Andrew Robert Knizner…Instagram: @andrewkiz…X/Twitter: @A_Knizner…engaged to fiancée, Ally, on Dec.27, 2023…the couple has a one-year-old portidoodle named Luna…played third base and catcher over three-year collegiate career at NC State, where he was teammates with current Phillies shortstop Trea Turner and Yankees LHP Carlos Rodón during his 2014 freshman campaign…finished with a .312 batting avg. with 15 HR and 119 RBI over 169 games for the Wolfpack, earning Louisville Slugger freshman All-American honors during his freshman season, and second-team All-ACC and preseason third-team All-American honors as a junior…studied industrial engineering at NC State where he had a 3.93 GPA at the time of his departure, and took a job as an engineering intern in Raleigh, NC during his first professional baseball offseason…played for the Wareham Gatemen of the Cape Cod League over the 2014-15 seasons…played high school baseball at Hanover (Va.) H.S., helping his team win the 2013 Virginia AAA State Championship as a shortstop…also played football as a quarterback and punter…uncle, Matt, was a quarterback at Penn State and a member of the 1986 National Championship Nittany Lion squad.
2023
Knizner produced career highs in HR (10), RBI (31), doubles (11), and total bases (95), batting .241/.288/.424/.712 (54-224) in 70 games for the Cardinals in 2023…started 63 games as the Redbirds catcher, totaling 565.0 innings behind the dish…posted a .998 fielding percentage as a catcher (1 E/493 TC), the seventh-highest single-season fielding pct. by a Cardinals catcher (min. 550 innings caught) since 1901… joined KC’s Salvador Perez as the only two backstops in MLB with 550-or-more innings caught and one-or-fewer errors committed…collected career-high four RBI on 5/15 vs. MIL, all coming via an eighth-inning grand slam off Brewers position player Mike Brosseau – Knizner’s first MLB slam…endured 11- day Injured List stint (right groin contusion) from 7/5-16 after fouling a ball off his groin region on 7/4 at MIA, marking his first career appearance on a Major League injured list…hit safely in a career-high seven consecutive contests with a PA 7/26-8/10, batting .440/.440/.920/1.360 (11-25) with four HR and nine RBI over that stretch…included first career multi-HR game on 7/27 vs. CHC…right-handed batter posted .264/.313/.419/.731 slash line vs. righties, compared to .197/.238/.434/.672, mirroring his career splits (.238 vs. RHP/.155 vs. LHP)…fared well against the A.L. West, going 6-for-17 (.353) with two 2B and two RBI, but did not appear in the Cardinals’ three-game series at Globe Life Field from 6/5-7.
2022
Led Cardinals with 685.1 innings caught, becoming the first catcher to do so other than Yadier Molina since Mike Matheny in 2004...Posted career highs in games (97), runs (28), hits (56), doubles (10), home runs (four) and RBI (25)...Posted career-highs with three hits (vs. MIL 4/15 & vs. LAD 7/12) and three RBI (vs. KC 4/12 & LAD 7/12), all Cardinals wins. ..Was the only catcher in MLB in 2022 to hit safely and score a run in six consecutive games played (8/20-8/29)...Collected 11 of his 14 multi-hit games while on the road...Caught six shutout wins and has 12 since the start of 2021, T12th among MLB catchers...Made his first career MLB pitching appearance recording the final two outs of the game in an 11-4 loss vs. ATL (8/26)...Became the first Cardinals position player to homer a day after pitching (Bobby Bonilla, 8/27/2001 vs. Atlanta)...Threw out 25.0% (7 CS/28 SB ATT) of attempted base-stealers...Ranked T-3rd among National League catchers with six double plays turned trailing only JT Realmuto (11) and Willson Contreras (eight). ..Ranked fourth among qualified NL catchers in stolen base percentage (78.6)...Recorded his 100th career hit, a ninth inning single off Yohan Ramirez at Pittsburgh (10/4)...Was on the roster for the third consecutive postseason, but did not play in either of the two Wild Card games against Philadelphia at Busch Stadium.
2021
Made the Cardinals Opening Day roster for the second consecutive season...Started 43 games at catcher with the Cardinals posting a 27-16 (.627) mark in those games... Caught six shutouts in 2021 including three straight starts (May 7, May 13 & May 26)... Threw out 5-of-22 attempted basestealers including 3-of-last-7... Drew 19 walks, T-17th among National League catchers and only five behind teammate Yadier Molina (24), who played in 61 more games... Started 10 games while Molina was on the Injured List (4/27- 5/7) with a right tendon strain, and helped the Cardinals post an 8-2 record in those games while scoring a run in 6-of-10 games. The Cardinals pitching staff recorded a 3.09 ERA over that stretch, 6th-lowest in MLB with opponents batting .198 (4th in MLB)... Drew a career-high three walks in consecutive games (7/24- 25 at Cincinnati), marking the first time a Cardinals catcher had accomplished the feat in franchise history... Caught two of Adam Wainwright’s starts (5/3 vs. NYM & 9/28 vs. MIL) including the Wild Card-clinching game... Cracked a pinch-hit two-RBI single in the 11th inning at NYM (9/14) as the last position player on the Cardinals bench, one of his two pinch-hits on the season... Batted .303 (10-33) with three doubles and a .378 OBP during the month of April, his most hits (10) in any single month of his career... Played in five games for Tigres de Licey in the Dominican Winter League, batting .294 (5-17) with a double, five RBI and a .400 OBP. His first experience in the DWL.
