Scott Burcham

Scott Hunter Burcham (born June 17, 1993) is an American-Israeli professional baseball shortstop in the Colorado Rockies organization.[1][2] He also plays for Team Israel.

Scott Burcham
Colorado Rockies
Shortstop
Born: (1993-06-17) June 17, 1993
Phoenix, Arizona
Bats: Right Throws: Right

In high school, Burcham was named the top defensive shortstop in the Greater Los Angeles Area by the Los Angeles Times. In college at Sacramento State, he was voted to the 2015 Preseason All-Western Athletic Conference Team. He was drafted by the Colorado Rockies in the 25th round of the 2015 Major League Baseball Draft.

Burcham started at shortstop for Israel at the 2017 World Baseball Classic qualifier. He played for Team Israel at the 2017 World Baseball Classic. In November 2019, he obtained Israeli citizenship so that he could play for Team Israel in baseball at the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo.

Early life

Burcham was born in Phoenix, Arizona, but has lived in La Quinta, California for most of his life.[3][4] His parents are Tim and Mimi Burcham, and he is Jewish.[4][5][6][7] His father was drafted by the California Angels in 1985 and played 10 years in the minor leagues for the Angels and San Francisco Giants organizations.[7]

High school

Burcham played baseball as a four-year starter at Palm Desert High School.[4] Burcham was all-California Interscholastic Federation (CIF) as a junior and senior, all-Desert Valley League as a sophomore, junior, and senior, and named the top defensive shortstop in the Southland by the Los Angeles Times before his senior season.[4] He batted .371 in his senior season.[8] He established his high school's career and single-season hits records.[4]

College

Burcham played college baseball for the Sacramento State Hornets, of the Western Athletic Conference (WAC). while majoring in Economics.[9][10] In his sophomore year in 2013, starting at shortstop he was third in the WAC with 175 assists, and tied for fifth in the WAC with 37 double plays.[4] In his junior year in 2014, he ranked fourth in the WAC with 71 hits, was fifth in the WAC with 154 assists, and was voted to the All-San Luis Obispo NCAA Regional Team.[4] By the end of his junior year he was third in school history with 22 career sacrifice hits.[4] He was voted to the 2015 Preseason All-WAC Team, and in his senior season he batted .329.[11][8]

Minor leagues

Burcham was drafted by the Colorado Rockies in the 25th round of the 2015 Major League Baseball Draft.[12] In 2015, he played for the Boise Hawks of the Class A (Short) Northwest League, posting a .235 batting average with two home runs and 11 RBIs. Burcham played in 2016 for the Asheville Tourists of the Class A (Full) South Atlantic League, batting .271/.338/.382.[13]

In the 2017 season he played for the Lancaster JetHawks of the Class A-Advanced California League. Burcham batted .251/.301/.349 over 235 at bats with three home runs, 26 RBIs, and nine steals.[14][15]

In the 2018 season Burcham played for the Hartford Yard Goats of the Class AA Eastern League. He batted .263/.328/.349 over 175 at bats with two home runs, 15 RBIs, and six steals.[16] In 2019 with the Yard Goats he batted .200/.287/.295 over 220 at bats with three home runs, 21 RBIs, and five steals.[17]

Team Israel

Burcham played shortstop for Israel at the 2017 World Baseball Classic qualifier.[18] Burcham was the starting shortstop in all three games, while batting eighth. During the opening game of the qualifier Burcham went 1-for-4 with a run scored.[19] Burcham went 1-for-3 during the second game; however, he was thrown out on a caught stealing.[20] In the final game, Burcham went 3-for-4, with a strikeout and two runs scored, finishing the series batting .455.[21]

He was the starting shortstop for Team Israel at the 2017 World Baseball Classic in the main tournament, in March 2017.[22] In the tournament's opener, Burcham singled in the game-winning run in the 10th inning in a 2-1 win over South Korea. In the WBC, he batted .261 with two RBIs and a 1.000 fielding percentage.[14]

In November 2019, he obtained Israeli citizenship so that he could play for Team Israel in baseball at the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo.[23]

References
  1. "Scott Burcham Stats, Highlights, Bio", MiLB.com Stats
  2. 2013 Sacramento State Baseball Media Guide, Hornet Sports.
  3. "Scott Burcham Stats, Fantasy & News", mlb.com
  4. "Scotty Burcham", , Sacramento State Athletics.
  5. "Scotty Burcham," Jewish Baseball News.
  6. "Scott Burcham Interview: Israel Baseball Star," Sports Rabbi.
  7. "Hornet alumnus starred for Israel in World Baseball Classic," The State Hornet.
  8. "Former Aztec Scotty Burcham makes Israeli WBC roster," Desert Sun.
  9. "2015 Draft Picks: Colorado Rockies", ESPN, June 11, 2015.
  10. 7 - Scotty Burcham. "Scotty Burcham - Sacramento State Athletics". Hornet Sports. Retrieved 2019-11-25.
  11. "WAC Announces Baseball Preseason Poll; Aggies Middle of the Pack", New Mexico State Athletics, February 3, 2015.
  12. "Former Aztec Scott Burcham drafted by Colorado Rockies". The Desert Sun. June 10, 2015.
  13. "Burcham's single leads Asheville to 4-2 win over Greenville", Post Star
  14. "Burcham helps lead Israel to World Baseball Classic success," The State Hornet.
  15. "Scotty Burcham Minor Leagues Statistics & History" | Baseball-Reference.com
  16. "Scott Burcham Stats, Highlights, Bio" | MiLB.com Stats
  17. Scott Burcham Stats, Highlights, Bio | MiLB.com Stats
  18. Vince Lara-Cinisomo, "Rosters for WBC Qualifier in Brooklyn; Israel, Pakistan, Great Britain, Brazil", Baseball America, September 22, 2016.
  19. "Israel 5, Great Britain 2"
  20. "Israel 1, Brazil 0"
  21. "Israel 9, Great Britain 1"
  22. "MLB Players Ty Kelly, Sam Fuld Commit to World Baseball Classic Roster", Haaretz.
  23. "U.S. Baseball pros arrive to claim Israeli citizenship, qualify for Olympics". Haaretz. Retrieved 2019-11-25.
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