Jacob Tanner Diekman earned an associates degree in business administration from Cloud Community College in Concordia, Kan...Is the only player to reach the majors from Cloud C.C...Is a 2005 graduate of Wymore (Nebraska) Southern High School...Played baseball, basketball and golf...Was awarded the 53rd Hutch Award by the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center in Seattle in January 2018...The honor is given to an MLB player who best exemplifies the honor, courage and dedication of the legendary player and manager...He and his wife Amanda have a daughter, Palmer...With his wife, Amanda, founded the "Gut it Out" Foundation to help bring awareness and education to people battling ulcerative colitis...Was diagnosed with UC at 10 years old...Was nominated for the 2022 Roberto Clemente Award by the Red Sox for his work with his Gut It Out Foundation.
2023
Split the season between Chicago-AL and Tampa Bay...Pitched to a 7.94 ERA (10 ER/11.1 IP) in 13 games with the White Sox compared to a 2.18 ERA (11 ER/45.1 IP) in 50 games with the Rays...Utilized his fastball 57.6 percent of the time and held opponents to a .175 (20-114) average on the pitch...Threw his sweeper 17.9 percent of the time and held opponents to a .161 (5-for-31) mark¡Of his 64 strikeouts, 57 came via the fastball (44) and sweeper (13)...Was designated for assignment by the White Sox on May 2 and was released on May 6...His 2.18 ERA since his Rays debut, May 11, was the 10th-best mark among AL relievers during that span...Threw 13.1 scoreless innings across 16 appearances from May 26-July 5¡During that stretch, held opponents to a .049 (2-41) average while striking out 22 batters (14.85 SO/9)...From Aug. 19-end of the season, did not allow an earned run 16.2 innings spanning 16 appearances.
POSTSEASON: Struck out two batters, allowed one hit and one walk in 1.0 inning of work in Game 1 of the AL Wild Card Series vs. Texas.
2022
Went a combined 5-4 with a 4.99 ERA (32 ER/57.2 IP), 79 strikeouts (12.3 per 9.0 IP), 16 holds and one save over 70 games between Boston and the White Sox...His 70 games tied for fifth in the American League and tied for eighth in the Majors....Right-handers batted .234/.392/.453 (30-128) and lefties hit .250/.359/.364 (22-88)¡the .250 opponents average vs. left-handers was his highest since 2018 (.329)....Posted a 3.95 ERA (12 ER/27.1 IP) in 32 games with at least two days of rest, compared to a 5.93 mark (20 ER/30.1 IP) over 38 appearances with 0-1 days of rest....Began the season with the Red Sox after agreeing to terms on a two-year contract on 3/16....Went 1-0 with a 2.35 ERA (4 ER/15.1 IP), nine holds, 24 strikeouts and a .204 (11-54) opponents average over his first19 appearances of the season....Earned his only save of the season on 4/10 at the Yankees, striking out the side (Aaron Judge, Giancarlo Stanton and Joey Gallo) in the ninth inning¡posted holds in four straight outings from 4/13-22....Made a season-high 10 straight scoreless appearances from 4/27-5/21, allowing two hits with 12 strikeouts over 9.0 IP....Posted a 2.25 ERA (2 ER/8.0 IP) in eight games in June, his lowest monthly mark of the season....Compiled a seven-game scoreless streak (6.1 IP) from 6/20-7/6¡recorded season-highs in strikeouts (four) and IP (2.0) on 7/3 at the Cubs....Was acquired by the White Sox from Boston in exchange for C Reese McGuire and a player to be named later (RHP Taylor Broadway) on 8/1....Made his White Sox debut on 8/2 vs. Kansas City, throwing a perfect sixth inning with two strikeouts for his 13th hold¡posted his 14th hold on 8/3 vs. the Royals with a perfect seventh...Recorded a 13.50 ERA (8 ER/5.1 IP) over his final seven appearances, raising his season ERA from 4.13 to 4.99¡allowed a season-high five runs (three earned) on 9/20 vs. Cleveland¡gave up four runs on five hits without recording an out on 9/24 vs. Detroit....Clemente Award Nominee: Was nominated by the Red Sox for the Roberto Clemente Award for his lasting impact on the greater Boston community through his Gut It Out Foundation....In addition to raising more than $20,000 for Boston Children¡¯s Hospital and the New England chapter of the Crohn¡¯s & Colitis Foundation, welcomed Shane Gordon, a nine-year-old White Sox fan suffering from ulcerative colitis (UC), and his family to a game for a special meet-and-greet in 2022....During the visit, Diekman personalized jerseys and hats, provided the family with insights on his own UC journey and ¡°J-Pouch¡± surgery and spent more than an hour playing catch with the kids on-field and in the bullpen.
