Chase C. Shugart (born October 24, 1996) is an American professional baseball pitcher in the Boston Red Sox organization.
| Chase Shugart | |
|---|---|
| Boston Red Sox | |
| Pitcher | |
| Born: (1996-10-24) October 24, 1996 (age 26) Bridge City, Texas | |
Bats: Left Throws: Right | |
Shugart attended Bridge City High School in Bridge City, Texas, where he played football and baseball.[1] As a junior in 2014 he compiled a 10–1 record and a 1.64 ERA with 127 strikeouts in 72+2⁄3 innings pitched, and in 2015, as a senior, he was 10–2 with a 0.67 ERA along with batting .544 with nine home runs and 27 RBIs.[2][3] Shugart was not drafted out of high school in the 2015 MLB draft, and he enrolled at the University of Texas to play college baseball for the Texas Longhorns.
As a freshman at Texas in 2016, Shugart made 32 appearances, all in relief, and pitched to a 2–3 record and 4.53 ERA.[4] In 2017, as a sophomore, he was 3–2 with a 3.43 ERA and 1.45 WHIP in 42 innings pitched out of the bullpen.[5] After the season, he pitched for the Cotuit Kettleers of the Cape Cod Baseball League.[6] Shugart transitioned from a reliever to a starting pitcher as a junior in 2018.[7][8] He pitched for Texas in the 2018 College World Series until the Longhorns were eliminated by the Florida Gators on June 19.[9] He finished his junior year with a 5–3 record and a 4.36 ERA in 84+2⁄3 innings pitched.[10]
On June 6, 2018, Shugart was selected in the 12th round of the 2018 Major League Baseball draft, with the 370th overall pick, by the Boston Red Sox.[11] On June 22, Shugart announced via Twitter that he would forego his final year at Texas in order to sign with the Red Sox.[12] He signed with Boston on July 6,[13][14] and first pitched in mid-August for the Rookie-level Gulf Coast League Red Sox, where he made three appearances with a 1.80 ERA in five innings of work.[15] In late August, he was assigned to the Lowell Spinners of the Class A Short Season New York-Penn League,[15] with whom he made one scoreless appearance.
On March 22, 2019, Major League Baseball suspended Shugart for fifty games "after a second positive test violating the drug prevention and treatment program."[16][17] Shugart subsequently made his first appearance of the 2019 season on May 27 with the Greenville Drive of the Class A South Atlantic League,[15] spending the remainder of the year there. Over 16 starts, Shugart went 6–4 with a 2.81 ERA, striking out 73 over 89+2⁄3 innings.[15] After the 2020 minor league season was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Shugart was invited to participate in the Red Sox' fall instructional league.[18] For the 2021 season, Shugart returned to Greenville, now members of the High-A East, started 22 games and pitched to a 6-6 record, a 4.78 ERA, and 93 strikeouts over 105+1⁄3 innings.[19] He opened the 2022 season with the Portland Sea Dogs of the Double-A Eastern League and moved into the bullpen.[20] In early July, he was promoted to the Worcester Red Sox of the Triple-A International League.[21] On August 4, he pitched two innings of a combined no-hitter alongside Michael Wacha and AJ Politi versus the Durham Bulls.[22] Over 45 games (one start) between the two teams, Shugart went 5-5 with a 5.31 ERA and 63 strikeouts over 62+2⁄3 innings.[23]