2021 POSTSEASON: Was on the postseason roster for the Wild Card game at Los Angeles (10/6) but did not play.
2020
Played in eight games, starting four at catcher...Threw out 2-of-3 attempted base stealers on the season, including two in one game at CWS (8/16) marking the first time a Cardinals rookie catcher did so since Cody McKay vs. ATL (5/13/2004) catching J.D. Drew and Dewayne Wise...Recorded an RBI in 3-of-8 games played in 2020...Batted .500 (2-4, 4 RBI) with runners in scoring position; and 1.000 (1-1) with the bases loaded. Had the Cardinals lone pinch-hit of the 2020 season, with 2 RBI...Collected two hits and two RBI coming off the bench at CIN (9/1) becoming only the second catcher during the 2020 season to accomplish the feat (Tyler Stephenson, CIN) and first Cardinals catcher since David Freese (10/4/2009 vs. MIL); first which didn’t play other positions in the game since Gary Bennett (4/23/2006 vs. CHI)...Was optioned to the Alternate Training Site once Matt Wieters returned from injury on Sept. 4 and remained on the taxi squad the rest of the season.
2020 POSTSEASON: Was on the postseason roster for the Wild Card series at San Diego but did not play in any of the three games.
2019
Rookie catcher played three stints with St. Louis during his Major League debut season. His first two promotions were due to Yadier Molina being placed on the 10-day I.L...Threw out 42.3% of attempted basestealers (25 CS-59 SB ATT) in Memphis. Led all Triple-A catchers in runners caught stealing (23) at time of his initial recall (May 31) while his overall season total of 25 runners caught stealing led the PCL at season's end...Made his Major League debut on June 2 vs. Chicago Cubs. Started at catcher and was 0-for-3, while catching 8.0 scoreless innings from Adam Wainwright before a run crossed in the 9th inning...After starting the season 0-for-10 with St. Louis, batted .279 (12-43) 2 HR & 7 RBI over his final 15 games. Hit safely in his last 10 starts of the season (.282, 11-39)...Four of his 12 hits went for extra bases (2 doubles, 2 home runs)...Doubled and scored his first MLB run and tallied his first MLB RBI at Cincinnati (7/19). Also threw out Yasiel Puig attempting to steal 2nd base...Hit first Major League home run at Pittsburgh (7/24) off Jordan Lyles while scoring a career-high two runs...Recorded his first career stolen base at Cincinnati (7/21)...Entered as a pinch-runner at Pittsburgh (7/22), scored a run, then caught the 10th inning making a game-saving tag on Kevin Newman on an outfield assist from Jose Martínez in a come-from-behind 6-5 win...Played in only five September games, starting two, while making two pinch-hit appearances and one as a pinchrunner.
2018
Entered the season rated as the No. 10 prospect in the Cardinals organization by Baseball America....Began the season as a non-roster invitee to Major League Spring Training...Combined to play in 94 games between Springfield (AA) and Memphis (AAA) batting .313 with 7 HR, 45 RBI, 18 doubles and a .368 on-base percentage...Was selected to play in the MLB All-Star Futures Game in Washington D.C. for the USA Team. Entered the game defensively in top of the 6th at catcher & caught four innings, beginning with Cardinals teammate Dakota Hudson...Homered on Opening Day in Springfield (4/5)...Ran off a 16-game hitting streak (7/21-8/18), T-6th longest in the Texas League, batting .387 (24-62) during the streak...Hit safely in 70-of-92 games during the regular season...Hit safely in 20 of last 22 games with an at-bat in Springfield (.353, 30-85) beginning stretch w/ four straight multi-hit games (7/21-26) and part of five straight scoring a run (7/20-26)...Reached base safely in 20 straight games (7/13-8/18)...Threw out 26.7% (20 CS/75 SB ATT) of attempted base stealers between Memphis and Springfield...Ranked 3rd among Texas League catchers in caught stealing percentage (29.0%)...Smacked two home runs at Tulsa (7/23), one of his four games with a season-high 3 RBI during the season...Hit all seven of his home runs for Springfield off right-handed pitchers and he batted .318 (68-214) against RHPs...Matched his career-high four hits (4-4) vs. Arkansas (6/23)...Placed on the 7-day IL with a left ear laceration (8/5-11)...Played in seven games during the Pacific Coast League playoffs and batted .160 (4-25) with a double and three walks. Was 2-for-5 with a double in the Triple-A Championship game vs. Durham (9/18)...Following the season, rated as the Texas League's No. 16 prospect by Baseball America.
2017
Began the 2017 season as a non-roster invitee to Major League Spring Training a year after being drafted in the 7th round of the 2016 First-Year Player Draft out of North Carolina State... Played in 95 total games during the 2017 season between Peoria (A) and Springfield (AA), batting .302 with 12 home runs and 51 RBI... Ranked among Cardinals minor league leaders in batting (.302, 7th), slugging (.471, 6th), and doubles (23, T-8th)... Hit safely in 67-of-95 games during the season... Named a Midwest League Mid-Season All-Star... Posted the 8th-longest hitting streak in the Midwest League at 15 games (4/28-5/19) batting .323 (20-62) and the 10th-longest hitting streak in the Texas League at 13 games (7/5-25) batting .469 (23-49). Reached base safely in 23 straight games for Springfield (7/5-8/8), T-10th longest streak in the league... Threw out 45.1% (23 CS/51 SB ATT) of attempted basestealers on the season, made only three errors... Played 17 games for Surprise in the Arizona Fall League and ranked 5th in the league in batting (.358), tied for 9th in home runs (3) and 8th in on-base percentage (.403) and slugging (.537)... Missed hitting for the cycle by a home run on Opening Day at Burlington (4/7) tying his career-high with four hits (4-for5) with a double and a triple... Was selected to play in the AFL Rising Stars game and caught three innings in reserve... Named Arizona Fall League Player of the Week (10/24) with performances which included a four-hit game and a two-homer game (10/21).