2021
Went 3-3 with seven saves, a 3.86 ERA and 12.31 SO/9.0 IP in 67 relief appearances for OAK (60.2 IP, 26 ER, 83 SO)...Entered the season with seven career saves...Ranked 10th among AL relievers in strikeouts...Limited RHH to a .200 AVG/.711 OPS and LHH to a .229 AVG/.716 OPS...Threw at least 60.0 innings for the third time in his career (71.0 in 2014, 62.0 in 2019)...Made at least 60 appearances for the 6th time, all coming in the last seven seasons with 162 games...Finished 17 games for OAK, the second-highest total of his career (19 in 2014 with PHI)...Recorded at least one SO in a season-high 14 straight appearances from 8/27-9/28 and in 13 straight from 4/12-5/12...Made his 7th Opening Day roster, his fourth consecutive...Allowed 4 ER in 2.2 IP over his first three appearances...Did not allow an ER in his next 11 outings (11.1 IP), holding his opponent scoreless in a season-best eight consecutive appearances from 4/10-29...In 20 appearances from 4/10-5/31, posted a 1.83 ERA (2 ER/19.2 IP) and 27 SO...Converted six of his eight save opportunities during that time...Recorded a 2.82 ERA (7 ER/22.1 IP) in 26 outings from 7/2-9/14...Made his 500th career appearance on 7/10 at TEX.
2020
Allowed just two runs in 21 appearances in 2020 and only one was earned for a 0.42 ERA¡opponents went 8-for-70 (.114) with one extra base hit (home run) for a .157 slugging percentage¡ however, he walked 12 for a .253 on-base percentage¡had a .410 OPS and had career lows in ERA, opponents batting, slugging, on-base percentage and OPS¡in two seasons with the A¡¯s, he has allowed 24 hits but has walked 28¡ranked second among Major League relievers in ERA and opponents slugging percentage, fifth in batting average and seventh in OPS¡based on a minimum of 20 innings pitched, his ERA was the lowest in Athletics history ahead of Joey Devine, who had a 0.59 ERA in 45.2 innings in 2008¡based on a minimum of 75 batters faced, his opponents batting average and slugging percentage were the lowest in Oakland history¡the previous lows were a .147 batting average by Pat Neshek in 2012 and a .170 slugging percentage by Joey Devine in 2008¡struck out 31 batters in 21.1 innings for a career-best mark of 13.08 strikeouts per nine innings (previously, 12.68 in 2014)¡surrendered just one home run¡his opponents batting average broke down to .070 (3-for-43) against right-handed hitters compared to .185 (5- for-27) against left-handers¡issued seven of his 12 walks and surrendered his only home run to lefties for a .649 OPS (.253 against righties)¡yielded a .061 batting average with runners on base, .162 with nine of his 12 walks with the bases empty¡opponents were 2-for-10 (.200) with runners in scoring position¡did not allow an earned run in 12 games in Oakland (15.0 ip), 12 games during the day (12.2 ip) or 13 games when pitching on two days rest or fewer (14.0 ip)¡ first batters faced were 1-for-16 (.063) with four walks and a sacrifice hit¡among pitchers in the West divisions, he tied for the third lowest batting average and slugging percentage against first batters but tied for the third most walks¡now has a .207 batting average against first batters in his career and has allowed just four home runs in 462 batters faced¡allowed 1-of-3 (33.3%) inherited runners to score¡led the majors with 13 holds after tying for the lead with 31 in 2019¡ did not allow an earned run in 15 games (15.1 innings) against American League West teams¡ now has a 2.46 ERA in 126 career appearances against the AL West compared to a 4.17 ERA in 336 games against all other competition¡tossed at least one inning in 18 of his 21 appearances but more than one inning just three times¡the A¡¯s were 20-1 when he pitched.
