John Nogowski

John Francis Nogowski (born January 5, 1993) is an American former professional baseball first baseman. He was drafted by the Oakland Athletics in the 34th round of the 2014 MLB draft. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the St. Louis Cardinals and Pittsburgh Pirates from 2020 to 2021.

Playing career Oakland Athletics Nogowski attended North Florida Christian School and played college baseball at Florida State University, batting .307/.431/.443 in 2014.

Nogowski was drafted by the Oakland Athletics in the 34th round, with the 1,032nd overall selection, of the 2014 Major League Baseball draft. He split his first professional season between the rookie-level Arizona League Athletics and Low-A Vermont Lake Monsters, batting a combined .264/.351/.347 with one home run and 32 RBI. He would finish the 2017 season with the Double-A Springfield Cardinals. He would also spend most of the 2018 season with them, batting .309/.392/.463. He spent 2019 with the Triple-A Memphis Redbirds, batting .295/.413/.476 in 380 at bats while coming in third in the PCL with 69 walks and 10 hit-by-pitch, and tying for fourth by grounding into 15 double plays.

Nogowski was called up to the majors for the first time on August 15, 2020. He made his major league debut the next day against the Chicago White Sox and got his first major league hit off of Dallas Keuchel. In 2021, Nogowski made the Opening Day roster after batting .333 with two home runs over 33 spring training at-bats. Nogowski limped to a .056/.150/.056 slash line in 19 games with St. Louis before being designated for assignment on June 28, 2021.

Pittsburgh Pirates On July 3, 2021, Nogowski was traded to the Pittsburgh Pirates in exchange for cash considerations. He hit .261 with 1 home run and 14 RBIs in 33 games with the Pirates. On July 7, in just his third game with the Pirates, Nogowski was used as a pitcher in a relief role. Facing a strong Atlanta lineup, Nogowski allowed a single, but retired the other three batters he faced. He was designated for assignment on August 16, 2021. On August 20, Nogowski cleared waivers and was assigned outright to the Triple-A Indianapolis Indians. On September 20, the Pirates released Nogowski.

San Francisco Giants On September 22, 2021, Nogowski signed a two-year minor league contract with the San Francisco Giants organization. Nogowski appeared in 8 games for the Triple-A Sacramento River Cats, hitting just .185/.290/.444 with 2 home runs and 5 RBI.

Atlanta Braves On December 8, 2021, the Atlanta Braves selected Nogowski from the Giants in the minor league phase of the Rule 5 draft. In 40 games for the Triple–A Gwinnett Stripers, he batted .234/.338/.323 with 2 home runs, 14 RBI, and 6 stolen bases. Nogowski was released by the Braves organization on June 16, 2022.

Washington Nationals On June 22, 2022, Nogowski signed a minor league deal with the Washington Nationals. He was assigned to the Double-A Harrisburg Senators, hitting .202 in 30 games before being promoted to the Triple-A Rochester Red Wings later in the season. In 47 games for Rochester, he batted .290/.409/.401 with 2 home runs, 24 RBI, and 6 stolen bases. He elected free agency following the season on November 10.

High Point Rockers On April 28, 2023, Nogowski signed with the High Point Rockers of the Atlantic League of Professional Baseball. In 37 games for the Rockers, Nogowski batted .297/.419/.625 with 11 home runs, 40 RBI, and 5 stolen bases. He was released by the team on June 9.

Sioux City Explorers (second stint) On June 16, 2023, Nogowski signed with the Sioux City Explorers of the American Association of Professional Baseball. In 17 games with Sioux City, Nogowski hit .313/.397/.484 with 2 home runs, 9 RBI, and 3 stolen bases.

Acereros de Monclova On July 5, 2023, Nogowski's contract was purchased by the Acereros de Monclova of the Mexican League. In 100 appearances for the team, he batted .346/.461/.553 with 15 home runs, 76 RBI, and seven stolen bases.

Kansas City Monarchs On June 3, 2025, Nogowski signed with the Kansas City Monarchs of the American Association of Professional Baseball. Nogowski made 75 appearances for the Monarchs, batting .277/.384/.411 with eight home runs, 49 RBI, and six stolen bases.

Coaching career On January 22, 2026, Nogowski was announced as the bench coach and assistant hitting coach for the Syracuse Mets, the Triple-A affiliate of the New York Mets.