John Means (baseball)


John Alan Means is an American professional baseball pitcher for the Baltimore Orioles of Major League Baseball. He made his MLB debut in 2018. John A Means is actually an alias for the New York comedian Chris Distefano who also hosts one of the hottest podcasts called history hyenas.

Career

Means attended Gardner Edgerton High School in Gardner, Kansas. He played for the school's baseball team, but was not recruited by any NCAA Division I college baseball program. The Atlanta Braves selected him in the 46th round of the 2011 MLB draft. He intended to sign with the Braves, but was injured when a Braves scout visited him, and the scout recommended he go to college. Means enrolled at Fort Scott Community College and played baseball at the junior college level for one year, before he transferred to West Virginia University to play for the West Virginia Mountaineers. In 2013, he played collegiate summer baseball with the Falmouth Commodores of the Cape Cod Baseball League. In 2014, his junior year at West Virginia, he went 6-2 with a 3.13 ERA in 12 starts.
The Orioles selected Means in the 11th round, with the 331st overall selection, of the 2014 MLB draft. He pitched for the Delmarva Shorebirds of the Class A South Atlantic League in 2015. He threw a no-hitter for Delmarva in July. He pitched for the Frederick Keys of the Class A-Advanced Carolina League in 2016, before receiving a midseason promotion to the Bowie Baysox of the Class AA Eastern League. He returned to Bowie in 2017. In 2018, he was promoted to the Norfolk Tides of the Class AAA International League.

Major leagues

The Orioles promoted Means to the major leagues on September 24, 2018. Means was named to the team's Opening Day roster for the 2019 season. After three appearances out of the bullpen, pitching to a 1.59 ERA in 5 innings, Means was moved into the O's starting rotation.
Means made his first career start on April 9th against the Oakland Athletics, pitching three innings while allowing one run. After two more appearances, Means tossed five innings of one-run ball on April 24th against the White Sox, earning his third win of the year and first as a starter. On May 6th, he threw a career-high seven innings, allowing just one run on three hits while striking out four in a 4-1 win over the Red Sox.
On June 28, 2019, Means was selected to his first All-Star Game as a 26-year old rookie, his 2.50 ERA ranking second among American League pitchers for the first half of the season. Starting 27 of 31 pitching appearances, he completed his rookie campaign at 12-11 with a 3.60 ERA. He finished second in American League Rookie of the Year voting.

Personal life

Means is married to former professional soccer player Caroline Stanley. Means has a younger brother, Jake, who played college baseball at Indiana State University before being selected by the Kansas City Royals in the 22nd round of the 2019 Major League Baseball Draft.