Doug Mientkiewicz
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| Free Agent — No. -- | |
| First base | Born: June 19 1974 |
|---|---|
| Bats: Left | Throws: Right |
| Major League Baseball debut | |
| September 18, 1998 for the Minnesota Twins | Selected MLB statistics (through October 2, 2007) |
| Batting Average | .271 |
| Home Runs | 64 |
| RBI | 372 |
| Teams | |
| Olympic medal record | |||
| Men’s Baseball | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gold | 2000 Sydney | Team competition | |
Douglas Andrew Mientkiewicz [men-KAY-vich] (born June 19, 1974 in Toledo, Ohio) is a Polish American first baseman who is a free agent in Major League Baseball.
He is known more for his defensive skills than for his abilities with the bat. He previously played for the Minnesota Twins (1998-2004), Boston Red Sox (2004), New York Mets (2005), Kansas City Royals (2006), and the New York Yankees (2007).
Contents |
[edit] Olympics
Mientkiewicz was on the U.S. Olympic team when they won the gold medal at the 2000 games in Sydney, hitting the game-winning home-run against South Korea in the semi-finals.
[edit] Minor league career
In 1998 he was the Double-A All-Star DH, and Eastern League All-Star DH. He batted .323, with a .432 obp and .508 slugging percentage, in 509 at bats for New Britain.
In 2000 he was the Triple-A All-Star 1B, and Pacific League All-Star DH. He batted .334, with a .446 obp and .524 slugging percentage, in 485 at bats for Salt Lake City, while both scoring and driving in 96 runs.
[edit] MLB career
Mientkiewicz was drafted by the Toronto Blue Jays in the 12th round of the 1992 draft. He was then drafted by the Minnesota Twins in the 5th round of the 1995 draft.
In 2001 he was 8th in the league with 39 doubles, as he batted .306.
In 2003 he was 9th in the AL with a .393 on base percentage, as he batted .300.
In July 2004 he was traded as part of a 4-team trade by the Twins to the Boston Red Sox for Justin Jones. One of Mientkiewicz's most memorable moments in his MLB career was recording the final out of the 2004 World Series.
In January 2005 he was traded by the Red Sox with cash to the New York Mets for Ian Bladergroen.
In December 2005 he signed as a free agent with the Kansas City Royals.
On January 5, 2007, he signed a one-year deal with the Yankees to play first base.[1]
On June 2, 2007 Mientkiewicz collided with long time friend Mike Lowell of the Boston Red Sox while trying to field a throw from shortstop Derek Jeter. He suffered a mild concussion, cervical sprain, and a fractured scaphoid bone in his right wrist and was placed on the disabled list. Missing three months, Mientkiewicz returned on September 4th as a substitute at first base against the Seattle Mariners.
He made his first start since the injury on September 16, 2007. He went 2 for 3 with two clutch defensive plays.
[edit] Hitting and Defense
Mientkiewicz is a notorious line-drive hitter and hits well against both lefties and righties. He has a nice, short stroke with gap power (though not a home run hitter) and tremendous discipline at the plate, coupled with a good knowledge of the strike zone. For his career he has a good 0.951 walk-to-strikeout ratio (310-to-326). Although he batted .300 for two years with the Minnesota Twins, Mientkiewicz has not produced at the plate at that level in recent years.
He bats left-handed and throws right-handed. He is one of the few major leaguers to not wear batting gloves, along with teammate Jorge Posada, Met outfielder Moises Alou and Los Angeles Angels outfielder Vladimir Guerrero.
Defense is the best part of Mientkiewicz's game. He has a great glove with soft hands, great mobility, good range, and a strong arm. Also, Mientkiewicz is excellent at scooping balls in the dirt, tagging down on a high throw, and extending himself to make the play. He won the Gold Glove Award in 2001 with the Minnesota Twins.
In a nine-year career, Mientkiewicz is a .270 hitter with 59 home runs, 189 doubles, 348 RBI, 359 runs scored, and a .359 On-Base Percentage in 870 games. Almost all of his home runs lifetime have been hit to right field or right center.[1] He is a lifetime .317 hitter at Yankee Stadium.
[edit] The 2004 World Series ball controversy
Mientkiewicz recorded the final out of the 2004 World Series, ending Boston's 86-year championship drought. In Game 4 in St.Louis Mientkiewicz entered the game in the bottom of the 7th inning as a substitute at first base. Mientkiewicz didn't handle the ball until there were two outs in the 9th. St. Louis shortstop Edgar Rentería grounded back to pitcher Keith Foulke, who trotted toward first base and underhanded the ball to Mientkiewicz. As the ball that symbolically ended the so-called "Curse of the Bambino", the item was of considerable interest to memorabilia collectors. Controversy resulted when Mientkiewicz kept the ball, and the Red Sox asked for its return. A spokesperson for Major League Baseball indicated that the ball belonged to Mientkiewicz, but the Red Sox contended that it belonged to them, as they wanted to have it to archive for museum use. In an announcement made with the Red Sox in January 2005, Mientkiewicz said the ball would accompany the World Series trophy as it made its way through New England during its yearlong tour. On April 23, 2006, it was announced that he had reached an agreement with the Red Sox, and the ball would go to the Hall of Fame.
Chicago White Sox first baseman Paul Konerko recorded the final out of the 2005 World Series in similar fashion. His handling of the ball was less controversial than Mientkiewicz, as he publicly turned the ball over to club chairman Jerry Reinsdorf during the team's victory celebration.
[edit] Career statistics
| Games | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | SB | BA | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Career | 920 | 2967 | 376 | 796 | 196 | 9 | 63 | 364 | 14 | .268 |
[edit] Nickname
"Eye Chart" (alluding to the difficulty of spelling his name). Also occasionally referred to by Yankees fans as "Douggy BOMBS!"
[edit] References
- ^ http://mlb.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/news/article.jsp?ymd=20070105&content_id=1773787&vkey=news_nyy&fext=.jsp
- ^ [http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/players/profile?statsId=6138 Doug Mientkiewicz]. ESPN.com (2007-02-24). Retrieved on 2007-02-24.
[edit] External links
- Career statistics and player information from MLB, or ESPN, or Baseball-Reference, or Fangraphs, or The Baseball Cube
- Baseball Library (biography and achievements)
- Official Site
Boston Red Sox 2004 World Series roster |
|---|
| 3 Pokey Reese | 7 Trot Nixon | 11 Bill Mueller | 12 Mark Bellhorn | 13 Doug Mientkiewicz | 15 Kevin Millar | 18 Johnny Damon | 19 Gabe Kapler | 20 Kevin Youkilis | 24 Manny Ramírez World Series MVP | 26 Ramiro Mendoza | 28 Doug Mirabelli | 29 Keith Foulke | 30 Curt Leskanic | 31 Dave Roberts | 32 Derek Lowe | 33 Jason Varitek | 34 David Ortiz | 36 Mike Myers | 38 Curt Schilling | 43 Alan Embree | 44 Orlando Cabrera | 45 Pedro Martínez | 49 Tim Wakefield | 50 Mike Timlin | 61 Bronson Arroyo Manager 47 Terry Francona |
Categories: Florida State University alumni | Major league players from Ohio | Polish-Americans | 1974 births | Baseball players at the 2000 Summer Olympics | Boston Red Sox players | Florida State Seminoles baseball players | Gold Glove Award winners | Kansas City Royals players | Living people | Major league first basemen | Minnesota Twins players | New York Mets players | New York Yankees players | Olympic baseball players of the United States | Olympic gold medalists for the United States | People from Toledo, Ohio
