Harold Baines
Chicago White Sox
Designated hitter / Right fielder
Born: (1959-03-15) March 15, 1959 (age 53) Easton, Maryland
Batted: Left	Threw: Left
MLB debut
April 10, 1980 for the Chicago White Sox
Last MLB appearance
September 27, 2001 for the Chicago White Sox
Career statistics
Batting average	.289
Hits	2,866
Home runs	384
Runs batted in	1,628
Teams
Chicago White Sox (1980–1989) Texas Rangers (1989–1990) Oakland Athletics (1990–1992) Baltimore Orioles (1993–1995) Chicago White Sox (1996–1997) Baltimore Orioles (1997–1999) Cleveland Indians (1999) Baltimore Orioles (2000) Chicago White Sox (2000–2001)
Career highlights and awards
6× All-Star (1985, 1986, 1987, 1989, 1991, 1999) World Series champion (2005) Silver Slugger Award winner (1989) Chicago White Sox #3 retired

Harold Douglas Baines (born March 15, 1959 in Easton, Maryland) is a former right fielder and designated hitter in Major League Baseball who played for five American League teams from 1980 to 2001. He is best known for his three stints with the Chicago White Sox, the team on which he now serves as coach. He ranked 7th in AL history in games played (2,830) and 10th in runs batted in (1,628) upon his retirement. Noted as well for his power hitting in clutch situations, he is tied for 7th in AL history in grand slams (13),^[1] 4th in 3-home run games (3),^[2] and tied for 7th in major league history in walk-off home runs (10).^[1] Baines batted over .300 eight times and hit .324 in 31 career postseason games, topping the .350 mark in five separate series. A six-time All-Star, he led the AL in slugging average in 1984. He held the White Sox team record for career home runs from 1987 until Carlton Fisk passed him in 1990; his eventual total of 221 remains the club record for left-handed hitters, as do his 981 RBI and 585 extra base hits with the team. His 1,652 games as a designated hitter are a major league record, and he held the mark for career home runs as a DH (236) until Edgar Martínez passed him in 2004. With 1,628 RBI, Baines has the most RBI of any player eligible for the Hall of Fame not currently inducted.

Early years[link]

Baines graduated in 1977 from St. Michaels High School on Maryland's Eastern Shore where, as a senior, he batted .532 and was named a High School All-American.^[3] A month later, the White Sox made Baines the first selection in the amateur draft. The owner of the White Sox at the time, Bill Veeck, had spotted Baines playing Little League ball many years before at the age of 12.

Professional career[link]

In 1980, Baines became a regular outfielder on the White Sox, and he began to produce in 1982 when he had 165 hits, 25 home runs and 105 RBI. In 1984, baseball writer Bill James called Baines his favorite opposing player to watch, saying, "He is gorgeous, absolutely complete. I've seen him drop down bunts that would melt in your mouth, come up the next time and execute a hit and run that comes straight off the chalkboard. I've seen him hit fastballs out of the yard on a line, and I've seen him get under a high curve and loft it just over the fence."^[4] Baines ended the longest game in major league history (eight hours and six minutes over 25 innings on successive evenings) with a home run against the Milwaukee Brewers' Chuck Porter on May 8, 1984; the bat he used is currently kept at the Baseball Hall of Fame.

In 1986, a succession of knee problems began which gradually ended his fielding career, forcing him to become a regular designated hitter. Despite the knee ailments and the resulting lack of speed, he remained a powerful hitter, picking up 166 hits in 1988.

Trades[link]

Harold Baines's number 3 was retired by the Chicago White Sox in 1989.

Midway through the 1989 season, the Texas Rangers acquired Baines, along with Fred Manrique, from the White Sox in a much-derided trade which sent Wilson Alvarez, Scott Fletcher and Sammy Sosa to Chicago. After the trade the White Sox retired Baines' #3, a rare occurrence for a player who was still active in the major leagues (the number would be "un-retired" each time Baines returned to the White Sox, and he currently wears it as a coach).

In 1990 Baines was traded to the Oakland Athletics for minor league pitchers Scott Chiamparino and Joe Bitker, and he helped them reach the post-season only to be swept by the Cincinnati Reds in the World Series. In 1992 the Athletics returned to the playoffs, only to lose to the Toronto Blue Jays in the AL Championship Series.^[5]

Prior to the 1993 season, Baines was traded by the A's to the Baltimore Orioles for minor league pitchers Bobby Chouinard and Allen Plaster. Baines batted .313, .294 and .299 over his three seasons with Baltimore. He returned to the White Sox as a free agent in 1996 but was traded back to Baltimore midway through the 1997 season; he helped the Orioles to reach the playoffs, losing to the Cleveland Indians in the League Championship Series.

