Before they were postseason bound: Cardinals

Here is everything you need to know about the Cardinals, who are heading to the postseason for the fifth straight season.

Lance Lynn, RHP
Born: Indianapolis, Ind.
DOB: 5/12/87
HS: Brownsburg (Ind.) High School
College: University of Mississippi
Minors: Batavia (A-), Quad Cities (A), Palm Beach (A+), Springfield (AA), Memphis (AAA)
• He played on the Brownsburg Little League team that appeared in the 1999 Little League World Series, competing against future Major Leagues Colby and Cory Rasmus, as well as Stephen Fife in the tournament.
• He was teammates with future Major Leaguer Drew Storen at Brownsburg. Lynn was named the state of Indiana's Gatorade Player of the Year in 2005.
• Lynn set strikeout records at Ole Miss, both in the single-season (146) and career (332) categories. He was teammates with Cincinnati Reds shortstop Zack Cozart.

:: NLDS: NL Wild Card winner vs. Cardinals -- Tune-in info ::

John Lackey, RHP
Born: Abilene, Texas
DOB: 10/23/78
HS: Abilene (Texas) High School
College: University of Texas Arlington, Grayson County College
Minors: Boise (A-), Cedar Rapids (A), Lake Elsinore (A+), Erie (AA), Arkansas (AA), Salt Lake (AAA)
• Lackey, who stands 6-foot-6, was a letterman not only in baseball at Abilene HS, but also in football and basketball. As a senior, he was an All-State selection in baseball.
• Lackey originally attended the University of Texas Arlington, where he mostly played first base. It wasn't until he attended Grayson County College that he began his transition to a full-time pitcher.
• Upon transferring to Grayson County College, Lackey and the Vikings went on to win the 1999 Junior College World Series. Lackey threw 100 innings as a starter in the regular season, and he slugged two home runs as a batter in the World Series.

Michael Wacha, RHP
Born: Iowa City, Iowa
DOB: 7/1/91
HS: Pleasant Grove (Texas) High School
Minors: GCL Cardinals (R), Palm Beach (A+), Springfield (AA), Memphis (AAA)
• Wacha played collegiately at Texas A&M University and actually made his college recruiting visit there the same weekend Shelby Miller did. Miller, who skipped college to turn pro, would later become Wacha's teammate in St. Louis.
• Wacha's uncle, Dusty Rogers, played five seasons in the Reds' Minor League system, from 1984-88.
• Wacha finished his career as an Aggie ranking fourth in program history with 336 strikeouts, sixth with 27 wins and 10th with a 2.53 ERA.

Carlos Martinez, RHP
Born: Puerto Plata, Dominican Republic
DOB: 9/21/91
Minors: Quad Cities (A-), Palm Beach (A+), Springfield (AA), Memphis (AAA)
• Martinez was raised in Puerto Plata, where he became close childhood friends with the late Oscar Taveras, who would later be his Major League teammate.
• The hurler long admired Hall of Famer Pedro Martinez and was tagged with the nickname "Baby Pedro" for the similarities people see in the size, personality and mechanics of the two pitchers.
• During his climb to the Majors, Martinez struck out nearly one of every four batters he faced.

:: Before they were postseason bound -- Select a club ::

Jaime Garcia, LHP
Born: Reynosa, Tamaulipas, Mexico
DOB: 7/8/86
HS: Sharyland (Texas) High School
Minors: Quad Cities (A), Palm Beach (A+), Springfield (AA), Memphis (AAA)
• Garcia was originally drafted by the Orioles in 2004, but he wasn't signed by the club after failing a test that was poorly translated from English to Spanish. Instead, Garcia re-entered the Draft the following year and was selected by the Cardinals in the 22nd round at the urging of scout Joe Almaraz, who had worked with the Orioles the year prior.
• After earning a selection to the All-Star Futures Game in 2008, Garcia underwent Tommy John surgery on his left elbow and missed much of the 2009 season, but he returned in time to pitch in the Triple-A playoffs for Memphis.
• Garcia was named to Baseball America's All-Rookie team in 2010 after posting a 2.70 ERA in 163 1/3 innings in his first extended stay in the Majors.

