Michael Burgess

Michael Burgess

• Bats Left, Throws Left
• Height 5' 11", Weight 195 lb.
• High School Hillsborough High School
• Born October 20, 1988 in Tampa, FL USA

BR minors page

Biographical Information

Michael Burgess was selected 49th overall by the Washington Nationals in the 2007 amateur draft.

Burgess attended Hillsborough High School in Tampa, FL, the same school that produced Dwight Gooden, Gary Sheffield, and a number of other accomplished major leaguers. Burgess was an Aflac All-American and won a Jackie Robinson Award (not the well-known Robinson Award, the Rookie of the Year Award in the majors). He is a Five-tool player and can even pitch at 95 miles per hour.

In 2006, he was one of four juniors to be named to one of the top three Baseball America high school All-American teams. He was a third-team outfielder after a .511 season in which he slugged 1.045 and stole 24 bases. He slipped to .338 with 3 HR as a senior but was still a first-round draft pick that year.

Burgess once hit a home run over a 60 foot wall in center field at Sarasota's Ed Smith Stadium. Ken Griffey Jr., Frank Thomas, and Bo Jackson are the only other players who have cleared the wall (some sources list Cecil Fielder instead of Griffey). He also hit a blast that soared over a six-story building during a home run derby contest in San Diego, CA.

After being drafted, Burgess was signed by scout Paul Tinnell and made his pro debut that summer. The Nationals assigned Burgess to play outfield for the Gulf Coast League Nationals, he logged two hits and an RBI in his first professional game on July 8, 2007, and hit his first professional home run on July 10th. He hit .336/.442/.617 in 36 games for the GCL Nationals and .250/.379/.333 in 14 for the Vermont Lake Monsters that year. Despite his limited time in the Gulf Coast League, he tied for 4th with 8 homers. If he qualified, he led in OPS, 99 points ahead of any other league regular.

On January 17, 2011, the Nationals traded Burgess along with Ps Graham Hicks and A.J. Morris to the Chicago Cubs in return for P Tom Gorzelanny.

Sources: SI High School Notebook