His final contract with the White Sox was not renewed following the 2001 season, after his third stint with the team. He finished his career with 2,866 hits, 384 home runs and 1,628 RBIs. His career RBI total is 23rd all-time; his hit total ranks 37th all-time.

Back to the Sox[link]

Baines would take a high step with his right leg, a la Mel Ott, as part of his stride into a pitch.

Baines' fourth stint with the Chicago White Sox began when he was named bench coach in March 2004 under new manager Ozzie Guillén, his White Sox teammate, from 1985 to 1989 and in 1996–97.

In 2005, as a coach for the White Sox, he finally earned a World Series ring.

On July 20, 2008, the White Sox unveiled a bronze statue of Baines at U.S. Cellular Field prior to their game against the Kansas City Royals; it is the seventh statue featured on the park's outfield concourse.^[6][7]

Orioles Legacy[link]

In August 2009 the Orioles announced that Baines would be inducted into the Orioles Hall of Fame as the 46th member. In his seven seasons with the Orioles he batted .301, had 107 home runs, and 378 RBIs as their designated hitter.

Personal life[link]

Baines' hometown of St. Michaels has designated January 9 as Harold Baines Day. He has also created the Harold Baines Scholarship Fund to help deserving college-bound students.^[8]

Baines is married to Marla Henry and has four children: Toni, Britni, Harold, Jr., and Courtney. Harold Jr plays baseball for the Bristol White Sox in the Appalachian League. All attended Baines' alma mater, St. Michaels Middle/High School.^[9]

Hall of Fame candidacy[link]

Baines had been eligible for the National Baseball Hall of Fame beginning with the 2007 election. While 75% of the vote is needed for induction, he never received greater than 6.1% (which he received in 2010).^[10] On January 5, 2011, Baines received just 28 votes (4.8%) in the 2011 Hall of Fame election, dropping him off all future Hall of Fame ballots by receiving less than 5.0% of the vote.

See also[link]

• List of top 300 Major League Baseball home run hitters
• List of major league players with 2,000 hits
• List of Major League Baseball players with 400 doubles
• List of Major League Baseball players with 1000 runs
• List of Major League Baseball players with 1000 RBI

References[link]

External links[link]

• Career statistics and player information from Baseball-Reference, or Fangraphs, or The Baseball Cube, or Baseball-Reference (Minors)
• Baseball Hall of Fame: Classy Baines Heralded for Clutch Hitting
• BaseballLibrary - biography, career highlights and SABR bibliography
• WhiteSox.com Bio

David Ortiz
Ortiz pointing to the sky after hitting a home run
Boston Red Sox – No. 34
Designated hitter / First baseman
Born: (1975-11-18) November 18, 1975 (age 36) Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic
Bats: Left	Throws: Left
MLB debut
September 24, 1997 for the Minnesota Twins
Career statistics (through June 1, 2012)
Batting average	.285
Home runs	391
Hits	1,823
Runs batted in	1,303
Teams
Minnesota Twins (1997–2002) Boston Red Sox (2003–present)
Career highlights and awards
The Sporting News Designated Hitter of the Decade (2009) Sports Illustrated MLB All-Decade Team (2009) 2× World Series champion (2004, 2007) ALCS MVP (2004) 7× All-Star (2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2010, 2011) 5× Silver Slugger Award (2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2011) Hank Aaron Award (2005) 6× Edgar Martínez Award (2003–2007, 2011) AL home run leader (2006) AL RBI leader (2005, 2006) MLB record for home runs by DH (345) MLB record for RBI by DH (1,131) Home Run Derby winner (2010) Roberto Clemente Award (2011)

David Américo Ortiz Arias (born November 18, 1975), nicknamed "Big Papi", is a Dominican-American professional baseball player with the Boston Red Sox of Major League Baseball. Previously, Ortiz played with the Minnesota Twins from 1997 until 2002. Ortiz is a seven-time All-Star and holds the Red Sox single season record for home runs in a regular season with 54, set during the 2006 season. In 2005, Red Sox ownership presented him with a plaque proclaiming Ortiz "the greatest clutch-hitter in the history of the Boston Red Sox".^[1][2]

Early career[link]

Seattle Mariners and Minnesota Twins (1992–2002)[link]

Ortiz shares a word with Toby Hall, then of the Tampa Bay Devil Rays.

