It is a little leaguer’s dream to one day become a Major League Baseball (MLB) player. Andy Burns, grandson of Jim and Kathy Polniak of Botetourt County, was recently called up to the Bigs and realized his dream.
According to his grandparents, Andy made his mind up that he would become a Major Leaguer since he began playing T-ball. After being named a high school All-American, he continued to play in college for the University of Kentucky and the University of Arizona.
In 2011, after Burns’ junior year at U of A, the Toronto Blue Jays drafted him in the 11th round. From there, Burns began a long climb to the majors.
Burns saw time in a MLB clubhouse in 2016 as a reserve for the Jays for six games. Later, he spent time playing in the South Korean Professional Baseball League and playing winter ball in Australia.
He returned to the U.S. as a free agent and signed with the 2020 World Series Champions, the Los Angeles Dodgers, last December. The Dodgers placed Burns on their AAA affiliate’s roster in Oklahoma City. After playing in AAA ball for a little over a month, Burns boasted a .330 batting average with five home runs and 20 runs batted in.
At the end of his minor league tilt on June 11, the Dodgers called Burns and notified him that he was being called up to L.A. In his first game with the Dodgers, he started at second base, making history by scoring his first Major League hit, run-scored, and pitched the eighth inning of a game all but decided as the Dodgers trailed the Texas Rangers, 10-1. He scored a strike-out to boot in his only inning of work.
Burns’ stat line resulted in the first Major Leaguer to record a hit, score a run, and pitch in the same baseball game since 1961.
Jim and Kathy are very proud of their grandson and hope to see him play in the Bigs soon.
