Joc Russell Pederson ( PEE-dər-sən; born April 21, 1992) is an American professional baseball outfielder and first baseman for the Texas Rangers of Major League Baseball (MLB). He has previously played in MLB for the Los Angeles Dodgers, Chicago Cubs, Atlanta Braves, San Francisco Giants, and Arizona Diamondbacks. He is a two-time World Series champion and a two-time All-Star.
The son of former MLB player Stu Pederson, Joc was drafted by the Dodgers in the 11th round of the 2010 MLB draft out of Palo Alto High School. By virtue of his Jewish heritage, he played for the Israel national baseball team in the 2013 World Baseball Classic and 2023 World Baseball Classic. He was ranked the Dodgers' top prospect by Baseball America after the 2013 season. In 2014, he was named the Pacific Coast League (PCL) Most Valuable Player after hitting 30 home runs and stealing 30 bases, and he made his major league debut that September.
Beginning the 2015 season as the Dodgers' starting center fielder, Pederson was selected to start for the NL All-Star team. He became the first Dodger to hit at least 25 home runs in each of his first two seasons, with 25 in 2016. Pederson hit three home runs in the 2017 World Series, which the Dodgers lost to the Houston Astros. Pederson returned to the World Series in 2018 with the Dodgers, hitting a home run in Game 3 as the Dodgers lost to the Boston Red Sox. In 2019, he hit a career-high 36 home runs. In 2020, he had four hits in 10 at bats in the World Series as the Dodgers won the championship. He signed a one-year deal with the Chicago Cubs, and was traded mid-season to the Atlanta Braves as they won the World Series, making him the ninth player in Major League history to win back-to-back World Series with different teams. Following the 2021–22 lockout, Pederson signed a one-year contract with his hometown San Francisco Giants, and made his second career All-Star Game.
Contents
Early life
Pederson was born in Palo Alto, California, and is the son of Shelly (née Cahn) and Stu Pederson. Stu played in eight games for the Los Angeles Dodgers in 1985, and spent 12 years in Minor League Baseball. Joc's mother was an athletic trainer in college. He is Jewish by birth (his mother is Jewish), and has played for the Israel national baseball team. Pederson grew up a San Francisco Giants fan.
Joc's older brother, Tyger, played baseball for the University of the Pacific, and then played second base in the Dodgers minor league system. Joc's eldest brother, Champ, has Down syndrome and sometimes stays with him during the season. His younger sister, Jacey, played soccer as a forward for the United States national under-17 team and played college soccer for the UCLA Bruins. Through 2022, Pederson was second among Jewish baseball players in career home run frequency (behind Hank Greenberg), seventh in career home runs (behind Al Rosen), and eighth in career slugging percentage (behind Ron Blomberg).
Pederson attended Palo Alto High School. In his senior year, Pederson batted .466 with a .577 on-base percentage (OBP) and an .852 slugging percentage, with 20 stolen bases in 22 attempts, playing center field and leading off for the school's baseball team. He also played for the school's football team, leading it with 30 receptions in his senior year, for 650 yards and 9 touchdowns. Pederson was the team's number one wide receiver, racking up more yards and touchdowns than his teammate, future NFL two-time All Pro First Team wide receiver Davante Adams, who was a Junior at the time. Pederson graduated in 2010.
Professional career
Draft and minor leagues
In the 11th round of the 2010 MLB draft, Pederson was selected by the Los Angeles Dodgers. He had committed to play at the University of Southern California, where his father played college baseball, but Joc chose instead to sign with the Dodgers. He was given a $600,000 signing bonus to sign with the Dodgers. The bonus was the second-highest given to any draft pick the Dodgers signed that year, and it was four times the amount typically given to players drafted after the fifth round. Pederson had wanted more money, but he chose to accept their offer because he realized "My dream — my big dream — was to become a star in the big leagues."
In 2011, as the youngest player with the Ogden Raptors of the Pioneer League, Pederson had a .353 batting average/.429 OBP/.568 slugging percentage with 11 homers, leading the league with 64 runs batted in (RBI), a .997 on-base plus slugging (OPS) percentage, and nine outfield assists. He finished second with 24 stolen bases, second in on-base percentage, third with 54 runs, and third with 36 walks while playing in 68 games. Pederson was selected as both a Pioneer League and Rookie League All-Star, a Baseball America Rookie All Star, and a Topps Short-Season/Rookie League All Star. Baseball America rated him the Best Hitter for Average in the Dodgers system for the 2011 season.
