Introduction
James Stephen Karinchak (born September 22, 1995) is an American professional baseball pitcher for the Cleveland Indians of Major League Baseball (MLB).
Career
Karinchak attended Valley Central High School in Montgomery, New York. Undrafted out of high school, he attended Bryant University, where he played college baseball for the Bulldogs. In 2016, he played collegiate summer baseball with the Chatham Anglers of the Cape Cod Baseball League. Karinchak was drafted by the Cleveland Indians in the ninth round of the 2017 MLB draft.
He made his professional debut in 2017 with the Mahoning Valley Scrappers, going 2-2 with a 5.79 ERA over 23 innings. He split 2018 season between the Lake County Captains, Lynchburg Hillcats and Akron RubberDucks, combining to go 4-2 with a 1.29 ERA over 48 ⁄3 innings. He opened the 2019 season with Akron and was promoted to the Columbus Clippers early in May.
On September 13, 2019, the Indians selected Karinchak's contract and promoted him to the major leagues. He made his major league debut on September 14 versus the Minnesota Twins, pitching 1 ⁄3 scoreless innings and recording three strikeouts.