaukee Brewers on the strength of his first two seasons with the Longhorns, including playing in the 2018 College World Series. He had been on scouts' radars for a while as the Los Angeles Angels had drafted him in the 28th round of the 2016 amateur draft coming out of high school.

On December 1, 2021, he was traded by the Brewers to the Boston Red Sox along with Jackie Bradley Jr. and Alex Binelas in return for OF Hunter Renfroe. It was with the Red Sox that he made his major league debut midway through the 2023 season. He hit just .121 in 15 games in his first taste of the majors, but stepped up in 2024 after Trevor Story, who was expected to start at shortstop, was lost early in the season. Hamilton took over as the regular shortstop and showed some good hitting skills. He had been an excellent base stealer in the minors, with totals of 52 steals in 2021, 70 in AA in 2022, and 57 in AAA in 2023, and he was able to translate that skill to the majors. On June 16th, he became only the third player in Red Sox history, after Jerry Remy and Jacoby Ellsbury, to steal four or more bases in a game, doing so as part of a team-record 9 steals in a 9-3 win over the New York Yankees on Sunday Night Baseball. After that game, he had been successful on 18 of 19 attempts that season. He finished the year at .248 in 98 games with 8 homers and 28 RBIs, in addition to 33 steals in 37 attempts. His OPS+ was 96. His 62 games at shortstop were second to Ceddanne Rafaela and his 39 at second base second to Enmanuel Valdez.

David's playing time went down in 2025 even though Rafaela moved to the outfield full-time, as SS Trevor Story was finally healthy after two injury-filled seasons, and some of the team's top prospects were also infielders, namely Marcelo Mayer and Kristian Campbell. David ended up with 91 games but just 194 plate appearances (down from 314 the year before), during which he batted .198 with 6 homers and 19 RBIs. He still stole 22 bases in 28 attempts, but his OPS+ fell to 63. He actually had more games at second base than Campbell, but fewer starts and innings, so the latter was considered the regular; he only had a handful of games at shortstop, as Story hardly missed any time. He did not appear in the postseason.

On February 9, 2026, he was sent back to his original organization, the Brewers, in a six-player trade. Joining him in heading to Milwaukee were Ps Shane Drohan and Kyle Harrison, in return for three infielders - Caleb Durbin, Andruw Monasterio and Anthony Seigler - and a Competitive Balance Round B pick in the 2026 amateur draft.

He bears an uncanny resemblance to former Red Sox star Mookie Betts.

Related Sites

• David Hamilton on mlb.com
• University of Texas bio