Pederson was promoted to the High–A Rancho Cucamonga Quakes of the California League in 2012, at age 20. For the Quakes, he batted .313./.396/.526 with 96 runs (4th in the league), 48 extra base hits, and 26 stolen bases. The Dodgers selected Pederson as their 2012 "Minor League Player of the Year," and MILB.com named him a Dodgers organization All Star. Baseball America rated him the player with the best strike zone discipline in the Dodgers system. Following the season, the Dodgers assigned him to the Mesa Solar Sox in the Arizona Fall League, where he was an AFL Rising Star in 2012. He was ranked the Dodgers' # 4 prospect by Baseball America (and # 3 prospect by MILB.com) after the 2012 season.
In 2013, Pederson received a promotion to the Double–A Chattanooga Lookouts in the Southern League, starting the season as the youngest member of the team and the second-youngest position player in the league. Pederson was selected to play for the United States at the All-Star Futures Game, and was also selected to play in the Southern League All-Star Game. He hit .278 while leading the league with a .497 slugging percentage. Pederson also finished second with 22 home runs and 81 runs scored; third with 31 stolen bases, a .381 on-base percentage, and an .878 OPS; and fifth in walks. He had 58 RBI and 10 outfield assists in 123 games during the season, usually batting in the leadoff spot. Pederson earned postseason All-Star honors, was a Topps Double-A All Star, and was a Baseball America Minor League All Star. He then played winter ball for the Cardenales de Lara in the Venezuelan Winter League, where he had a .439 on-base percentage. He was ranked the Dodgers' # 1 prospect by Baseball America after the 2013 season.
Los Angeles Dodgers (2014–2020)
With major league rosters expanding to 40 players for September, Pederson was added to the Dodgers' 40-man roster and called up to the Majors for the first time on September 1, 2014. Manager Don Mattingly said "The people in our organization that have seen him the most say he's the best center fielder in our organization."
That night against the Washington Nationals, with the Dodgers trailing 6–4 with two outs and two runners on base, Pederson pinch-hit for pitcher Yimi García. He took Rafael Soriano to a full count, but was called out on strikes to end the game. He started in center field the following day, and picked up his first Major League hit on a single off of Doug Fister in the second inning. In 18 games, he had four hits in 28 at bats.
Baseball America named Pederson the #8 prospect in 2015, and MLB.com ranked him the 13th-best prospect in baseball going into the 2015 season. The offseason trade of Matt Kemp created an opening in center field, and Pederson was named the Opening Day starting center fielder, beating out the veteran Andre Ethier for the position.
He hit his first MLB home run on April 12 off of A. J. Schugel of the Arizona Diamondbacks in a 7–4 victory. On May 1, he hit his first major league grand slam off of Rubby De La Rosa of the Diamondbacks, a 446-foot blow. Pederson homered in both games of a day-night doubleheader on June 2; his second homer travelled an estimated 480 feet. On June 3, he homered in his fifth consecutive game, becoming only the fifth Dodgers to ever do so.
Pederson was selected to the National League squad in the 2015 Major League Baseball All-Star Game, the first Dodgers rookie to be selected as an All Star since Hideo Nomo in 1995, He became the first Dodgers rookie position player to ever start in an All-Star game. He was also selected to participate in the 2015 Home Run Derby. The #4 seed, Pederson made it all the way to the final round, losing 15–14 to Todd Frazier.
However, Pederson's performance tailed off in June and July. He batted .230 with 20 home runs before the All-Star Game, but he would only hit six in the second half of the season, batting .178 for the remainder of the season. On August 23, Pederson lost his starting center fielder job due to his extended slump.
