Draft and minor leagues Prior to the
2006 Major League Baseball draft, the
Boston Red Sox attempted to sign Freese as a
free agent for a $90,000
signing bonus. However, South Alabama made the
College World Series regional playoffs, which extended their season past the pre-draft signing deadline. The
San Diego Padres selected Freese in the ninth round (273rd overall) of the draft. Freese signed with the Padres and played for the
Eugene Emeralds of the Class-A Short Season
Northwest League,
Fort Wayne Wizards of the Class-A
Midwest League, and
Lake Elsinore Storm of the Class-A Advanced
California League in the San Diego farm system in 2006 and 2007. He batted .379 with a .465 OBP, .776 SLG, 19 runs and 26 RBIs in 18 games for the Emeralds and .299 with a .374 OBP, .510 SLG and 44 RBIs in 53 games for the Wizards in 2006. Freese batted .302 with a .400 OBP and .489 SLG for Lake Elsinore in 128 games during the 2007 season. He scored 104 runs and drove in 96. He ranked seventh in the California League in OBP, seventh in RBIs and tied with
Tony Granadillo for third in runs. He made the California League All-Star team. However, the Padres had third basemen
Chase Headley and
Kevin Kouzmanoff as well, potentially blocking Freese's path to the majors. As a result, Freese began to practice as a
catcher. He led PCL third basemen in
fielding percentage (.967) and
double plays (26).
St. Louis Cardinals (2009–2013) Early MLB career: 2009–2010 Freese emerged as a potential starter when an injury seemed likely to put Cardinals starting third baseman
Troy Glaus on the
disabled list at the beginning of the 2009 season. Freese made his MLB debut on
Opening Day of the 2009 season, coming off the bench and hitting a go-ahead
sacrifice fly in the Cardinals' home opener against the
Pittsburgh Pirates. Freese was expected to be the team's starting third baseman, but was quickly passed over by
Brian Barden and
Joe Thurston. He was
optioned to Triple-A Memphis on April 20, 2009, to make room for newly acquired reliever
Blaine Boyer. He later had surgery to repair a left ankle injury that hampered him during spring training. He was recalled in the September call-up on September 23, 2009. Freese played only 17 games for the Cardinals in 2009, However, he suffered a right ankle injury in June. This injury required him to have two ankle surgeries and ended his season after 70 games. and he was named the starter on Opening Day, despite suffering minor ailments during spring training.
2011 postseason In the
2011 National League Division Series, Freese drove in four runs against Philadelphia in Game 4 to force a fifth game. In the
National League Championship Series (NLCS) against Milwaukee, Freese had a .545 batting average, hit 3 home runs, drove in 9 runs, and scored 7 runs. He was named the
NLCS Most Valuable Player. Through Game 3 of the
World Series against Texas, Freese had a 13-game postseason hitting streak, a Cardinals record and just two short of matching the all-time National League record. The hitting streak was snapped in Game 4. In Game 6 of the
2011 World Series, with the
Texas Rangers leading the game 7–5, and leading the series by 3 games to 2, Freese came to bat in the bottom of the ninth with two out and two men on base. With a count of one ball and two strikes, Freese hit a two-run
triple off
Neftalí Feliz just out of the reach of
Nelson Cruz to tie the game and send it to extra innings. In the 11th inning, again with two strikes, Freese hit a game-winning,
walk-off solo home run to deep center field (420 feet), to send the World Series to its first
Game 7 since
2002. Freese joined
Jim Edmonds, the man for whom he was traded, as the only players in Cardinals history to hit an extra-inning walk-off home run in the postseason. He joined
Aaron Boone (2003), and
Hall of Famers David Ortiz (2004),
Carlton Fisk (1975) and
Kirby Puckett (1991) as the only players to hit an extra-inning walk-off home run when their team was facing postseason elimination. In Game 7 of the World Series, Freese hit a two-run double in the bottom of the first inning, bringing his 2011 postseason RBI total to 21, setting an MLB record that would stand for the next twelve years. The Cardinals went on to win the game and the series, making Freese a World Series champion for the first time. For his efforts, Freese was named the
World Series MVP. He became the sixth player to win the LCS and World Series MVP awards in the same year. Freese also won the
Babe Ruth Award as the postseason MVP.
