Travis Lakins Sr.

Travis Lakins Sr.
Lakins with the Red Sox in 2019
Chicago White Sox
Pitcher
Born: (1994-06-29) June 29, 1994 (age 30)
Franklin, Ohio, U.S.
Bats: Right
Throws: Right
MLB debut
April 23, 2019, for the Boston Red Sox
MLB statistics
(through 2022 season)
Win–loss record4–8
Earned run average4.84
Strikeouts75
Teams

Travis Clay Lakins Sr.[1] (born June 29, 1994) is an American professional baseball pitcher in the Chicago White Sox organization. He has previously played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Boston Red Sox and Baltimore Orioles. Listed at 6 feet 1 inch (1.85 m) and 180 pounds (82 kg), he throws and bats right-handed.[2]

Career

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Lakins attended Franklin High School. Lakins played college baseball for the Ohio State Buckeyes,[3] and in 2014, he pitched a perfect game for the Chillicothe Paints, a collegiate summer baseball team.[4]

Boston Red Sox

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The Red Sox selected Lakins in the sixth round of the 2015 MLB Draft, signing him for an above-slot bonus of $320,000.[2] Lakins struck out three batters in two shutout innings during his only appearance with the Low–A Lowell Spinners in 2015. He then pitched for the rookie–level GCL Red Sox, but only in the playoffs.[2] In his brief stint, Lakins showed a quick arm from a three-quarters arm slot, offering a three-pitch mix with a fastball-curveball-changeup combination, with his fastball sitting at 92–94 mph (148–151 km/h) and topping out at 96 with a bit of sink and run. The curveball flashed plus-potential at 75–76 mph (121–122 km/h) with two-plane, tight rotation and hard snap, while the changeup ranged 83–87 mph (134–140 km/h) and also showed plus potential with late dive away from left-handed hitters when down in the zone. He also used a heavy mix of curveballs and changeups both early and behind in counts, showing consistency with the secondaries pitches and refined command and control overall.[5]

In 2016, Lakins was promoted two levels up to the High–A Salem Red Sox. In the month of April, he led the Salem pitching staff with a 3–1 record and a 2.13 ERA in four starts, striking out 26 and walking 10 in 25+1⁄3 innings of work.[2] In early August, Lakins was placed on the disabled list with right elbow inflammation and did not pitch for the rest of the season. He went 6–3 in 19 starts and a relief appearance, featuring a 5.93 ERA with 79 strikeouts and 36 walks in 91 innings.[2]

Lakins spent 2017 with both Salem and the Double-A Portland Sea Dogs, posting a combined 5–4 record with a 4.21 ERA in 68+1⁄3 innings between both teams.[6] He finished the year rated as the Red Sox' No. 13 prospect, according to MLB.com.[5] Lakins started the 2018 season with Double-A Portland. At the end of July, he was promoted to the Triple-A Pawtucket Red Sox. Overall for the 2018 season, Lakins made 36 appearances, compiling a record of 3–2 with an ERA of 2.32 and three saves.

On November 20, 2018, the Red Sox added Lakins to their 40-man roster to protect him from the Rule 5 draft.[7] Lakins opened the 2019 season with Pawtucket, and on April 23, he was added to Boston's major league active roster for the first time.[8] He made his MLB debut that day, pitching 2+2⁄3 innings against the Detroit Tigers while allowing one run and striking out two.[9] Lakins was optioned to Pawtucket on April 26.[10] He was recalled on May 23 and optioned back on May 29,[11] then recalled on June 12 and optioned back on June 17.[12] Boston next recalled Lakins on August 12, and optioned him back to Pawtucket on August 20.[13] Lakins was recalled to Boston on September 1, when rosters expanded.[14] Overall with the 2019 Red Sox, Lakins appeared in 16 games (three starts), compiling an 0–1 record with 3.86 ERA and 18 strikeouts in 23+1⁄3 innings.

Lakins was designated for assignment by the Red Sox on January 17, 2020.[15]

Baltimore Orioles

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Lakins was traded on January 21, 2020, to the Chicago Cubs for future considerations.[16] He was claimed off waivers by the Baltimore Orioles on January 31.[17] He was informed of the transaction while on a late-honeymoon cruise with his wife.[18] In 22 appearances for the Orioles in 2020, Lakins pitched to a 2.81 ERA and 25 strikeouts over 25+2⁄3 innings.[19]

On June 29, 2021, Lakins made his first start of the season, but left in the second inning with an apparent injury. On July 3, he was placed on the 60-day injured list with right elbow pain, although manager Brandon Hyde described the injury as a “significant elbow injury”.[20] On July 6, Lakins underwent season-ending surgery to fix a recurrent olecranon stress fracture in his right elbow.[21][22] In 24 appearances with the 2021 Orioles prior to his injury, Lakins recorded a 1–4 record and 5.79 ERA. On October 14, Lakins was outrighted off of the 40-man roster.[23]

On April 15, 2022, Lakins' contract was selected by the Orioles.[24] He made 6 appearances for Baltimore, struggling to a 9.58 ERA with 8 strikeouts in 10.1 innings pitched. On July 10, Lakins was placed on the 60-day injured list with right elbow inflammation.[25] On August 31, he was activated from the IL and sent outright to the Triple-A Norfolk Tides. In 5 games (2 starts) with the Tides, he posted an 8.68 ERA with 7 strikeouts in 9.1 innings of work. He elected free agency following the season on October 6.

