Topic: Mark Reynolds

Mark Andrew Reynolds (born August 3, 1983, in Pikeville, Kentucky) is a third baseman/first baseman in Major League Baseball who plays for the Baltimore Orioles. He is known both for his power-hitting abilities and for his record-breaking strike out totals. He holds the all-time record for most strikeouts in a season, with 223 in 2009, and has led the National League in strikeouts in each of his three full major-league seasons.

Born in Pikeville, Kentucky on August 3, 1983, Reynolds later moved with his family to Virginia Beach, Virginia. In 1994 he played for the Virginia Blasters Amateur Athletic Union (AAU) baseball program, where one of his teammates was B. J. Upton. Both would eventually join B. J.'s younger brother Justin, David Wright and Ryan Zimmerman on a Hampton Roads-based autumn showcase team called the Mets in 2000. The five players, who were all shortstops at the time, rotated among the three positions on the left side and middle of the infield. While with the Mets, Reynolds was nicknamed "Skeletor" due to his lanky build and "Forrest Gump" because of his awkward running style.

He was a four-year letterman in baseball, basketball and golf at First Colonial High School, where he graduated in 2001.