2012 season Freese won the
All-Star Final Vote in 2012, joining the All-Star roster with teammates
Lance Lynn,
Carlos Beltrán,
Rafael Furcal, and
Yadier Molina for the
National League in the
2012 MLB All-Star Game. Freese had a .294 batting average, along with 13 home runs and 50 RBIs in the first half of the season. After being injury-plagued in previous years, Freese played in a career-high 144 games in 2012, finishing the season with 79 RBIs, 20 home runs and a .293 batting average. However, he slumped after that game, batting just .192 for the series as the Giants won in seven games and advanced to the
2012 World Series.
2013 season On February 8,
2013, Freese and the Cardinals reached agreement on a one-year contract, avoiding arbitration. This was the first season he was arbitration-eligible and when filing he had requested a 2013 salary of $3.75 million. The Cardinals counter-offered $2.4 million. After suffering a back injury in spring training and starting the 2013 season on the disabled list, Freese struggled at the plate for much of the first six weeks of the season, having only four RBIs by mid-May. However, on 17 May, Freese began a twenty-game hitting streak, the longest of any MLB player to that point in the 2013 season. The streak ended on June 12. On August 16, the Cardinals promoted
Kolten Wong to play second base, intending for
Matt Carpenter to play third base, reducing Freese's playing time. In the postseason, he collected just 10 hits in 56 at-bats as the Cardinals fell to the
Boston Red Sox in the
2013 World Series.
Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim (2014–2015) After the 2013 season, the Cardinals traded Freese and
Fernando Salas to the
Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim for
Peter Bourjos and
Randal Grichuk. Again eligible for salary arbitration for the 2014 season, Freese filed for a $6 million salary while the Angels countered with $4.1 million; they settled on a $5.05 million salary. Freese had a slow start, ending May with a .203 batting average, and improved from June through August, batting .292 in those months. He hit a home run against the
Kansas City Royals in the first game of the
2014 American League Division Series for his 24th postseason extra-base hit and 30th RBI. In his last year of arbitration before becoming eligible for free agency, Freese requested a $7.6 million salary for the 2015 season, while the Angels proposed $5.25 million. The two sides avoided arbitration by agreeing on a $6.425 million salary. Freese entered the 2015 season as the Angels everyday third baseman, and hit .240 with 11 home runs and 43 RBIs in 90 games. He broke his right index finger when it was hit by a pitch on July 22, and went on the disabled list.
Pittsburgh Pirates (2016–2018) Freese entered free agency after the 2015 season. Rather than re-sign Freese, the Angels chose to trade for
Yunel Escobar. Unsigned at the beginning of spring training in 2016, Freese signed a one-year contract with the
Pittsburgh Pirates worth $3 million on March 11.
Neal Huntington, the Pirates'
general manager, indicated that Freese would play third base while
Jung-ho Kang rehabilitated from an injury, and would join
John Jaso in a
platoon at first base after Kang's return. Due to his leadership skills, the Pirates signed Freese to a two-year contract extension worth $11 million, with a club option for the 2019 season, on August 22, 2016. He finished the 2016 season with a .270 batting average. On April 29, 2017, Freese was placed on the 10-day disabled list due to a right hamstring strain.
Los Angeles Dodgers (2018–2019) On August 31, 2018, the Pirates traded Freese to the
Los Angeles Dodgers for minor league infielder
Jesús Valdez. In the final month of the season and into the postseason, Freese saw most of his action in a righty-lefty platoon at first base with
Max Muncy. He thrived in that role, hitting .385 with two home runs and nine RBIs. Freese hit a leadoff home run in Game Six of the
2018 National League Championship Series. He started at first base in Game One of the
2018 World Series. Freese hit another leadoff home run in Game Five, which turned out to be the only run of the game as the Dodgers lost the game and the series. Freese batted .417 in the 2018 World Series and had a .773 slugging percentage in the 2018 postseason. On November 1, 2018, the Dodgers declined to exercise their $6 million option for 2019, paying him a $500,000 buyout on the option, and signed him to a new one-year contract worth $4.5 million. He played in 79 games for the Dodgers in 2019, hitting .315 with 11 home runs and 29 RBIs while playing primarily against left handed pitching. ==Personal life==