Ortiz graduated from Estudia Espallat High School in the Dominican Republic and in 1992 he was signed by the Seattle Mariners who listed him as "David Arias". He played for the Wisconsin Timber Rattlers, a Mariners farm team, until 1996, when he was traded to the Minnesota Twins as the player to be named later in an earlier trade for Dave Hollins. When he arrived in Minnesota, he informed the team that he preferred to be listed as "David Ortiz."

He made his Twins debut in September 1997. For a few years, he was moved back and forth between the Twins and their minor league affiliate in Connecticut, the New Britain Rock Cats. The Twins advanced to the American League Championship Series that year, where they lost to the Anaheim Angels. Despite showing flashes of talent, Ortiz's time with the Twins will be remembered as a series of injuries and inconsistency both in the field and at the plate. Ortiz suffered wrist injuries in both 1998 and 2001. He continued to experience knee problems in early 2002 that plagued him throughout the season, despite hitting 32 doubles, 20 home runs and 75 RBIs in 125 games. He was released by the Twins after the season. In six seasons with the Twins, Ortiz hit 58 home runs and 238 RBI.^[3]

Boston Red Sox (2003–Present)[link]

2003[link]

On January 22, Ortiz signed a free agent contract with the Boston Red Sox. He played sparingly in the first two months of the season, primarily pinch hitting and starting occasionally as a DH. On June 1, manager Grady Little benched Jeremy Giambi and inserted Ortiz in the starting lineup as the full time DH. In July Ortiz hit 8 home runs, and in August he had 11. He finished the season batting .288 with 31 home runs and 101 RBI. He finished 5th in the American League MVP voting.

In the postseason he struggled in the ALDS against the Oakland A's until Game 4 when he hit a 2 run double in the bottom of the 8th inning off of closer Keith Foulke to give the Red Sox the lead. In the ALCS against the New York Yankees, Ortiz had 2 home runs and 6 RBI as Boston lost in 7 games.

2004[link]

Ortiz was a major force in leading the Red Sox to their first World Series title in 86 years and ending the Curse of the Bambino. During the regular season, Ortiz hit 41 home runs and had 139 RBI while batting .301 with an OPS of .983. He finished 2nd in the American League in both home runs and RBI. He was voted onto the All-Star team for the first time in his career. He finished 4th in American League MVP voting.

In the playoffs, Ortiz hit .409 with 5 home runs and 23 RBI. He had multiple game-winning hits to help Boston advance to and ultimately win the World Series. He hit a walk-off home run off of Jarrod Washburn to win the American League Division Series against the Angels. He then hit a walk-off home run against the New York Yankees in Game 4 of the ALCS and a walk-off single in Game 5 during the American League Championship Series. His post-season heroics earned him MVP honors for the ALCS, the first time a DH had ever been named MVP.

On May 28, Ortiz hit his 100th career home run, a grand slam, off of Joel Pineiro of the Seattle Mariners at Fenway Park.

Ortiz was suspended for 3 games after being ejected following an incident on July 16 in a game against the Angels in which he threw several bats onto the field that came close to hitting umpires Bill Hohn and Mark Carlson.

2005[link]

Ortiz hit 47 home runs and had 148 RBI while batting .300 with an OPS of 1.001. He led the American League in RBI finished 2nd in home runs and 3rd in OPS. He finished 2nd in the American League MVP voting while leading the Red Sox to their 3rd consecutive playoff appearance.

2006[link]

Ortiz hit 54 home runs (setting a new Red Sox record) and had 137 RBI, while batting .287 with an OPS of 1.049. He led the American League in both home runs and RBI, winning the home run crown by 10 over the 2nd-place finisher Jermaine Dye. He finished 3rd in the American League MVP voting.

On June 29, Ortiz hit his 200th career home run against Duaner Sanchez of the New York Mets at Fenway Park.

On September 20, Ortiz tied Jimmie Foxx's single season Red Sox home run record of 50 set in 1938; in the 6th inning against Minnesota Twins starting pitcher Boof Bonser.

On September 21, Ortiz broke Foxx's single season Red Sox home run record by hitting his 51st home run off his former teammate, Johan Santana of the Minnesota Twins. The home run came on a 1–0 pitch in the first inning and it was his 44th home run of the season as a designated hitter, breaking his own American League single-season record.