Trevor Rosenthal, RHP
Born: Lee's Summit, Mo.
DOB: 5/29/90
HS: Lee's Summit West (Mo.) High School
College: Cowley County Community College
Minors: GCL Cardinals (R), Johnson City (R), Quad Cities (A-), Springfield (AA), Memphis (AAA)
• Rosenthal grew up in a suburb of Kansas City and became the first player drafted out of Cowley County Community College (Kan.) since lefty Dustin Richardson in 2003.
• The closer was a member of an exceptionally successful 2009 Draft class for the Cardinals that also included Shelby Miller, Joe Kelly, Matt Carpenter and Matt Adams.
• Rosenthal began his collegiate career as a shortstop and logged only 4 2/3 regular-season innings before the Cardinals selected him as a pitcher in the 23rd round of the Draft.

Carlos Villanueva, RHP
Born: Santiago, Santiago, Dominican Republic
DOB: 11/28/83
HS: Americas Bicultural School, Santo Domingo (D.R.)
Minors: Beloit (A), Brevard County (A+), Huntsville (AA), Nashville (AAA)
• Villanueva was signed out of the Dominican Republic by the Giants in 2002 but never appeared in the Majors with San Francisco. Instead, the Giants flipped him to the Brewers, along with Glenn Woolard, in a March 2004 trade for Wayne Franklin and Leo Estrella. Villanueva had the most successful Major League career of the four.
• He played both baseball and basketball in high school.
• During his 2005 Minor League season, Villanueva struck out 138 batters in 25 starts, was named to the Florida State league midseason and postseason All-Star teams and was chosen by minorleaguebaseball.com as the "Best Foreign Born Player in Class A."

Jonathan Broxton, RHP
Born: Augusta, Ga.
DOB: 6/16/84
HS: Burke County (Ga.) High School
Minors: Great Falls (R), South Georgia (A), Vero Beach (A+), Jacksonville (AA)
• He represented the United States as a member of the 28-man roster in the 2009 World Baseball Classic. He appeared four times, going 1-0 with one earned run, four strikeouts and one walk in four innings.
• The first batter he ever struck out in the Major League was former Cardinals great Albert Pujols.
• Broxton holds a Dodgers franchise record by going 96 2/3 innings without allowing a home run, from 2006-07.

Seth Maness, RHP
Born: Pinehurst, N.C.
DOB: 10/14/88
HS: Pinecrest (N.C.) High School
College: East Carolina University
Minors: Batavia (A-), Quad Cities (A), Palm Beach (A+), Springfield (AA), Memphis (AAA)
• Maness was a three-time letterman in baseball at Pinecrest High School and also lettered in basketball. Named the Mid Southeastern Conference Player of the Year and first-team All-State as a sophomore.
• He originally joined East Carolina as a middle infielder until converting to pitcher after one of the team's starters suffered an injury.
• He holds East Carolina career records in wins (38), strikeouts (334), starts (61) and innings pitched (411 1/3). He was named Conference USA's Pitcher of the Year as a junior in 2010 and won Freshman of the Year in 2008.

Matt Belisle, RHP
DOB: 6/6/80
Born: Austin, Texas
HS: McCallum (Texas) High School
Minors: Danville (R), Macon (A), Myrtle Beach (A+), Greenville (AA), Richmond (AAA), Louisville (AAA), Dayton (A), Chattanooga (AA), Sarasota (A+), Colorado Springs (AAA)
• Belisle pitched and played third base for his high school, which advanced to the state semifinals in his junior year. He was a switch-hitter at the plate.
• He had a scholarship offer from the University of Texas, where he intended to play baseball if he didn't reach an agreement with the Braves after they drafted him with their first selection in the 1995 Draft.
• Was ranked the No. 28 overall prospect in baseball by Baseball America after the 2000 season.

