J. D. Scholten

James Dennis Scholten (born March 4, 1980) is an American paralegal, politician and professional baseball pitcher for the Sioux City Explorers of the American Association of Professional Baseball. He is from the state of Iowa, and is a member of the Iowa House of Representatives for District 1. Scholten was the Democratic nominee for Iowa's 4th congressional district in the 2018 and 2020 elections.

Early life
Scholten was born in Ames, Iowa, in 1980. His family moved to Sioux City, Iowa, when he was four years old. He attended East High School in Sioux City, and played for their baseball and basketball teams. Scholten attended Morningside College, where he played college baseball as a pitcher and first baseman for three years, and then transferred to the University of Nebraska–Lincoln to pitch for the Nebraska Cornhuskers as a senior. In 2002, he led the Cornhuskers in earned run average. Scholten graduated from Nebraska in December 2003.

Professional baseball career
After graduating from college, Scholten played professional baseball, making his professional debut for the Saskatoon Legends of the Canadian Baseball League, an independent baseball league, in 2003. When the league folded during the season, he signed with the Sioux City Explorers of the American Association of Independent Professional Baseball, formerly of the Northern League. He returned to Sioux City in 2004, and then played in Belgium in 2005 before returning to Sioux City. In total, he played baseball in seven countries—the U.S., Canada, Belgium, Germany, France, the Netherlands, and Cuba.

After retiring from baseball, Scholten became a paralegal. He worked for firms in Minneapolis and Seattle that focused on intellectual property, and returned to Sioux City after the 2016 United States elections.

On July 23, 2023, Scholten returned to professional baseball, signing with the Twins Oosterhout of the Honkbal Hoofdklasse. His arrival came after the club required an addition pitcher following a litany of injuries and issues with a Japanese player's visa. In six games (three starts) for the club, Scholten recorded a 2–1 record and 4.50 ERA with 31 strikeouts across 26 innings pitched.

On July 6, 2024, Scholten played over six innings for the Sioux City Explorers of the American Association of Professional Baseball as starting pitcher after receiving a last-minute phone call from the team's manager. The team won 11–2 against the Milwaukee Milkmen with 100 pitches thrown by Scholten. He signed with the Explorers the following day.

Political career
In the 2018 elections, Scholten ran against Republican incumbent Steve King for the United States House of Representatives in IA's 4th congressional district. He lost, 50%–47% in a closer showing than expected. In January 2019, Scholten announced the formation of a nonprofit group to help low-income Iowans gain more information about the earned income tax credit.

In August 2019, Scholten announced that he would seek a rematch against King in the 2020 elections. He was unopposed in the primary election and faced Randy Feenstra, who had defeated King in the Republican primary. Scholten lost to Feenstra by a 25 point margin.

On March 16, 2022, Scholten announced his candidacy for District 1 in the Iowa House of Representatives. He was unopposed in the Democratic Party primary and the general election.

In 2023, while serving in the Iowa House of Representatives, Scholten signed with the Twins Oosterhout in the Honkbal Hoofdklasse. He continued to work as a legislator remotely.

Scholten is running for reelection in the 2024 elections.

Personal life
Scholten's father, Jim, was Morningside College's baseball coach.