Sam Kennelly

Samuel Rima Bailey Kennelly

• Bats Right, Throws Right
• Height 6' 2", Weight 190 lb.

• High School South Fremantle Senior High School

• Born January 9, 1996 in Perth, Western Australia Australia

BR Register page

Biographical Information

Sam Kennelly has played in the minors and for the New Zealand national team. His brothers Matt Kennelly, Tim Kennelly and Josh Kennelly all played in the minors. His father Mike Kennelly was a PGA golfer.

He was signed by Pittsburgh Pirates scout Tony Harris in January 2012. It would be two years before he played a game in the Pirate chain, starting his pro career back in Australia instead. debuted with the Perth Heat in the 2012-2013 Australian Baseball League, going 5 foe 32 with a walk, three runs and two RBI as a backup infielder. In 2013-2014, he fell to .105/.211/.105 in 80 plate appearances, backing up Luke Hughes at second base.

Kennelly hit .284/.388/.343 for the 2014 GCL Pirates, showing offensive skills he had not displayed yet in his homeland. He mainly backed up Nelson Jorge at 2B, also backing up Cole Tucker at SS. In the 2014-2015 ABL, he put up a .200/.256/.225 batting line. Returning to the GCL Pirates in 2015, he hit .258/.309/.346 with 23 RBI in 46 games. He fielded .994 as their main first baseman.

In the 2015-2016 ABL, he hit .189/.255/.280 for Perth, fielding .931 as their most-used shortstop. He split the summer of 2016 between the GCL Pirates (.207/.303/.310 in 16 G) and Bristol Pirates (.139/.200/.154 in 19 G). He batted .218/.337/.244 for Perth in 2016-2017, splitting third with his brother Tim.

His time in the Pirates system over, he signed with the Twins Oosterhout in the Netherlands. In the 2018 Hoofdklasse, he produced at a .255/.315/.412 clip with six dingers in 42 games. He tied Denzel Richardson for the home run title. Returning to Perth after a season away, he hit .212/.333/.394 in 2018-2019, though he did go deep four times in sixty-six at-bats. He handled 165 chances error-free at first, which he shared with Jake Bowey.

Sam hit .238/.273/.548 in 2019-2020, homering in three of 42 at-bats, backing up Jess Williams at the hot corner. He was 5 for 33 with two doubles, five runs, a walk and six RBI in 2020-2021. He suited up for New Zealand in the 2022 World Baseball Classic Qualifiers (brothers Matt and Tim had both played for Australia in the past), one of a run of Australians to play for New Zealand. He hit cleanup and played left in their opener. Striking out his first at-bat against Gabriel Barbosa of Brazil, he was 0 for 4 before being replaced by Kane Swanson. The next game, he also was 0 for 4 to tie Shan Sundu for the lowest oh-fer in that year's qualifiers.