Chicago Cubs (2021)
On February 5, 2021, Pederson signed a one-year $7 million guaranteed contract with the Chicago Cubs which included a mutual option for the 2022 season. He was motivated to sign with the Cubs because he hoped for more playing time than he had received with the Dodgers. Due to his usual #31 being retired by the Cubs for both Greg Maddux and Fergie Jenkins, Pederson chose to sport the new number of #24 for his tenure with the team as he began the season starting in left field daily. He was placed on the injured list on April 22, and was struggling offensively at the time, hitting .137 with 1 HR, 4 RBIs, and 20 strikeouts. Pederson returned on May 3, and was inserted into the leadoff spot in the lineup, as regular leadoff hitter Ian Happ had ended up on the injured list after an outfield collision. Of his final 57 games with the Cubs, 42 were starts from the leadoff position, and he raised his batting average as high as .269.
All told, Pederson played in 73 games for the Cubs, hitting .230/.300/.418 with 11 home runs and 39 RBIs in 256 at bats. He played 66 games in left field, 3 in right field, 2 in center field, and one at first base.
Atlanta Braves (2021)
On July 15, 2021, Pederson was traded to the Atlanta Braves in exchange for minor league prospect Bryce Ball. Atlanta had just lost superstar Ronald Acuña Jr. to a long-term ACL injury, and Pederson stepped into Acuña Jr.'s positions of right field and leadoff hitter. With #31 again being retired by the Braves for Greg Maddux and #24 having been taken already by new teammate William Contreras, Pederson chose to honor two former teammates, Clayton Kershaw and Jason Heyward from Los Angeles and Chicago respectively, by wearing #22 for his Braves tenure. On July 17, Pederson recorded his first hit as a Brave, a two-run home run in the fourth inning, against Tampa Bay Rays' rookie Josh Fleming.
In the 2021 regular season, playing for the Braves, Pederson batted .249/.325/.428 with 7 home runs and 22 RBIs in 173 at bats. He played 36 games in right field and 24 games in center field. For the season between both teams, against righties, he batted .230/.298/.435, while against lefties he batted .265/.348/.378 with 21 starts - in contrast to his prior three seasons, during which he had a total of only nine starts against left-handers. With two outs and runners in scoring position, he batted .327/.411/.490.
Throughout the 2021 post-season, Pederson donned a signature pearl necklace, culminating in fans wearing replica pearl necklaces to the team's games. Following the Braves' World Series victory, Pederson's pearl necklace was sent to the National Baseball Hall of Fame.
In the post-season, Pederson hit two pinch hit home runs as Atlanta won the 2021 National League Division Series against the Brewers, despite starting only once in four games, making him the third player in history with two in a single postseason series. Then in Game 2 of the 2021 National League Championship Series, Pederson hit a two-run home run against three-time Cy Young Award winner Max Scherzer, as the Braves came from behind to beat the Dodgers 5–4. His home run traveled 454 feet (138 m) (the longest home run of the 2021 postseason at the time), and had an exit velocity of 112.2 miles per hour (180.6 km/h) (the third-hardest-hit home run Scherzer had surrendered since Statcast began tracking data in 2015). With 12 playoff home runs, Pederson tied Hall of Famer Yogi Berra for 24th on the all-time list. The Braves went on to win the 2021 World Series, making Pederson the ninth player in Major League history to win back-to-back World Series with different teams.
San Francisco Giants (2022–2023)
On March 16, 2022, Pederson signed a one-year, $6 million contract with the San Francisco Giants, returning to the National League West, as well as the Bay Area, where he grew up.
On April 24, 2022, Pederson hit a 441-foot leadoff home run, the longest Giants leadoff home run since Statcast's inception in 2015, and his 24th career leadoff home run, in his 18th career multi-homer game, against Nationals right-hander Joan Adon.
On May 24, Pederson hit three home runs and eight RBIs as he led the Giants to a 13–12 win over the New York Mets. Pederson became the second Giant to hit three home runs in a game at Oracle Park, joining Pablo Sandoval. His eight RBIs matched the San Francisco-era Giants record also held by Willie Mays, Orlando Cepeda, and Brandon Crawford. He became the first Giants player to hit three multi-run home runs in a game since Willie Mays in 1961. He also became only the second major league player in the last century, joining Joe DiMaggio, to hit three home runs, have 8 RBIs, and have game-tying RBIs in both the eighth and ninth innings in one game. Pederson became the second player to hit a home run into McCovey Cove as both a Giants player and a visiting player, joining Ryan Klesko.