Randy Choate, LHP
DOB: 9/5/75
Born: San Antonio, Texas
HS: Winston Churchill (Texas) High School
College: Florida State University
Minors: Oneonta (A-), Greensboro (A), Tampa (A+), Columbus (AAA)
• Choate was the first player from Winston Churchill HS to appear in the Major Leagues, since being joined by reliever Scott Dunn as the only two from the school to make it.
• He helped lead the Seminoles to the College World Series in 1995 and '96 alongside future big leaguers J.D. Drew, Jonathan Johnson and David Yocum. Choate earned Baseball America's 2nd- and 3rd-team All-American honors his sophomore and junior seasons.
• He won a World Series in his rookie season with the Yankees in 2000.

Kevin Siegrist, LHP
DOB: 7/20/89
Born: Buffalo, N.Y.
HS: Wellington Community (Fla.) High School
College: Palm Beach Community College (Fla.)
Minors: Batavia (A-), Quad Cities (A), Palm Beach (A+), Springfield (AA), Memphis (AAA)
• Siegrist was a walk-on to the Palm Beach CC team, and was discovered by a scout who came to one of his games to scout on of his teammates.
• He was drafted in the 41st round of the 2008 Draft as a starting pitcher whose fastball sat around 88 mph. Upon being converted to a reliever in 2013, Siegrist's fastball now touches 98.
• In his rookie season with the Cardinals in 2013, Siegrist posted a 0.45 ERA in 39 2/3 innings, the lowest total by any pitcher who threw at least 30 innings in the MLB that season.

Steve Cishek, RHP
DOB: 6/18/86
Born: Falmouth, Mass.
HS: Falmouth (Mass.) High School
College: Carson-Newman College
Minors: Jamestown (A-), Greensboro (A), Jupiter (A+), Jacksonville (AA), New Orleans (AAA)
• Cishek, who stands 6-foot-6, also played basketball at Falmouth. He wasn't recruited by Division I schools to play baseball.
• He became the first player from Division II Carson-Newman to be drafted into professional baseball and eventually make it to the MLB. Cishek helped lead Carson-Newman to a conference championship in 2007. In order to clinch that conference championship, Carson-Newman had to win three games in one day, which Cishek cited as his "favorite baseball memory" in his life in 2011.
• Upon making his debut with the Marlins in 2010, Cishek set a franchise record by throwing 14 2/3 scoreless innings to begin his career.

Mitch Harris, RHP
DOB: 11/7/85
Born: Ocala, Fla.
HS: South Point (N.C.) High School
College: United States Naval Academy
Minors: State College (A-), Palm Beach (A+), Springfield (AA), Memphis (AAA)
• Harris served in the Navy from 2008-13, attaining the rank of Lieutenant. He was based in Norfolk, Va., and deployed three times. Both of his grandfathers served in the U.S. military in World War II, one in the Navy and the other in the Army.
• Once reaching the Majors, Harris became the first Naval Academy graduate to do so since Nemo Gaines in 1921, and just the second in MLB history.
• He was a baseball letterman at South Point, where he earned all-conference and all-state honors in 2003 and '04, being named the team's MVP in the latter year. He played for the North Carolina State Games team in 2003.

Miguel Socolovich, LHP
DOB: 7/24/86
Born: Caracas, Distrito Federal, Venezuela
HS: Benito Juarez (Venezuela)
Minors: Lowell (A-), Greenville (A), Kannapolis (A), Winston-Salem (A+), Birmingham (AA), Charlotte (AAA), Iowa (AAA), Norfolk (AAA), Las Vegas (AAA), Memphis (AAA)
• He was signed by the Red Sox as an international free agent in 2004, but didn't join the organization until 2006.
• Socolovich was traded by the Red Sox to the White Sox for reliever David Aardsma in 2008.
• He spent a year in Japan's Nippon Professional Baseball league in 2013, playing for the Hiroshima Toyo Carp, where he was teammates with former Major Leaguers Fred Lewis and Kila Ka'aihue.

