Shields ready to take next step in baseball career
Reports to Kansas City training camp

By Eleanor Bailey
The Almanac Sports Editor
ebailey@thealmanac.net
After a successful showing in Rookie Ball, David Shields of Mt. Lebanon is anxious for spring training to start. The 6-2, 210-pound southpaw will report with other Kansas City pitchers and catchers on Feb. 12 in Arizona.
“I’m excited to get after it,” Shields said. “It’s been a lifelong dream. I have been waiting for this my whole life. So I am ready to go and see how it is.”
So far Shields is transitioning well to professional life. Shortly after being selected 41st overall in the 2024 MLB amateur draft, Shields signed a $2.3 million contract with the Kansas City Royals in late July and transitioned to the big leagues by participating in MLB’s Rookie ball.
“David had an exceptional summer,” said Patt McCloskey, who coached Shields during his tenure on the Mt. Lebanon High School baseball team. “He pitched at the KC complex and I think he only gave up one hit and one walk in five starts.”
Rookie ball, which is also known as short-season ball, is designed less for statistics but rather for developing young players. The leagues are located at the spring training complexes of their parent MLB club. The Royals held their rookie league at Surprise Stadium in Surprise, Ariz.
“I am excited to go back,” Shields said.
“During rookie ball, I got acclimated and got my body ready. I really didn’t know what to expect but it was a great time. All the coaches and staff as well as all the players in my draft class were really great. It could be intimidating for some, but I mixed in pretty well.”
Shields competed mostly against players older than him. Only in September did he turn 18.
“I was like one of a couple high school guys there. Most of them were in college,” Shields remarked.
“I am not sure I learned anything new baseball-wise but I learned things just by being around everybody. A lot of it was work ethic. Just being down there every day and working out. Being in the training room every day and learning how life works (within the organization),” he added.
Shields knows that hard work has shaped his current lifestyle.
The son of Kevin and Marcia Shields was a two-sport standout in high school, starting at quarterback on the football team and developing into the ace of the pitching staff on the baseball squad as well as a Division I prospect. He gave up football as well as his athletic scholarship to the University of Miami and reclassified for the 2024 MLB draft.
“(David) was the most athletic kid we have ever had or will have,” McCloskey said. “He made plays because of his athleticism and he did things you didn’t have to worry about coaching him because he was so athletic.”
During his shortened three-year career on the mound at Lebo, Shields shattered all but two school records. In 2023, he set the single-season strikeout record with 106. He struck out 63 in only 35 innings and six games during the 2024 campaign where he battled a bout of mononucleosis. In two seasons, he completed an 11-3 record. He struck out 169 and scattered 46 hits in 102 2/3 innings.
When not on the mound for the Blue Devils, Shields started in center field. At the plate, he batted .418 with seven doubles and 28 RBI entering the WPIAL final, compiling an OPS of 1.244.
Shields guided the Blue Devils to three WPIAL championship final appearances, tossing a no-hitter in the 2023 Class 6 final.. He also pitched in the 2023 PIAA championship game.
Shields garnered a plethora of honors. An all-state performer, he was named Gatorade’s Pennsylvania Baseball Player of the Year as well as Almanac Baseball MVP for two years in a row. Additionally, has been inducted into the Mt. Lebanon Hall of Fame as a player and as a team member for the baseball championships.
“David left a legacy of tremendous leadership,” McCloskey said. “I’m grateful that I had an opportunity to coach him for three years, and I can’t wait to follow his professional career.”
The Royals are equally ecstatic about Shields’s prospects but acknowledge he has room and time for further development. He’s already hitting 94-95 with his fastball and possesses two other pitches: a breaking ball clocked in the low 80s and an “average” changeup. According to the MLB Pipeline counting reports, he throws all his pitches for strikes.
“The sky’s the limit for him,” scouting director Brian Bridges said. “He has a really good feel for pitching and throws a lot of strikes. That’s one thing that’s never going to change.”
Shields enters spring training as one of Kansas City’s top 10 pitching prospects. After being drafted, he spent most of his time in Surprise in instructional camp with the coaching staff.
Before leaving for Arizona, Shields indicated to McCloskey that he expected to pitch for the club’s Low A affiliate in Columbia, S.C. when the 2025 season begins.
“Nothing is set in stone,” McCloskey stressed. “I’m sure they will monitor his pitching volume because he is so young and he is such a definitive prospect.”
Shields is just thrilled to be reporting to spring training. The first workout for pitchers and catchers is Feb. 12. The full roster reports to camp Feb. 17. Exhibition games begin Feb. 21.
“Spring training is going to be a blast,” Shields said. “I’m excited. Once the season starts, I’m anxious to get after it and try to make it as fast as I can as quickly as I can.”
Some projections have targeted 2028 for his MLB debut. Shields acknowledges that “making the majors will probably take a couple of years” simply because “they throw a lot at you” in the season.
“To go straight from high school,” he said. “That’s really difficult, especially from conditioning your arm. I need a little time to condition my arm and develop, but I mean I’m ready to go whenever.”
McCloskey is not shocked by that eagerness and enthusiasm. He predicts that MLB success will come Shields’ way sooner than later.
“Personally, I wouldn’t be surprised at all if David’s in the big leagues before 2028,” he said. “I think he’s that driven to succeed as a professional player.”