OAKLAND: Walked a season-high two batters but also struck out a season-high three July 27 against Los Angeles (AL)¡it was his first of three three-strikeout games (Aug. 23 vs. Los AngelesAL and Sept. 16 at Colorado)¡matched his season high with two walks and had a season-high 34 pitches Aug. 2 at Seattle¡yielded two hits Aug. 17 at Arizona, his only outing with more than one hit in 2020¡tossed a career-high tying 2.0 scoreless innings Aug. 23 against Los Angeles (AL)¡ it was his 15th career outing of 2.0 innings but his first since April 27, 2016¡did not allow a run in nine games in August (9.1 ip)¡opponents hit .129 and he struck out 14 in 9.1 innings¡then logged a 0.96 ERA and .100 opponents average in September with 13 strikeouts in 9.1 innings¡ surrendered his first run of the season in his 19th appearance on Sept. 23 at Los Angeles (NL) when Seager homered with one out in the sixth¡it was the first run he allowed since Sept. 14, 2019 at Texas and it snapped a career-high 22.0-inning scoreless streak, which was the longest by an A¡¯s reliever since Sean Doolittle had a 26.1 inning streak from April 29-June 27, 2014¡ his season-opening 18.1-inning scoreless streak tied for second longest in Oakland history by a player on the Opening Day roster¡the home run was his first June 21, 2019 against Minnesota (San¨®), a streak of 57 games, 48.1 innings and 214 batters faced without allowing a home run¡ allowed his second and final run of the season in his next appearance Sept. 25 against Seattle but it was unearned¡picked up his only two wins of the season in those two games against the Dodgers and Mariners¡pitched in six of the A¡¯s seven postseason games and compiled a 3.86 ERA and .176 opponents batting average¡became the first A¡¯s pitcher with six appearances in a postseason since Dennis Eckersley and Rick Honeycutt had six games each in 1989¡worked in all three ALCWS games against Chicago and did not allow a run or a hit (1.2 ip, 2 bb, 1 so)¡earned the save in Game 2 when he relieved Hendriks in the ninth inning with the bases loaded, two outs and the A¡¯s leading 5-2¡walked Grandal to force in a run but then got Abreu to ground out to end the game¡faced Houston three times in the ALDS (3.0 ip, 3 h, 2 r, 2 er, 0 bb, 4 so)¡allowed his only runs in Game 4 on a two-run home run by Altuve.