Tyler Lyons, LHP
DOB: 2/21/88
Born: Lubbock, Texas
HS: Frenship (Texas) High School
College: Oklahoma State University
Minors: Palm Beach (A+), Springfield (AA), Memphis (AAA)
• Lyons was an All-State quarterback in his senior year at Frenship and a three-year football letterman. In baseball, he was a two-time district MVP.
• He was chosen to play for Team USA in 2008 while attending Oklahoma State, and he helped the team win a gold medal in the FISU World Championships.
• Lyons threw a no-hitter for Palm Beach in 2011, the first in team history.

Adam Wainwright, RHP
Born: Brunswick, Ga.
DOB: 8/30/81
HS: Glynn Academy (Ga.) High School
Minors: Danville (R), Macon (A), Myrtle Beach (A+), Greenville (AA), Memphis (AAA)
• Wainwright was an All-State wide receiver in his junior and senior years at Glynn Academy, and was All-Region as a place kicker.
• After being named the Gatorade Georgia Player of the Year in his senior year at Glynn Academy, Wainwright received a scholarship from Georgia Tech, but instead signed with the Braves after being selected with the 29th overall pick in the 2000 Draft.
• The Cardinals acquired Wainwright from Atlanta in 2003, alongside pitchers Jason Marquis and Ray King, in exchange for outfielder J.D. Drew and utility man Eli Marrero.

Yadier Molina, C
Born: Bayamon, Puerto Rico
DOB: 7/13/82
HS: Ladislao Martinez (P.R.) High School
Minors: Johnson City (R), Peoria (A-), Tennessee (AA), Memphis (AAA)
• His father (Benjamin Molina Sr.) was an amateur second baseman in Puerto Rico's professional baseball league. In addition to coaching his sons, Benjamin Sr. also coached future Major Leaguers Ivan Rodriguez, Bernie Williams and Jose Hernandez.
• His brothers Bengie and Jose also had extended Major League careers, and all three Molina brothers have won a pair of World Series rings.
• Molina began playing professionally at 15, after his father scheduled a workout for him with the Hatillo Tigres of the Double-A Puerto Rican league. Molina, playing with men up to 40 years old, won a starting job immediately.

Tony Cruz, C
Born: Palm Beach, Fla.
DOB: 8/18/86
HS: Santaluces Community (Fla.) High School
College: Okaloose-Walton College, Palm Beach Community College
Minors: Batavia (A-), Quad Cities (A), Palm Beach (A+), Springfield (AA), Memphis (AAA)
• Cruz was drafted in the 42nd round of the 2005 Draft by the Dodgers, but he chose instead to play at Palm Beach Community College under head coach Alex Morales, who was a former scout for the Braves and current scout for the Nationals.
• He joined Palm Beach CC one year after now-teammate Kevin Siegrist played there.
• Cruz played infield for Palm Beach CC, mostly playing third base but also a little bit of second. He was drafted by the Cardinals in the 26th round of the 2007 Draft as a third baseman and didn't convert full-time to catcher until 2009.

Brandon Moss, 1B/OF
Born: Monroe, Ga.
DOB: 9/16/83
HS: Loganville (Ga.) High School
Minors: Lowell (A-), Augusta (A), Sarasota (A+), Portland (AA), Pawtucket (AAA)
• Moss was a pitcher/infielder when he was drafted by the Red Sox in the eighth round of the 2002 Draft, but he made the switch to outfield once joining the organization.
• By 2011, Moss had become discouraged by his struggles in the Minor Leagues, and had considered retiring from baseball to work as a firefighter in his home state of Georgia.
• Moss was the first player to be drafted out of Loganville High School when he was selected by the Red Sox. Since then, three Loganville products have followed Moss' path (Heath Holder, 2011, 50th round; Christian Miller, 2012, 19th round; Clint Frazier, 2013, 1st round).

