Tristan Robert Beck (born June 24, 1996) is an American professional baseball pitcher in the San Francisco Giants organization. He previously played college baseball for the Stanford Cardinal.
| Tristan Beck | |
|---|---|
| San Francisco Giants | |
| Pitcher | |
| Born: (1996-06-24) June 24, 1996 (age 26) Corona, California | |
Bats: Right Throws: Right | |
Beck attended Corona High School in Corona, California and was on the varsity baseball team for four years. He played for the team as a pitcher and center fielder, and committed to attend Stanford University in order to play college baseball for the Stanford Cardinal. He pitched to a 7–1 win-loss record and a 0.65 earned run average (ERA) with 82 strikeouts and 18 walks in 65 innings pitched as a senior, ending his high school career with a 19–4 record and a 1.23 ERA.[1][2] Beck also served as the starting quarterback for Corona’s football team during two seasons.
Eligible for the 2015 MLB draft and projected to be selected in the first round by Baseball America, Beck decided that he would fulfill his commitment to attend Stanford, and informed teams that he would not sign.[3] The Milwaukee Brewers selected him in the 34th round, and he did not sign. He played collegiate summer baseball for the PUF Capitalists of the California Collegiate League before he enrolled at Stanford.[4] As a freshman in 2016, Beck started for the Cardinal on Opening Day, become the third freshman to do so after Mike Mussina and Cal Quantrill.[5] Beck was named All-Pac-12 Conference[6] and a Freshman All-American by Collegiate Baseball.[7] Over 14 starts, he went 6–5 with a 2.48 ERA.[8]
Beck suffered a stress fracture in his back in 2017,[9] and missed the entire season.[10] A draft-eligible sophomore, the New York Yankees selected Beck in the 29th round of the 2017 MLB draft.[11] Beck opted to return to Stanford for his junior year. In 2018, Beck went 8–4 with a 2.98 ERA over 15 starts.[12]
The Atlanta Braves selected Beck in the fourth round of the 2018 MLB draft.[8] He signed for $900,000[13] and spent his first professional season with the Gulf Coast League Braves, pitching 4+2⁄3 innings. Beck began 2019 with the Florida Fire Frogs,[14] pitching to a 2–2 record with a 5.65 ERA over eight starts.
On July 31, 2019, the Braves traded Beck and Daniel Winkler to the San Francisco Giants in exchange for Mark Melancon.[15] He was assigned to the San Jose Giants, and spent the remainder of the year there, going 3–2 with a 2.27 ERA over six starts. He was selected to play in the Arizona Fall League for the Scottsdale Scorpions following the 2019 season.[16] Beck did not play professionally in 2020 due to the cancellation of the minor league season as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. He began the 2021 season with the Richmond Flying Squirrels of Double-A Northeast.[17]
Beck's mother and older sister are Stanford graduates.[5] His younger brother, Brendan, has played college baseball at Stanford,[18][19] and currently plays in the New York Yankees organization.[20]