Max Joseph Kranick is a Major League Baseball pitcher who currently pitches for the Pittsburgh Pirates.
Kranick went to Archbald, Pennsylvania’s Valley View High School. He had a 1.17 ERA during his high school career.
He was drafted in the 11th round of the 2016 Major League Baseball draft by the Pittsburgh Pirates after his senior year. He signed for $300,000, foregoing his University of Virginia commitment.
Kranick debuted professionally with the Rookie-level Gulf Coast League Pirates that summer, going 1–2 with a 2.43 ERA in nine games (six starts).
In 2017, he pitched for the Gulf Coast League and the Rookie-level Appalachian League’s Bristol Pirates, posting a combined 1–0 record and 1.11 ERA in five starts.
In 2018, he pitched for the Class A South Atlantic League’s West Virginia Power, going 4–5 with a 3.81 ERA in 17 games (16 starts), and in 2019, he pitched for the Class A-Advanced Florida State League’s Bradenton Marauders, going 6–7 with a 3.79 ERA in twenty starts.
Kranick was added to Pittsburgh’s 40-man roster on November 20, 2020. He did not play in a minor league game in 2020 since the minor league season was canceled due to the COVID-19 epidemic.
He was assigned to the Altoona Curve of the Double-A Northeast to begin the 2021 season. He was promoted to the Triple-A East League’s Indianapolis Indians in late May.
Kranick was promoted to the major leagues on June 27, 2021, and made his MLB debut as a starting pitcher against the St. Louis Cardinals.
He pitched five perfect innings, striking out three batters, before being pulled due to a rain delay.
With 15, he set the record for most batters retired in a major league debut.
When Was Max Kranick Drafted?
Max Kranick was drafted in the 11th round of the 2016 Major League Baseball draft by the Pittsburgh Pirates