2019
Began the season with Kansas City and was 0-6 with a 4.75 ERA in 48 relief appearances when he was traded to Oakland on July 27¡went 1-1 with a 4.43 ERA in 28 games with the A's and had a 4.65 ERA in a career-high 76 relief appearances overall¡ranked second in the American League in games pitched¡held the opposition to a .215 batting average but issued a career-high 39 walks and hit a career-high 11 batters in 62.0 innings for a .352 on-base percentage¡the 11 hit batters matched the most by an AL reliever since at least 1908 (Dellin Betances, NYY in 2017 and Mitch Williams, TEX in 1986) and tied for second among Major League relievers (12, Carlos Marmol, CHC in 2009)¡they tied for sixth among all AL pitchers in 2019¡also had career highs in holds (31), losses (7) and earned runs (32) and his 84 strikeouts were second only to his 100 in 2014 with Philadelphia¡averaged 12.19 strikeouts per nine innings¡surrendered just three home runs and his average of 0.44 home runs per nine innings was third-lowest among AL relievers¡did not allow a home run in 20.1 innings with the A's¡his .215 opponents batting average included a mark of .210 (30-for-143) against right-handed hitters compared to .224 (19-for-85) against left-handers¡did not allow a home run to a lefty¡allowed 10-of-39 (25.6%) inherited runners to score, which was ninth-lowest percentage in the AL¡first batters faced hit .210 but he issued 10 first-batter walks, which tied for fourth-most in the AL (.342 on-base percentage)¡tied for the lead among AL relievers in holds and losses and ranked fifth in walks¡combined for a 6.19 ERA in 47 appearances on zero or one day of rest¡had a 2.36 ERA in 29 outings on two days rest or more¡had a 2.20 ERA and .130 opponents batting average in the sixth and seventh innings, a 6.15 ERA and .248 opponents average from the eighth inning on¡the opponents number four-hitter was 1-for-21 (.048) off him with no RBI¡logged a 6.52 ERA in 13 interleague appearances, a 4.30 ERA in 63 outings against AL teams¡tossed one inning or fewer in 71 of his 76 relief appearances and his season-high was 1.2 innings.
KANSAS CITY: Yielded two runs on a season-high three hits April 3 against Minnesota, his first of four games with three hits¡that gave him an 8.10 ERA over his first four games¡did not allow a run in 14 of his next 16 appearances from April 7 to May 12 and had a 1.32 ERA and .091 opponents batting average over that span¡allowed just 1-of-12 inherited runners to score¡issued a season-high two walks April 21 at New York (AL), his first of six two-walk games¡had a season-high 8.2-inning scoreless streak from April 22 to May 12¡tossed a season-high 1.2 scoreless and hitless innings April 27 against Los Angeles (AL)¡struck out at least one batter in a career-high 21 consecutive games from May 1 to June 20¡had 36 strikeouts in 20.0 innings over that span (16.20 strikeouts per nine innings)¡compiled a 7.80 ERA and .271 opponents batting average over a 17-game stretch from May 14 to June 21¡struck out a season-high three batters May 14 against Texas, a mark he matched on May 19 at Los Angeles (AL) and July 24 at Atlanta¡also struck out two batters May 19 at Detroit as he pitched for Oakland in the A's suspended game against the Tigers that was completed on Sept. 6¡compiled a 2.08 ERA and .116 opponents batting average in 13 games in May¡struck out 24 batters in 13.0 innings¡had not allowed a home run over his first 29 games through June 2¡then surrendered all three of his home runs over an eight-game stretch from June 4 to 21¡finished the season with a 39-game, 30.0-inning, 143-batters faced homerless streak¡allowed a season-high three runs June 4 against Boston, his first of three outings with three runs¡tossed a scoreless eighth inning June 17 at Seattle in his 400th career appearance¡did not allow a run in five of his final six outings with the Royals (1.69 ERA).
2018
Appeared in 71 games combined between Texas and Arizona, being traded to the Diamondbacks at the nonwaiver deadline…went 1-2 with two saves, a 4.73 ERA (28 ER in 53.1 IP), 17 holds and 66 strikeouts...Acquired by Arizona in exchange for RHP Wei-Chieh Huang and LHP Joshua Javier on July 31…tossed a scoreless inning at Chase Field the night prior to the deal and rode the bullpen cart from the visiting clubhouse to the home clubhouse before the next night's game...Tied for seventh among Major League left-handed relievers in appearances and was 13th in strikeouts per 9.0 innings (11.14)…his K/9 rate was his highest since he set a career high (12.68) in 2014...Allowed just 22.2 percent of his inherited runners to score (6-for-27)…stranded 7 of 8 inherited runners with the Diamondbacks...Ranked fourth among MLB relievers with a 14.7 K/9 rate (42 K in 25.2 IP) on the road and ninth among all lefthanders with a 1.40 road ERA (min. 25.0 IP)...Made 15-straight scoreless appearances on the road from July 5-Sept. 11, spanning 10.2 innings…surrendered a season-high three runs at Colorado on Sept. 13, which marked just the second time in his last 41 road outings in which he's allowed a run...Limited right-handed batters to a .191 average (25-for131)…however, lefties hit .329 (24-for-73) against him.