Matt Adams, 1B
Born: Philipsburg, Pa.
DOB: 8/31/88
HS: Philipsburg-Osceola (Pa.) High School
College: Slippery Rock University of Pennsylvania
Minors: Johnson City (R), Batavia (A-), Quad Cities (A), Springfield (AA), Memphis (AAA)
• Adams played catcher in high school at Philipsburg-Osceola, where he earned All-State honors in his senior season and was a three-year letter winner. He led the team to a district championship in his senior year.
• At Slippery Rock, Adams set career records in batting average (.473) and slugging percentage (.754), and he was named the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association's Division II National Player of the Year in 2009.
• Playing at Double-A Springfield in 2011, Adams set club records in home runs and RBIs en route to being named the Texas League MVP and the Cardinals' Minor League Player of the Year.

Mark Reynolds, 1B
Born: Pikeville, Ky.
DOB: 8/3/83
HS: First Colonial (Va.) High School
College: University of Virginia
Minors: Yakima (A-), South Bend (A), Lancaster (A+), Tennessee (AA), Mobile (AA), Bowie (AA)
• Reynolds was teammates with Major Leaguer Melvin Upton Jr. for an AAU team in Virginia, and later became teammates with him and his brother Justin, as well as David Wright and Ryan Zimmerman for an autumn showcase team in 2000.
• At First Colonial High School, Reynolds was a four-year letterman in baseball, basketball and golf.
• Reynolds and Zimmerman were again teammates at the University of Virginia, where Reynolds' 35 career homers are tied for second all-time.

Kolten Wong, 2B
Born: Hilo, Hawaii
DOB: 10/19/90
HS: Kamehameha (Hawaii) High School
College: University of Hawaii at Manoa
Minors: Quad Cities (A), Springfield (AA), Memphis (AAA)
• Wong's father, Kaha, played college baseball with Mark McGwire at the University of Southern California and spent two Minor League seasons with the Class A Reno Silver Sox.
• Kolten's little brother, Kean, is a second baseman in the Rays organization who was drafted in the fourth round of the 2013 Draft. Both Kolten and Kean played in the Little League World Series as children, Kolten in the Senior League and Kean in the Junior League.
• Kolten played both baseball and football at Kamehameha High School, and was a co-winner of the 2008 Hawaii Baseball Player of the Year Award. He was originally drafted by the Twins in the 16th round of the 2008 Draft out of high school, but he decided to go to college instead.

Matt Carpenter, 3B
Born: Galveston, Texas
DOB: 11/26/85
HS: Lawrence E Elkins (Texas) High School
College: Texas Christian University
Minors: Batavia (A-), Quad Cities (A), Palm Beach (A+), Springfield (AA), Memphis (AAA)
• Carpenter's father, Rick, is a former college baseball player who now coaches at Prosper High School in Texas, where he was named the 2014 National Coach of the Year by the National Federation of State High School Associations Coaches Association. He's coached three Major Leaguers -- James Loney, Kip Wells and Chad Huffman -- and has led teams to three Texas state champions. Matt's brother, Tyler, played in the Minor Leagues for the Mets.
• Carpenter was selected to the first-team all-district three years at Elkins High School, and he was named to two all-state tournament teams. In his sophomore year, he helped his team win the 2002 National Prep Championship and was named District Sophomore of the Year.
• In his junior season at TCU, Carpenter underwent Tommy John surgery on his right elbow after tearing a ligament during a throw to first base. He was the first position player at TCU to undergo the surgery, and gained two medical redshirt years. In his first season back, he played all 63 games and was named second-team all-conference at third base. He owns career records for games played (241) and at-bats (843) at TCU.

