Wild Things Acquire Byrd from Texas
The Washington Wild Things acquired INF Leon Byrd from the Texas Airhogs to complete a prior trade from June 10th. This upcoming season will be Byrd’s 3rd year of professional baseball and the Houston native is excited for the challenge.
Leon played collegiately at Rice University. After a strong junior year, the Texas Rangers selected Leon in the 10th round of the MLB First-Year Player Draft. He signed his first professional contract and began his career with the Spokane Indians. In one season with the Indians, Byrd hit 12 doubles in 53 games and drove in 21 runs. The Texas Airhogs of the American Association signed Byrd in 2016, where he continued to show off his bat and versatility. In 54 games with the Airhogs, Byrd had 54 hits and doubling 10 times. He finished the season hitting .284 at the age of 22, in a league of predominantly older players.
“Leon certainly has a great background; playing high school baseball in the hot bed of the Houston area, being a big part of the historic Rice program and then making great strides professionally. We were impressed to see how he performed in the American Association and he is certainly excited to be part of the Wild Things but also the Washington Community.” , GM Steve Zavacky stated about the trade acquiring Byrd.
The Wild Things begin their 16th campaign in May of 2017. The home opener is scheduled for Friday, May 19th when Washington hosts the Windy City Thunderbolts. Ticket and group packages are currently available at the box office at 724-250-9555.