2017
Posted no record and a 2.53 ERA (3 ER/10.2 IP) across 11 relief appearances in September after returning from 3 surgeries in the early part of the year (see above)…spent the season on the 60-day disabled list and was activated on 9/1 following an injury rehabilitation assignment…was scoreless in 10 of 11 appearances, also posted strikeouts in 10 of 11… ranked among the A.L. September/October relief leaders in both holds (T5th, 5) and opponent average (10th, .121)…set club record by opening a season with 5 outings of 3+ BF and no hits allowed (opponents were 0-for-15 with 7 K, 3 BB, and a SF)… retired one of 5 BF on 9/13 at SEA, when he was charged with each of his 3 R allowed on the year…had 5.0 scoreless innings over last 5 G, retiring 13 of 21 BF (2 H, 6 BB). MINORS // Had 6 G on rehab assignment with Round Rock (AAA) and Frisco (AA) from 8/17-29: 1-0, 1.42 ERA (1 ER/6.1 IP), .143 (3-21) opp. avg., 0 BB/8 SO.
2016
Was 4-2 with 3.40 ERA (20 ER/53.0 IP) over 66 relief appearances in his 1st full season with the Rangers…earned the 1st 4 saves of his major league career, converting 4 of 5 chances…ranked among the A.L. relief leaders in holds (T4th, 26) and opponent avg. (9th, .189)…his 26 holds were 3rdmost in club history to 27 by Mike Adams in 2012 and Tanner Scheppers in 2013…posted career-lows in WHIP (1.170), opponent avg., OBP (.294), and OPS (.594).
2015
Combined to go 2-1 with a 4.01 ERA (26 ER/58.1 IP) over 67 relief appearances with the Phillies and Rangers…had 16 holds and permitted 11 of 35 inherited runners to score (31.4%)… opposition batted .235, career high .266 by LHB and career low .212 by RHB…entered 2015 with a career .189 opponents AVG vs. LHB…posted a 3.15 ERA while pitching in his home park and a 5.25 mark on the road…has the fourth-most strikeouts (169) of any left-handed reliever over the past two seasons
2014
Made his 1st Opening Day roster and spent his 1st full season in the majors... Among NL relievers, finished 3rd in SO (100), 4th in SO/9.0 IP (12.68), T-6th in innings (71.0) and T-9th in games (73)... Set career highs in wins (5), games, innings and SO... His 100 SO were the most by a Phillies reliever since Al Holland also recorded 100 SO in 1983 (91.2 IP)... Had a career-best 10.2-inning scoreless streak (8 G, 5/2-20)... Pitched a scoreless 7th inning (2 SO) in the Phillies combined no-hitter, 9/1 at ATL... 21 of his final 25 appearances were scoreless (2.38 ERA, 6 ER, 22.2 IP)... Pitched at least 2.0 innings in 7 games and posted a 1.29 ERA (2 ER, 14.0 IP) in those games... The Phillies went 39-34 (.534) in games he appeared in
2013
Began the season with Lehigh Valley (AAA)... Was recalled on 6/14 and spent the rest of the season with the Phillies... Struck out a career-high 5 batters (in order), 7/3 at PIT (1.2 IP)... Appeared in both games of a doubleheader on 7/13 vs CWS (1.1 IP, 2 H, BB, SO)... Had a career-best 10.0-inning scoreless streak (10 G), 8/11-9/1... Recorded 6 consecutive SO over 3 appearances, 9/4-12... Posted a 0.52 ERA (1 ER, 17.1 IP) in his final 19 ML games and finished the season with an active 6.1-inning scoreless streak... Held LHH to a .073 AVG (3-41) over his final 28 games... Did not allow an XBH over his final 26 games... Allowed 6 ER in 29.2 IP (1.82 ERA) with a .190 opponent's AVG (20-105) over his final 34 games after allowing 5 ER in 8.2 IP (5.19 ERA), .350 opponent's AVG (14-40) over his 1st 11 appearances
