Luke Thomas Farrell (born June 7,1991) is an American former professional baseball pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Kansas City Royals,Chicago Cubs,Texas Rangers,Minnesota Twins,and Cincinnati Reds. He made his MLB debut in 2017.
Farrell attended Saint Ignatius High School in Cleveland,Ohio,and Northwestern University,where he played college baseball for the Northwestern Wildcats. In 2010,his freshman year,he was diagnosed with a schwannoma,a benign nerve sheath tumor on his jaw,that required surgical removal. [1] He developed another tumor that was removed and treated with radiation therapy in 2011. [2] In his four years at Northwestern,Farrell had 208 strikeouts,and was awarded with the Big Ten Medal of Honor in his senior season. [3] In 2011,he played collegiate summer baseball with the Wareham Gatemen of the Cape Cod Baseball League,and returned to the league in 2012 to play for the Falmouth Commodores. [4] [5]
The Kansas City Royals selected Farrell in the sixth round of the 2013 MLB draft. Farrell made 10 starts with the Rookie Advanced level Idaho Falls Chukars,where he went 1–3 with a 6.65 ERA,although he did strike out 45 batters in 43