OUTFIELDER TOMMY PHAM OPTIONED TO MEMPHIS (AAA)
ST. LOUIS, Mo., July 21, 2015 – The St. Louis Cardinals announced today prior to their series opener with the Chicago White Sox that they have purchased outfielder/first baseman Stephen Piscotty from Memphis (AAA). Following Sunday’s game, the team optioned outfielder Tommy Pham to Memphis, and in order to make room for Piscotty on the team’s 40-man Major League roster, Memphis infielder Ty Kelly has been designated for assignment.
Piscotty, 24, considered by Baseball America and MLB.com to be among the top prospects in the Cardinals organization, was a supplemental first round draft selection (36th player overall) by the Cardinals in 2012 out of Stanford University where he recently completed his degree in Atmosphere and Energy Engineering.
The right-handed hitting Piscotty was batting .272 (87-for-320) with 28 doubles (4th in Pacific Coast League), 11 home runs and 41 RBI in his 87 games at Memphis this season, including a .366 on-base pct. and a .475 slugging mark. He has raised his season average from .243 to .272 since June 1 by batting .308 (44-for-143) over the past six weeks.
The 6-3, 210-pound Piscotty, a native of Pleasanton, Calif., was named to the Pacific Coast League (AAA) All-Star team in 2014 and the Florida State (A) All-Star team in 2013. He owns a career batting mark of .288 with 39 home runs and 196 RBI in 390 minor league games and a .360 on-base pct.
Piscotty, who began his professional career in 2012 as a third baseman, recently began playing first base, appearing at six games for Memphis at the initial sack. He has played 73 games in the outfield this year, primarily in right field (61 games).
Piscotty will be making his Major League debut with his first game appearance. He has been assigned uniform no. 55.
