Fomer Kentwood High School star pitcher Austin Voth made his Major League Baseball debut on Saturday with the Washington Nationals.
Voth, 26, who helped lead Kentwood to the Class 4A state title in 2010, pitched 4.1 innings, gave up seven earned runs, walked three and struck out three. He threw 99 pitches, 62 for strikes.
The Nationals drafted the right-handed pitcher in the fifth round in 2013 out of the University of Washington. He was not drafted out of high school.
Washington had called up Voth three previous times, but each time he got sent back to the minors before playing in a game.
At Triple-A Syracuse this season, Voth had a 3.55 ERA with 72 strikeouts and 24 walks in 76 innings and 15 starts.
Voth is the second Kentwood graduate to play in MLB. Matt Hague made his debut in 2012 with the Pittsburgh Pirates.
The school has produced six other professional athletes, including Rodney Stuckey, NBA; Courtney Vandersloot and Lindsey Moore, WNBA; Ernie Conwell and Mike Karney, NFL; and Cam Weaver, Major League Soccer.
Talk to us
Please share your story tips by emailing editor@kentreporter.com.
To share your opinion for publication, submit a letter through our website https://www.kentreporter.com/submit-letter/. Include your name, address and daytime phone number. (We’ll only publish your name and hometown.) Please keep letters to 300 words or less.
E-Wallet Purchase (Add Funds)
Term Subscription