Levi Stoudt became the first former Lehigh pitcher to play in an MLB game since 1984 on Wednesday afternoon when he pitched four innings for the Cincinnati Reds in an 8-0 loss against the Tampa Bay Rays.
In Stoudt’s four-inning outing, he gave up seven earned runs and nine hits. The Reds gave up six runs in the first inning, including a home run on the first batter Stoudt faced.
Stoudt was drafted in 2019, after his junior year at Lehigh, in the third round of the MLB Draft by the Seattle Mariners. The Mariners traded Stoudt and three other prospects to Cincinnati to acquire Luis Castillo in 2022.
While he only reached the Double-A level of the minor leagues prior to being traded, Stoudt eventually ascended to Triple-A, where he appeared in nine games for the Louisville Bats from 2022 to 2023.
On Monday, the Reds announced across their social media channels Stoudt was called up to the major leagues to appear in Wednesday’s game.
Stoudt is the 17th player from Lehigh to appear in the MLB. The last position player was Matt McBride, who was drafted in 2006 and retired after the 2017 season. Stoudt is the first pitcher to pitch since Paul Hartzell, ‘75, appeared in the 1984 season for the Milwaukee Brewers.
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