Lancaster Barnstormers

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On April 17, 2023, Lakins signed with the Lancaster Barnstormers of the Atlantic League of Professional Baseball.[26] In three games for the Barnstormers, he recorded a 3.00 ERA with 4 strikeouts in 3.0 innings of work. With Lancaster, Lakins won the Atlantic League championship.[27]

Lakins retired from professional baseball following the 2023 season to pursue a career in business.[28]

Chicago White Sox

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On June 25, 2024, Lakins came out of retirement and signed a minor league contract with the Chicago White Sox.[29]

Personal life

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Lakins has been married since 2017;[18] he and his wife have a daughter (Brezzlynne Lou Lakins) and two sons (Travis Lakins Jr. and Tucker Lee Lakins) .[30]

References

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  1. ^ Crowell, Jim (September 1, 2020). "2015 Draft Retrospective: The picks". soxprospects.com. Retrieved November 5, 2020. goes by Travis Lakins Sr. after the birth of his son
  2. ^ a b c d e "Sox-Prospects.com – Travis Lakins page".
  3. ^ "Travis Lakins". ohiostatebuckeyes.com. June 4, 2014. Retrieved April 23, 2019.
  4. ^ "Boston's Travis Lakins Tossed a Perfect Game for the Paints". prospectleague.com. February 9, 2019. Retrieved April 23, 2019.
  5. ^ a b 2017 MLB Prospects Watch – 2017 Boston Red Sox Top 30 Prospects Watch Archived 2019-03-27 at the Wayback Machine. MLB.com. Retrieved on September 8, 2017.
  6. ^ "Travis Lakins Stats, Highlights, Bio - MiLB.com Stats - The Official Site of Minor League Baseball". milb.com. Retrieved December 19, 2017.
  7. ^ "Red Sox's Travis Lakins: Contract purchased". CBS Sports. November 20, 2018. Retrieved April 23, 2019.
  8. ^ Cotillo, Chris (April 23, 2019). "Boston Red Sox call up Darwinzon Hernandez, Travis Lakins; Bobby Poyner optioned to Pawtucket". Masslive.com. Retrieved April 23, 2019.
  9. ^ "Tigers vs. Red Sox - Box Score". ESPN. April 23, 2019. Retrieved May 29, 2019.
  10. ^ "Red Sox Roster & Staff – Transactions". MLB.com. April 2019. Archived from the original on April 5, 2019. Retrieved May 29, 2019.
  11. ^ "Red Sox Roster & Staff – Transactions". MLB.com. May 2019. Archived from the original on May 3, 2019. Retrieved May 29, 2019.
  12. ^ "Red Sox Roster & Staff – Transactions". MLB.com. June 2019. Archived from the original on June 1, 2019. Retrieved June 17, 2019.
  13. ^ "Red Sox Roster & Staff – Transactions". MLB.com. August 2019. Archived from the original on August 2, 2019. Retrieved August 20, 2019.
  14. ^ "Red Sox Roster & Staff – Transactions". MLB.com. September 2019. Archived from the original on September 1, 2019. Retrieved September 1, 2019.
  15. ^ "Red Sox Roster & Staff – Transactions". MLB.com. January 2020. Archived from the original on January 3, 2020. Retrieved January 16, 2020.
  16. ^ "Cubs Roster & Staff – Transactions". MLB.com. January 2020. Retrieved January 21, 2020.[dead link]
  17. ^ Kubatko, Roch. "Orioles claim Travis Lakins and DFA Stevie Wilkerson," Mid-Atlantic Sports Network (MASN), Friday, January 31, 2020. Retrieved February 14, 2020
  18. ^ a b Dubroff, Rich (February 13, 2020). "Orioles add Milone to starting rotation competition; Cobb's first bullpen session; Lakins gets O's news on a cruise". BaltimoreBaseball.com. Retrieved February 14, 2020.
  19. ^ "Travis Lakins Sr. Stats, Fantasy & News". MLB.com.
  20. ^ "Orioles Acquire Kelvin Gutierrez from Royals for Cash Considerations". July 3, 2021.
  21. ^ @masnRoch (July 6, 2021). "From #orioles: Travis Lakins, Sr. had successful surgery to fix a recurrent olecranon stress fracture in his right…" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  22. ^ "Orioles' Travis Lakins Undergoes Elbow Surgery". July 6, 2021.
  23. ^ "Orioles' Travis Lakins: Outrighted to Triple-A". CBS Sports. October 14, 2021. Retrieved May 1, 2022.
  24. ^ Adams, Steve (April 15, 2022). "Orioles Place John Means On Injured List, Select Travis Lakins". MLB Trade Rumors. Retrieved April 15, 2022.
  25. ^ "Orioles' Travis Lakins: Goes to 60-day IL". cbssports.com. July 10, 2022. Retrieved May 23, 2023.
  26. ^ "'Stormers Sign Ex-Oriole Right-Hander Lakins". oursportscentral.com. April 17, 2023. Retrieved April 17, 2023.
  27. ^ "Lancaster Barnstormers clinch second consecutive Atlantic League Championship". local21news.com. Retrieved October 20, 2023.
  28. ^ "Travis Lakins - Business Leader - Pinnacle Elite". linkedin.com. Retrieved April 7, 2024.
  29. ^ "Transactions". MLB.com.
  30. ^ "Lakins Finding Home in Baltimore After Whirlwind Year". ohiostatebuckeyes.com. September 4, 2020. Retrieved May 1, 2022.
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