Health scare[link]

Ortiz said he began feeling ill between games of a day-night doubleheader on August 18, 2006, against New York. Between games, he had gone home and tried to sleep but could not. Ortiz was reportedly driven to the hospital by a team assistant. An irregular heartbeat was the cause for the stress according to his doctors. Ortiz would not originally talk about his condition, but opened up to the media on August 25, reportedly saying "I'm a healthy son of a [gun]."^[4]

On August 28, Ortiz had recurring symptoms from his irregular heartbeat and was a last minute scratch in the Red Sox game at Oakland. Manager Terry Francona and General Manager Theo Epstein agreed that Ortiz fly back to Boston where he was reevaluated and cleared to play again in early September.

2007[link]

Ortiz once again played a major role as he helped lead the Red Sox to their seventh World Series title. Despite playing the entire season with a torn meniscus in his right knee as well as nagging injuries to his shoulder and quadriceps, he finished the year hitting .332 with 35 home runs and 117 RBI. In addition, he hit 52 doubles, led the American League in extra base hits and had an OPS of 1.066.

In the postseason Ortiz batted .370 with 3 home runs and 10 RBI.

2008[link]

Ortiz started slowly after suffering a wrist injury which caused him to miss several weeks. He played in only 109 games and finished the season hitting .264 with just 23 home runs and 89 RBI, his lowest totals since joining the Red Sox.

Ortiz at bat in 2009

2009[link]

Ortiz struggled early in the season, hitting only .206 with no home runs and 30 strikeouts in his first 34 games. On May 22, Ortiz hit his first home run of the season off Brett Cecil of the Toronto Blue Jays, ending his career-high 178 homerless at-bat streak.^[5] In June, Ortiz broke out of his slump by hitting 8 home runs with 22 RBIs. Ortiz had 9 home runs in both July and August.

On July 9, Ortiz hit his 300th career home run against Luke Hochevar of the Kansas City Royals at Fenway Park.

On September 17, Ortiz hit his 270th career home run as a DH off of Jose Arredondo of the Los Angeles Angels breaking the all time record held by Frank Thomas.

Ortiz finished the season with 28 home runs and 99 RBI.

2010[link]

Ortiz hit .270 with 32 home runs and 102 RBI. He also won the Home Run Derby.

2011[link]

On April 2, Ortiz set the record for RBI by a designated hitter with 1,004 passing Edgar Martinez.

On May 21, Ortiz became only the fifth player to hit 300 home runs as a member of the Red Sox, joining Ted Williams, Carl Yastrzemski, Jim Rice, and Dwight Evans.

On July 8, during a game against the Baltimore Orioles, three pitches were thrown inside close to Ortiz by Kevin Gregg. Ortiz took exception of the third ball that was close to him. Warnings were issued to both dugouts. When Ortiz popped out on the 3-0 count, Kevin Gregg taunted Ortiz and was ejected. Ortiz charged at Gregg and started a bench-clearing brawl. Both players were ejected for the incident and were each sentenced to a four game suspension.

Ortiz finished the season hitting .309 with 29 home runs and 96 RBI.

On October 20, Major League Baseball announced that Ortiz was the winner of the Roberto Clemente Award.

Performance-enhancing drug positive test result in 2003[link]

On July 30, 2009, The New York Times reported that Ortiz and then-teammate Manny Ramirez were among a group of roughly 100 major league players to test positive for performance-enhancing drugs during 2003 survey testing.^[6] Five months before the Times allegations surfaced, Ortiz stated in an interview that players who tested positive for steroids should be suspended for an entire season.^[6] Before the Red Sox's game that afternoon, Ortiz declined to comment on the report, saying, "I'm not talking about that anymore."^[6] Afterwards, he confirmed he had tested positive and promised to speak with the media once he "[got] to the bottom of" the matter.^[7]

Ten days later, Ortiz held a press conference before a game at Yankee Stadium and denied ever buying or using steroids but suggested the positive test might have been due to his use of supplements and vitamins at the time.^[8] When asked which supplements he had been taking, Ortiz said he did not know.^[9] Ortiz was accompanied at the press conference by the general counsel of the players union, Michael Weiner. Because the list of players who tested positive was seized as part of a government investigation and is currently under court-ordered seal pending the outcome of litigation, Weiner said the players union was unable to provide Ortiz with any details about his test result, including what substance he tested positive for.

Personal life[link]

Each time Ortiz crosses the plate after hitting a home run, he looks up and points both index fingers to the sky in tribute to his mother Angela Rosa Arias, who died in a car crash in January 2002 at the age of 46.^[10] Ortiz also has a tattoo of his mother on his biceps.

