Roberto Alomar

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Roberto Alomar Velázquez (born February 5, 1968 in Ponce, Puerto Rico) is a former Major League Baseball player (1988-2004), considered by many to be one of the best second basemen in history.^[1][2] He holds the record for most Gold Glove Awards at that position,^[3] and has also won the second most Silver Slugger Awards for a second baseman.^[4]

A native of Salinas, Puerto Rico, Alomar was a switch-hitter and threw right-handed. He is the son of New York Mets third base coach Sandy Alomar, Sr., a former All-Star second baseman with a 15-year MLB experience. His older brother, Sandy Jr., was a Major League catcher.

[edit] Career

[edit] San Diego Padres

Alomar broke into the Major Leagues in 1988 with the San Diego Padres, where he was regarded as an excellent fielder with speed and a solid bat. Defensively, he displayed excellent lateral range and a powerful arm, often making spectacular plays on ground balls hit deep in the hole between first and second base, and on balls hit up the middle well behind second base. He was an All-Star for the first time in 1990.

[edit] Toronto Blue Jays

Roberto Alomar is a member of the Toronto Blue Jays' Level of Excellence.

In 1991 he and Joe Carter were traded to the Toronto Blue Jays in exchange for Fred McGriff and Tony Fernández. It was in Toronto that he developed into a premier offensive second baseman, combining a .300-plus batting average with above average power and high end speed on the bases. In 1993 he batted .326, third in the league behind teammates John Olerud, and Paul Molitor. He was a large part of Toronto's World Series championships in 1992 and 1993. Next to Joe Carter's World Series-winning shot in 1993, his home run against Dennis Eckersley in the 1992 ALCS is considered by many as the most important hit in the club's history; Alomar was the MVP of the ALCS. In each of his five seasons with the Blue Jays, Alomar was on the All-Star team, and won the Gold Glove award.

He is commonly regarded by Blue Jay fans to be the best player they have ever had. On March 20, 2008, the Toronto Blue Jays announced that Alomar would be elevated to the Level of Excellence at Toronto's Rogers Centre, joining such Blue Jay legends as George Bell, Joe Carter and Tony Fernández. Alomar also announced that if he is elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame he would like to go in wearing a Blue Jays hat, which would make him the first player to do so. At 6:55 PM (ET), on April 4, 2008, Alomar's name and number were added to the Level of Excellence at the Rogers Centre in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, along with Paul Beeston, prior to the home opener game of the 2008 season. Alomar and Beeston were presented commissioned portraits at the ceremony.

[edit] Baltimore Orioles

In 1995, Alomar moved to greener pastures, signing with the Baltimore Orioles at a time when Toronto was moving to rebuild and Baltimore was building toward a championship-calibre team. In Baltimore, Alomar paired with Hall of Famer Cal Ripken Jr. to form one of the most decorated double-play combinations in baseball history. He would play again in the playoffs in 1996 and 1997 for the Orioles, although the Orioles were defeated in the American League Championship Series in both years.

[edit] Controversy

On September 27, 1996, Alomar gained notoriety when, during a game against his former team, the Blue Jays, he got into a heated argument over a called third strike with umpire John Hirschbeck and spit in his face. He defended himself by saying Hirschbeck had uttered a racial slur and that Hirschbeck had been bitter ever since one of his sons had died of ALD, and then learned that another one had it also. He was suspended for five games and donated $50,000 to ALD research. Alomar and Hirschbeck settled their differences publicly and made apologies to each other on April 22, 1997, standing at home plate and shaking hands in front of the crowd before an Orioles game and now consider one another friends. Regarding the incident at his retirement, Alomar said, "That, to me, is over and done. It happened over nine years ago. We are now great friends. We have done some things with charity. God put us maybe in this situation for something. But I think people who know me, people who have had the chance to be with me on the same team, know what kind of person I am. Anything I ever did wrong, I would confront it and now it is OK."

[edit] Cleveland Indians

In 1999, Alomar signed with the Cleveland Indians, joining his brother, Sandy Jr. It was in Cleveland that Roberto would have two of his finest seasons -- and perhaps two of the finest seasons ever for a second baseman. In 1999 he hit .323/.422/.533 with 24 HRs, 120 RBIs and 37 stolen bases, and in 2001 he collected .336/.415/.541, 20, 100 and 30. Cleveland would make the playoffs in both years only to lose in the American League Division Series. Alomar finished third in MVP voting in 1999.

On the field, Alomar teamed with shortstop Omar Vizquel to form one of the most decorated defensive combinations of all time. In 2000, with Vizquel committing just three errors all season long, the entire infield committed 34 errors--just one more than the record set by the New York Mets infield the year before. As a result, Vizquel, Alomar and third baseman Travis Fryman each won the Gold Glove Award that season, and the Vizquel-Alomar duo won three consecutive Gold Gloves together, joining a select list of only eight shortstop-second baseman duos to have accomplished this feat in the same year.

He was finally traded to the New York Mets before the 2002 season, in the same trade that brought pitcher Billy Traber and outfielders Matt Lawton and Alex Escobar to the Indians.

[edit] Last years

In 2002, Alomar hit only .266/.331/.376 with 53 RBIs and 73 runs scored while falling apart defensively at second base. The Mets were puzzled by Alomar's mediocre play, which is generally attributed to his lack of comfort with being under the scrutiny of the New York fans and media. However, not even a midseason trade back to the American League to the Chicago White Sox in 2003 could revive Alomar from his funk. There was more misery ahead with the Arizona Diamondbacks in 2004, after missing two months with a broken right hand. On August 5, he returned to the White Sox, and finished hitting just .263/.321/.392 in 56 games.

Alomar agreed to a one-year contract with the Tampa Bay Devil Rays for the 2005 season. However, on March 19, 2005, after a spring plagued by back and vision trouble, he decided to retire from the game.

In a 17-year career, Alomar was a .300/.371/.443 hitter with 210 home runs and 1,134 RBI in 2,379 games. He is 51st all-time with 2,724 career hits.

[edit] Career milestones

In his career, Alomar established remarkable milestones for a second baseman, including:

• making twelve straight All-Star teams (1990-2001)
• winning a record ten gold gloves at second base (1991-96,1998-2001)
• batting over .300 nine times (1992-1997, 1999-2001)
• posting an OBP over .400 five times (1992-93, 1996, 1999, 2001)
• scoring 100 or more runs six times (1992-93, 1996, 1999-2001)
• driving in 100 or more runs twice (1999, 2001)
• stealing 30 or more bases eight times (1989, 1991-93, 1995, 1999-2001)
• winning four Silver Slugger awards (1992, 1996, 1999-2000)

[edit] References

[edit] See also

• List of AL Gold Glove Winners at Second Base
• List of major league players with 2,000 hits
• List of Gold Glove middle infield duos
• List of AL Silver Slugger Winners at Second Base
• Players from Puerto Rico in MLB
• Top 500 home run hitters of all time
• Famous Puerto Ricans
• 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
• List of Major League Baseball runs scored champions
• Major League Baseball hitters with three home runs in one game
• List of Major League Baseball players with 400 stolen bases
• List of second generation MLB players

[edit] External links

• Career statistics and player information from Baseball-Reference, or Fangraphs, or The Baseball Cube