Jhonny Peralta, SS
Born: Santiago, Dominican Republic
DOB: 5/28/82
HS: Collejo Pedagojico (D.R.)
Minors: Columbus (A-), Kinston (A+), Akron (AA), Buffalo (AAA)
• Peralta grew up in Santiago, though he has made the United States his permanent home for the last several years after signing with the Indians as a non-drafted free agent in 1999.
• In his fifth and final season in the Minor Leagues, Peralta was named the International League Most Valuable Player after batting .326 with 15 homers, 44 doubles and 86 RBIs with Triple-A Buffalo.
• Peralta received the Lou Boudreau Award in 2004 as the Indians' Minor League Player of the Year, when he helped Buffalo win the Governors' Cup and become the champions of the International League.

Pete Kozma, INF
Born: Tulsa, Okla.
DOB: 4/11/88
HS: Owasso (Okla.) High School
Minors: Johnson City (R), Cardinals (R), Batavia (A-), Quad Cities (A), Palm Beach (A+), Springfield (AA), Memphis (AAA)
• Kozma played with Royals pitcher Brian Flynn at Owasso High School, one of the most prestigious baseball schools in the state of Oklahoma. When Kozma was drafted in the first round of the 2007 Draft, he became the first Owasso graduate to become a first-round selection. Dylan Bundy matched Kozma's feat in the 2011 Draft.
• Kozma helped lead Owasso High School to a state title in his senior season by hitting a home run that accounted for the only run in a 1-0 championship victory.
• At the time the Cardinals made him the 18th overall selection in the '07 Draft, Kozma became the highest-picked player by the organization since 2000 (Shaun Boyd, 13th overall).

Greg Garcia, INF
Born: El Cajon, Calif.
DOB: 8/8/89
HS: Valhalla (Calif.) High School
College: University of Hawaii at Manoa
Minors: Johnson City (R), Quad Cities (A), Palm Beach (A+), Springfield (AA), Memphis (AAA)
• Garcia is the grandson of former Major League manager Dave Garcia, who managed the California Angels from 1977-78 and the Cleveland Indians from 1979-82.
• He was teammates with current Cardinals second baseman Kolten Wong at Hawaii.
• Garcia was named second-team Western Athletic Conference in his freshman and sophomore seasons at Hawaii, where he also played shortstop, and made first-team all-WAC in his senior year.

Matt Holliday, OF
Born: Stillwater, Okla.
DOB: 1/15/80
HS: Stillwater (Okla.) High School
Minors: AZL Rockies (R), Asheville (A-), Salem (A+), Carolina (AA), Tulsa (AA), Colorado Springs (AAA)
• Holliday attended Stillwater High School while his father, Tom, served as the head coach at nearby Oklahoma State University. Current White Sox manager Robin Ventura and former Major Leaguer Jeromy Burnitz both babysat Holliday and his brother, Josh, while playing for their father.
• His father, Tom, is the current pitching coach for Auburn University; his brother, Josh, is the head coach at Oklahoma State University; and his uncle, Dave, is a special assistant to the general manager for the Braves.
• The Cards slugger earned All-American honors as a high school senior in both football and baseball, but he passed on an opportunity to play quarterback for Oklahoma State University to instead play professional baseball.

Jon Jay, OF
Born: Miami
DOB: 3/15/85
HS: Christopher Columbus (Fla.) High School
College: University of Miami
Minors: Quad Cities (A), Palm Beach (A+), Springfield (AA), Memphis (AAA)
• In Jay's senior season at Christopher Columbus, he led the team to a state championship, batting .380 with 23 RBIs. However, he didn't garner any interest from Major League teams out of high school, and he chose instead to attend Miami.
• At Miami, Jay was named a first-team freshman All-American by Baseball America, hitting .368 with 14 doubles, six home runs and 56 RBIs.
• He represented Team USA in his sophomore year in the Collegiate Nationals, playing alongside future Major Leaguers J.P. Arencibia, Sean Doolittle, Ian Kennedy, Matt LaPorta, Mark Melancon, Chris Perez, David Price, Shane Robinson, Max Scherzer, Drew Stubbs and Matt Wieters.