Pederson started in the outfield for the National League in his return to Dodger Stadium for the 2022 Major League Baseball All-Star Game, his second career All-Star selection and start.
In 2022, Pederson batted .274/.353/.521 in 380 at bats, with 23 home runs and 70 RBIs. He was in the top 2% of all batters in both average exit velocity (93.1 mph; 5th-best in the majors) and percentage of balls that were hard hit (51.9%; 7th-best). He was also in the top 5% of all batters in barrel percentage, and had an .894 OPS against right-handed pitchers, 10th-best among all left-handed hitters who had at least 250 plate appearances. He batted .388 with runners in scoring position, second-best figure in the majors behind Freddie Freeman (.391). With two outs and runners in scoring position, he batted .378/.452/.784. He was 10th among active players in career at bats per home run, at 17.3.
On November 10, the Giants made him a qualifying offer (a one-year contract at the average salary of Major League Baseball's 125 highest-paid players) of $19.65 million, which he accepted to return to the team for another season.
Arizona Diamondbacks (2024)
On January 30, 2024, Pederson signed a one-year, $12.5 million deal with the Arizona Diamondbacks that included a mutual option for 2025.
In 2024 Pederson batted .275/.393(leading the NL of all batters with 400 or more plate appearances)/.515(6th) in 367 at bats with 62 runs, 23 home runs, 64 RBIs, 55 walks, and 18 hit by pitch (leading the NL), while hitting a home run in every 16.0 at bats (10th in the league) and stealing a career-high seven bases. He played 120 games at DH, and pinch-hit in 27 games. He was fourth in the NL of all batters with 400 or more plate appearances in OPS, sixth in Isolated Power (.240), and seventh in walk percentage (12.2%) and pull percentage (50.0%). Pederson declined his share of the mutual 2025 option after the season, making him a free agent.
Texas Rangers (2025–present)
On December 30, 2024, Pederson signed a two-year, $37 million contract with the Texas Rangers. Pederson struggled to begin the 2025 season, as he endured a career-worst 0-for-41 slump that spanned from April 2 to April 23, with the hitless stretch setting a new franchise record for the Rangers.
On May 24, Pederson suffered a broken right hand after getting hit by a pitch, and was subsequently placed on the 10-day injured list. He made his return from the injury on July 27, after missing 52 games. He hit .181 with nine home runs and 26 RBI in 96 games in the 2025 season.
On November 6, Pederson exercised his $18.5 million player option for the 2026 season.
International career
2013
Due to his Jewish heritage, Pederson was eligible to play for the Israel national baseball team in the qualifying rounds of the 2013 World Baseball Classic, the youngest player on the team. The Israeli team has the same requirement as does Israel for automatic Israeli citizenship: that a person have at least one Jewish grandparent. Pederson's mother provided the papers evidencing his Jewish heritage after obtaining them from the synagogue her father Larry Cahn attended.
He batted second for Team Israel and hit .308 with three steals. Pederson started all three games of the qualifier in right field. During the first game, Pederson went 1-for-5 with two strikeouts and left three runners on base. He went 2-for-4 with a run scored and a strikeout in the second game, also stealing a base. During the third and final game, Pederson went 1-for-4, scored two runs, walked twice, struck out, and stole a base. One of Pederson's Team Israel coaches was Gabe Kapler, who nine years later became his manager with the San Francisco Giants.
2023
Pederson played for Israel again in the 2023 World Baseball Classic. He played center field for Team Israel manager Ian Kinsler, and alongside pitcher Dean Kremer and others.
Accolades
In 2019, Pederson was inducted into the Jewish Sports Hall of Fame of Northern California. He was inducted into the Southern California Jewish Sports Hall of Fame in 2020.
Personal life
Pederson married his longtime girlfriend, Kelsey Williams in January 2018. They lived in Studio City, California at the time, but sold their home in 2022.
In October 2018, during the National League Championship Series between the Dodgers and the Milwaukee Brewers, their daughter was born. The couple's son was born a month before the Dodgers' 2020 World Series championship victory over the Tampa Bay Rays. He and his wife announced that they were expecting their third child in October 2022.