SIOUX CITY EXPLORERS PRESS RELEASE
Phone: 817.739.3693
Website: xsbaseball.com
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
December 20, 2023
LLOYD SIGNS WITH ST. LOUIS
CARDS ADD BIG BAT
SIOUX CITY, Iowa – The St. Louis Cardinals have signed former Sioux City Explorers IF Matt Lloyd as a minor-league free agent for the 2024 season. Matt Lloyd joined the Explorers on May 2, 2023, and it did not take long for the former Indiana Hoosier to make an impact. In his first game as an Explorer, Lloyd would go 2-for-4 at the plate in his first of what would be 30 team-leading multi-hit games during the 2023 season.
Lloyd played in 88 games for the X’s in 2023, hitting .321 with 14 homeruns and 61 RBI. He would slash a line of .321/.415/.527. Lloyd was one of four Explorers named to the American Association All-Star Team for the West Division and the only one of the four named as a starter despite missing two weeks of the month of June playing for Team Canada in the Pan-Am Games Qualifier. He would get the starting nod at third base for the game in Milwaukee.
Lloyd would get the club’s only five-hit game of the season, going 5-for-6 with a homer and five RBI in a 17-7 win at Sioux Falls. That game would kickstart a nine-game hitting streak, but it was not his longest of the season: that would come in the form of a 14-game streak from August 19 to September 2. Lloyd would club 19 hits in 59 at bats for a .322 clip over the 14-game ride with three homeruns and 12 RBI. The native of Okotoks, Alberta, Canada also had another impressive streak of 10 games during the season.
Lloyd was named the league’s Pointstreak Batter of the Week for the week ending May 28. He went 12-for-22 during the week with two homeruns, 10 RBI and eight runs scored for the Explorers. He would once again grab the honor for the week ending July 16 when he went 12-for-25 with three homeruns, driving in six runs and scoring six runs for the Explorers.
He finished the season at or near the top of the list of multiple offensive categories for the Explorers. Lloyd was first on the team in runs scored (70), hits (108), doubles (27), walks (51) and average (.321). He placed second on the X’s in homeruns (14), RBI (61) and on-base percentage (.415). Lloyd stole 17 bases in 20 attempts, good for fourth on the team. Defensively, he held down the hot corner at third base for 67 games and played another 22 in the outfield and six across the infield at first base.
Lloyd spent four seasons in the Cincinnati Reds organization prior to joining the Explorers. Lloyd was a big-time bat at the University of Indiana during his college days, playing three years there before being drafted in the 15th round of the MLB draft by the Reds. He was a dual-threat player in college, both pitching and hitting, before converting to a full-time position player in professional ball. The 27-year-old reached AA with the Reds and played 52 games with them between 2021-22.
In 2022, Lloyd played in 20 games for AA Chattanooga. He hit .187 over 86 plate appearances with a pair of homeruns and 14 RBI. His 2021 season would see him play four games at the Arizona Complex League, but the bulk of his time was spent once again at AA Chattanooga. In 32 games Lloyd hit .235 with seven homeruns and 14 RBI.
Lloyd missed the 2020 season like a majority of the MiLB players, but in 2019, he split time between Class-A and rookie ball as part of his first year in professional baseball. He played 50 games between the levels, batting .236 with a .328 OBP and .765 OPS to pair with eight home runs.
In three seasons at the University of Indiana, Lloyd hit .284 with 37 homeruns and 146 RBI. His final season with the Hoosiers was in 2019, which proved to be his best year. He had a .390 OBP and .963 OPS while hitting 17 homers. In 2018 he hit .275 with nine homers and 41 RBI. His first year for Indiana in 2017, Lloyd batted .301 with 11 HR and 46 RBI. He would also spend parts of three seasons as a right-handed pitcher out of the pen for Indiana. Lloyd made 49 appearances, totaling 72.1 innings with a 2.12 ERA and 1.230 WHIP.
The Explorers are set to open their 31st season in the Siouxland at home Friday night, May 10th at 7:05 p.m. against the Kansas City Monarchs. Ticket packages for the 2024 season are on-sale now, including Full and Half-Season Tickets as well as 10, 15 and 25 game Flex Packs. More information is available by calling the Explorers front office at 712-277-WINS. Stay tuned to the Explorers social media channels and the club’s website xsbaseball.com for off-season news and updates.