Ortiz and his wife Tiffany have three children. Since marrying Tiffany, he has become a fan of the Green Bay Packers (his wife hails from Kaukauna, Wisconsin, a town in between the cities of Green Bay and Appleton).^[11]

On June 11, 2008, Ortiz became a United States citizen at John F. Kennedy Library in Boston.^[12][13]

Reebok sponsorship[link]

In April 2007, sporting goods company Reebok debuted the Big Papi 10M Mid Baseball cleat at a party in Canton, Massachusetts, home to the headquarters of Reebok International Ltd. At the party, Ortiz was quoted as saying, "Reebok's loyalty and friendship have always made me feel right at home and we are true partners in every sense of the word,... ." Ortiz first used the cleat during the 2007 MLB All Star Game in San Francisco, California.^[14]

Charity work[link]

The David Ortiz Children's Fund was founded in 2007 to support a range of causes that Ortiz believes in. The Fund allows Ortiz the flexibility to donate to those children are in the most need at any given time, from Boston to the Dominican Republic and beyond. Ortiz released his own Charity Wine label in 2008 with all the proceeds going to the David Ortiz Children's Fund. The wine called Vintage Papi proceeded to raise $150,000 for charity.^[15]

Trademark fight with Jay-Z[link]

In April 2010, rapper and producer Jay-Z and his business partner Juan Perez initiated a trademark infringement case against Big Papi's night club 40/40 located in his native Dominican Republic. The suit claimed that Big Papi's night club name was chosen to take advantage of the fame of the record producers chain of sports clubs. The term 40/40 in baseball refers to the roughly 2 score ballplayers in the Major Leagues who have both 40 home runs and 40 stolen bases in a single season.http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/gossip/2010/04/jayz-sures-red-sox-big-papi-david-ortiz-4040-club-name.html

Career highlights[link]

• The Sporting News Designated Hitter of the Decade (2009)
• Sports Illustrated MLB All-Decade Team (2009)
• Member of the 2004 Boston Red Sox team that won the World Series.
• Member of the 2007 Boston Red Sox team that won the World Series.
• American League Championship Series MVP (2004)
• 7-time All-Star (2004–2008, 2010–2011)
• 2005 Hank Aaron Award winner
• 6-time winner of the Edgar Martínez Award (2003–2007. 2011)
• 5-time winner of the Silver Slugger Award (2004–2007, 2011)
• Top 5 MVP vote-receiver five times (5th, 2003; 4th, 2004; 2nd, 2005; 3rd, 2006; 4th, 2007)
• Led the American League in extra base hits 3 times (2004, 2005, 2007)
• Led the American League in Home Runs (2006)
• Led the American League in Runs Batted In (2005, 2006)
• American League Player of the Month for September 2005, July 2006, and May 2010.
• Red Sox single-season home-run leader (54; 2006)
• Tied with Babe Ruth for AL single-season home-run record in road games (32; 2006)
• First player ever to hit two walk-off home runs in the same postseason (against the Angels (ALDS) and Yankees (ALCS), 2004)
• First player in Red Sox history to hit 40 or more home runs in three consecutive seasons (2004–2006)
• Set new record for home runs by a DH in 2005 (43), then again in 2006 (47)
• 6 seasons of at least 30 Home Runs and 100 RBI (2003–2007, 2010)
• Tied with Billy Hatcher for all-time post-season consecutive on-base streak (10)
• 85 extra-base hits or more for four consecutive years, something only 2 other players--Lou Gehrig (5) and Sammy Sosa (4)--have ever done.^[16]
• Ortiz's home run total increased each year from 2000–2006, starting with 10 home runs, and ending with 54.
• Became all time DH home run leader on September 15, 2009 by hitting his 270th as a Designated Hitter.
• Won 2010 Major League Baseball Home Run Derby in the final round against Hanley Ramirez.
• Has hit 10 career walk-off HR, the highest of any active player, and 20 walk-off hits total. He is currently 2 HR behind Babe Ruth and Mickey Mantle, the career leaders in walk-off HR.^[17]
• On April 2, 2011 Ortiz became MLB's all time RBI leader by a Designated Hitter.
• On July 27, 2011 Ortiz hit his 1,000th RBI with the Boston Red Sox.
• 2011 Roberto Clemente Award winner.

See also[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: David Ortiz

Wikiquote has a collection of quotations related to: David Ortiz

	Biography portal
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• 50 home run club
• List of top 300 Major League Baseball home run hitters
• List of Major League Baseball RBI champions
• List of Major League Baseball home run champions

References[link]