Jason Heyward, OF
Born: Ridgewood, N.J.
DOB: 8/9/89
HS: Henry County (Ga.) High School
Minors: Danville (R), Rome (A), Myrtle Beach (A+), Mississippi (AA), Gwinnett (AAA)
• In Heyward's sophomore year at Henry County, he hit a home run off current Giants catcher Buster Posey, who was a pitcher for Lee County High School at the time. In his junior season, Heyward helped lead Henry County to the state championship.
• Upon being selected with the 14th overall pick in the 2007 Draft by the hometown Braves, Heyward was named by Baseball America the 28th overall prospect in baseball before the 2008 season, the fifth overall prospect in 2009, and the top overall prospect in 2010.
• Heyward's younger brother, Jacob, attends the University of Miami, where he plays baseball.

Tommy Pham, OF
Born: Las Vegas
DOB: 3/8/88
HS: Durango (Nev.) High School
Minors: Johnson City (Rookie), Batavia (A-), Quad Cities (A), Palm Beach (A+), Springfield (AA), Memphis (AAA)
• Pham is only the second player of Vietnamese descent to play in the Major Leagues and the first since Danny Graves in 2006.
• After getting just three plate appearances (zero hits) in his first seven Major League games, he recorded his first big league hit, stolen base, RBI, run scored and home run all in within two games this year.
• Pham had a fastball in high school that could top out at 93 mph, but preferred to play the field, telling the Las Vegas Review Journal, "I don't really like to pitch. ... My mechanics are horrible."

Stephen Piscotty, OF
Born: Pleasanton, Calif.
DOB: 1/14/91
HS: Amador Valley (Calif.) High School
College: Stanford University
Minors: Quad Cities (A), Palm Beach (A+), Springfield (AA), Memphis (AAA)
• Piscotty was named the MVP of the East Bay Athletic League in his senior season at Amador Valley, where he was a pitcher and shortstop.
• He was selected by the Dodgers in the 45th round of the 2009 Draft, but chose instead to attend Stanford, a school of which he'd been a fan since a youth.
• Piscotty was named to the All-Pacific-10 Conference first team in his sophomore year, and was a preseason All-American in his senior year, eventually being named All-Pac-12.

Randal Grichuk, OF
Born: Rosenberg, Texas
DOB: 8/13/91
HS: Lamar Consolidated (Texas) High School
Minors: Cedar Rapids (A), Inland Empire (A+), Arkansas (AA), Memphis (AAA)
• Grichuk had committed to attend the University of Arizona, but was selected by the Angels in the first round of the 2009 Draft, famously being chosen one selection ahead of All-Star Mike Trout.
• He played in the 2004 Little League World Series for Lamar National of Richmond, Texas, where he played against Mets outfielder Michael Conforto.
• Grichuk was a first-team, all-state outfielder for Lamar Consolidated in his junior year, and was named the All-Houston MVP. The Mustangs won a school-record 29 games that season and played in the regional finals.

Peter Bourjos, OF
Born: Park Ridge, Ill.
DOB: 3/31/87
HS: Notre Dame Prep (Ariz.) High School
Minors: Orem (R), Cedar Rapids (A), Rancho Cucamonga (A+), Arkansas (AA), Salt Lake (AAA), Inland Empire (A+)
• Peter's father, Chris, played for the Giants in 1980 and later became a scout for the Orioles.
• Bourjos starred in both baseball and football at Notre Dame Prep, serving as a wide receiver and kickoff returner in football.
• When Bourjos was selected in the 10th round of the 2005 Draft by the Angels, he was just the second Notre Dame Prep product to be drafted, and the highest pick. Since then,10 more Notre Dame players have been drafted by MLB teams, with the highest pick being Tayler Scott's fifth-round selection by the Cubs in 2011.