McKinney Looking To Rebound From Minors To Majors

There’s no quit in Billy McKinney’s game.

The Indianapolis Indians are currently sitting in fourth place in the Triple-A International League’s Western division, four games behind the Omaha Storm Chasers. The big draw this season for the Pittsburgh Pirates’ top minor league affiliate is pitching sensation Paul Skenes.

The way Skenes continues to dominate opposing hitters as of May 1 (6 games, 23 innings, 1 earned run, 41 strikeouts), it’s become a situation of when, not if, Indians’ skipper Miguel Perez will be calling Skenes into his office and handing him a ticket to Pittsburgh.

But there are plenty of other happenings going on at Victory Field.

Everyone on the roster is looking to impress management, with hopes of moving up to the Pirates. Outfielder Billy McKinney is one of these players.

Appearing in 18 games thus far for the Indians, a former first-round draft pick of the Oakland A’s in 2013, McKinney isn’t exactly making headlines from the plate. He has 14 hits in 58 at-bats for a .241 batting average.

However, if ever there were an underdog or just a nice guy you wish nothing but the best for – McKinney is your man.

Over the past dozen baseball seasons, McKinney has dressed for 19 clubs, from Vermont to Las Vegas and all points between. The Plano, Texan, is a grinder. He puts in his work at the ballpark each day, works hard, and is ready for whatever role he is asked to fill.

Traded from the New York Yankees this past December to the Pirates on a minor league contract, McKinney was a non-roster invitee with the big club this past spring training.

With an overabundance of outfielders for manager Derek Shelton to select from, at first, McKinney’s chances of heading north with the Pirates when they broke camp in late March appeared bleak. With regulars from last season, Bryan Reynolds, Connor Joe, Jack Suwinski, plus Andrew McCutchen (who primarily is plugged into the lineup card as the designated hitter), there was very little wiggle room for a newcomer.

Edward Olivares, with 230 MLB games on his resume, was battling, like McKinney, for one of the final outfield roster spots.

Then, on March 16, when Pittsburgh inked Rawlings Gold Glove Award centerfielder Michael A. Taylor to a one-year deal, McKinney’s ticket was all but punched for Indy.

It wasn’t as if McKinney wasn’t enjoying a productive spring at the Pirates’ home base in Bradenton, Florida. After appearing in 20 games and more scheduled, McKinney was hitting a scorching .359. In 39 at-bats, he was on base 23 times.

McKinney performed as well as Shelton and his coaching staff could have anticipated.

So, as the regular season for MLB and MiLB began in late March, once again, Billy McKinney packed his bags, and prepared for battle on the field. For someone with so much athletic talent, you must wonder what motivates McKinney to keep fighting for a job.

During spring training, first at Pirate City, then LECOM Park, McKinney appeared to blend in rather quickly with his new teammates. In the clubhouse at LECOM Park, McKinney’s stall neighbored with that of another new Pirate – Rowdy Tellez.

Both players live in the Dallas-Fort Worth metro area and work out in the off-season at the same facility. For parts of three MLB seasons (2018-2020), McKinney and Tellez were teammates with the Toronto Blue Jays.

For the most part, McKinney was quiet, seemingly concentrating on his game—how to be just a little bit better at the next practice session. For all the ups and downs McKinney has learned to deal with as a professional ballplayer, he does have people supporting him 24/7.

“My parents are easily my rock,” said McKinney last spring training. “I call them (Bill and Cathy McKinney) all the time, after each spring training game. They remind me to stay in the present.”

Having been in 19 different home clubhouses thus far in his career, you must wonder how or if McKinney has been able to bond with teammates or coaches.

“It’s tough to pinpoint one. I take away little things from them all,” explains McKinney. “During the 2021 season when I was with the Dodgers, I picked Mookie Betts’ brain on base running.”

During the 2021 season, along with playing for the Los Angeles Dodgers, McKinney split time as a New York Met and Milwaukee Brewer. More “little things” were learned from time spent with fellow Brewers’ outfielder Christian Yelich and with then Mets’ pitching ace Jacob deGrom.

For all the shuttling from big cities to small towns, McKinney's love of the game still burns hot. The fun baseball can offer and the pressures associated with the game—for McKinney, they exceed dealing with being sent down, traded, designated for assignment, and any other unkindness professional baseball offers.

Staying focused and getting back up when experiencing a difficult play or game is what keeps McKinney hustling in Indy.

An interesting product of McKinney’s vagabond ways in baseball is his jersey collection. At his home, McKinney tells of having framed jerseys from all the teams that he has played for.

So, as the Indians host the Buffalo Bisons (Toronto Blue Jays affiliate) this week, McKinney is at the ready to pinch hit, DH, play right field, just perform at his highest level of play, and wait. Are scouts from other clubs watching him? Are the Pirates going to shuffle him onto their roster? Wherever McKinney lands, that organization knows they are getting a quality person.