Andrew Stefan McCutchen (born October 10, 1986) is an American professional baseball outfielder and designated hitter who is a free agent. He has previously played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Pittsburgh Pirates, San Francisco Giants, New York Yankees, Philadelphia Phillies, Milwaukee Brewers, and Texas Rangers. Internationally, McCutchen represents the United States. In the 2017 World Baseball Classic (WBC), he helped win Team USA's first gold medal in a WBC tournament.
The Pirates selected McCutchen in the first round (11th pick overall) of the 2005 MLB draft, and he made his MLB debut in 2009. During McCutchen's first tenure in Pittsburgh, he was the National League (NL) Most Valuable Player in 2013, a five-time All Star (2011–2015), a four-time Silver Slugger Award winner (2012–2015), a Gold Glove Award winner in 2012, and the Roberto Clemente Award winner in 2015. McCutchen led the NL in hits (194) in 2012, and in on-base percentage (.410), OPS (.952), and extra base hits (69) in 2014.
McCutchen was born in Fort Meade, Florida, to Lorenzo McCutchen and Petrina Swan, who were high school teenagers at the time. He has a sister, Loren. He lived with his mother while his father attended Carson–Newman University in Jefferson City, Tennessee, where Lorenzo played running back on the football team. Lorenzo gave up his dream of making the National Football League (NFL) to be close to his son and returned to Fort Meade in 1989. Petrina would not marry him unless he became a church minister, which he did. The two married on August 1, 1992.
McCutchen was eligible to play varsity baseball as an eighth grader at Fort Meade High School. He batted .591 as a freshman. McCutchen's average his senior season was .709, as he hit 16 home runs and 42 runs batted in (RBIs). During his varsity career, McCutchen batted .474.
McCutchen also ran track and played football. He was part of a state title-winning 4 × 100 metres relay in his first year of high school. McCutchen was one of the top 200 football recruits in the state of Florida, with his high school position being wide receiver, but opted for a baseball career. He was reportedly offered a full-ride scholarship to the University of Miami to play football.
McCutchen, who had committed to the University of Florida, was drafted 11th overall by the Pittsburgh Pirates in the first round of the 2005 MLB draft. He signed with the Pirates, receiving a $1.9 million signing bonus, instead of attending Florida. In 2005, he played for the Rookie Gulf Coast League (GCL) Pirates and the Single–A Williamsport Crosscutters, and hit a combined .310/.419 (2nd in the GCL)/.433 with two home runs and 17 stolen bases in 210 at-bats, as he was second in the league with 29 walks, tied for second with 36 runs, third with three triples, and fifth with 13 stolen bases.
Before the 2006 season Baseball America named McCutchen the #50 prospect in the minor leagues. McCutchen played the majority of the season for the Single-A Hickory Crawdads, for whom he started the South Atlantic League (SAL) All-Star team in his first full season as a professional player and was a postseason SAL All-Star. He also played for the Double-A Altoona Curve and batted a combined .294/.359/.450 with 17 home runs and 23 stolen bases in 531 at-bats. At the end of that year, the Pirates named him the organization's Minor League Player of the Year.
Before the 2007 season Baseball America named McCutchen the #13 prospect in the minor leagues, and Baseball Prospectus named him the #15 prospect. He played again for Altoona, as well as for the Triple-A Indianapolis Indians, and hit a combined .265/.329/.388 with 11 home runs and 21 stolen bases in 513 at bats. In 2007 he also played for the Phoenix Desert Dogs, he was on the Arizona Fall League All-Prospect Team and named a Rising Star.
Before the 2008 season Baseball America named him the #14 prospect in the minor leagues, and Baseball Prospectus named him the #24 prospect. In 2008, McCutchen was a mid-season International League (IL) All-Star, an All-Star Futures Game selection, and the Triple-A All-Star Game Top Star. He played the entire season with Indianapolis, and batted .283/.372 (10th in the IL)/.398 with 12 home runs, 68 walks (3rd in the league), 34 stolen bases (7th), and 145 hits (9th), in 512 at-bats.
Before the 2009 season Baseball America named McCutchen the #33 prospect in the minor leagues, and Baseball Prospectus named him the #25 prospect. He again played for Indianapolis, but played only 49 games for them, as he batted .303/.361/.493 with 4 home runs and 17 stolen bases in 201 at-bats.
Pittsburgh Pirates (2009–2017)
On June 3, 2009, after the Pittsburgh Pirates traded starting center fielder Nate McLouth to the Atlanta Braves, McCutchen was called up to MLB for the first time. He made his MLB debut the next day, playing center field and batting leadoff against the New York Mets. He singled in his first career at-bat, off starter Mike Pelfrey. McCutchen ended the day with two singles, one RBI, three runs scored, and a stolen base in four at-bats. He recorded his first career four-hit game five days later, against McLouth and the Braves. Two of his hits were triples, making him the first Pirate with two triples in a game since Tike Redman accomplished the feat in 2003.
On June 17, McCutchen hit his first MLB career home run off of Francisco Liriano of the Minnesota Twins. On June 25, he had his first MLB career walk-off hit, off Cleveland Indians closer Matt Herges. "He's an impressive-looking young player. He really is," said Indians manager Eric Wedge.
On August 1, against the Washington Nationals, McCutchen went 4-for-5, with three home runs and six RBIs. He became the 10th Pirates player ever to hit three home runs in a single game, and the first one to do it during his rookie year. Ten days later against the Colorado Rockies at Coors Field, he stole a career-high three bases in a game off three different Rockies pitchers. McCutchen hit his first walk-off home run on August 25, off Brad Lidge of the Philadelphia Phillies.
McCutchen finished his rookie season batting .286/.365/.471, with nine triples (sixth in the National League), an 81.48 stolen base percentage (6th), 12 home runs, 54 RBIs, and 22 stolen bases in 108 games. On defense, he had 10 assists (third among NL center fielders), and a 2.53 range factor/game (4th).
McCutchen finished fourth in the voting for the National League Rookie of the Year Award, behind Chris Coghlan, J. A. Happ, and Tommy Hanson. He was named the Baseball America Rookie of the Year for 2009.
McCutchen began the 2010 season as the Pirates' everyday center fielder. "He's an All-Star. This year, probably," said Atlanta Braves manager Bobby Cox; "Hitting. Running. Defense. Throwing. He's got it all. He catches the ball like Andruw Jones did when he was 19. You can't hit a ball [past him] out there. He's got lightning in that bat too."
McCutchen posted a career day against the Chicago Cubs on May 14, going 5-for-5 with five runs scored in a 10–7 Pirates win. Teammate Garrett Jones also recorded five hits, making McCutchen and Jones the first Pirate duo since Hall of Fame inductee Willie Stargell and Bob Robertson accomplished the feat in 1970. "I guess we were just kind of competing against each other," McCutchen said, laughing. "I don't know. I'd get a hit, he'd get a hit. He'd hit a homer, I'd hit a homer." McCutchen finished the month of May with career-best numbers, hitting .327 with a .901 OPS, which drew comparisons with Tampa Bay Rays All-Star Carl Crawford.