2012
Began the season with Lehigh Valley (AAA)...Named Phillies Minor League Pitcher of the Week, 4/30-5/6 (1-0, 2 SV, 0.00 ERA, 3.1 IP)...Went 1-0, 5 SV, 6 SVO, 0.59 ERA (1 ER, 15.1 IP), 3 BB, 22 SO in his first 13 appearances, 4/5-5/9...Held opponents to a .196 AVG (19-97) and .185 (5-27) with RISP...Recalled on 5/11...Made his ML debut on 5/15 vs HOU (1.1 IP) and earned the win in Phillies' 4-3 walk-off victory in 10 innings...Was the 1st Phillies reliever to earn his 1st ML win in his debut since 5/17/09 (Sergio Escalona at WSH)...Had a career-high 4 SO in 1.2 IP, 5/22 vs WSH...Averaged 11.52 SO/9.0 IP (35 SO/27.1 IP) with the Phillies...Held LHH to a .200 AVG (9-45) with 18 SO...Posted a 3.60 ERA (6 ER, 15.0 IP) in his first 17 games and a 4.38 ERA (6 ER, 12.1 IP) over his final 15 games ...Optioned to Lehigh Valley on 7/31...Allowed runs in only 2 of his last 12 appearances in the minors, 8/1-29...Recalled for the 2nd time on 9/3 and posted a 1.50 ERA (1 ER, 6.0 IP) over his final 9 games.
2011
Spent the season with Reading (AA) where he finished T-4th in the Eastern League in appearances (53)...Averaged 11.49 SO/9.0 IP (83 SO/65.0 IP)...Held opponents to a .199 AVG (47-236); LHH hit .099 (9-91) against him and RHH hit .262 (38-145)...Went 3-for-3 in save opportunities; had two 2.0-inning saves: 7/10 vs Trenton and 7/22 vs Binghamton...Posted an ERA lower than 1.80 in June (1.46, 12.1 IP), July (1.59, 17.0 IP) and August (1.76, 15.1 IP)...Had a season-best 11.2-inning scoreless streak (9 G), 7/22-8/13...Posted a 1.95 ERA (6 ER, 27.2 IP) over his final 21 games of the season; had a 3.86 ERA over his first 32 appearances...Pitched at least 2.0 innings in 13 of his 53 appearances...Played for Scottsdale in the Arizona Fall League where he was named to the AFL Top Prospects Team...Had a 0.79 ERA (1 ER, 11.1 IP) with 14 SO in 11 AFL relief appearances.
2010
Began season with Lakewood (A), where 18 of his 21relief appearances were scoreless ... Promoted to Clearwater (A), 6/24 ... Held opponents to a .187 AVG (38-203) combined between Lakewood and Clearwater ... Played for Mesa in Arizona Fall League ...Participated in Florida Instructional League.
2009
Began the season with Lakewood ... Transferred to Williamsport (A) on 6/15, but did not pitch ... Transferred back to Lakewood, 6/19 ... Was 1-0, 7.09 ERA (21 ER, 26.2 IP) in first 11 appearances and 1-0, 1.24 ERA (4 ER, 29.0 IP) with a .176 opponents avg in final 21 appearances ... Participated in FIL.
2008
Began the season with Lakewood ... Transferred to Williamsport on 7/22 where he finished the season ... Participated in FIL.
2007
Began his pro career with the Gulf Coast League Phillies (R) ... Made three scoreless appearances to open the season (9.0 IP), including a win in his pro debut, 6/22 vs Indians ... Transferred to Williamsport on 8/24 where he finished the season.
