Delino DeShields
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| Delino DeShields | ||
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| Second Baseman | ||
| Born: January 15, 1969 Seaford, Delaware |
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| Batted: Left | Threw: Right | |
| MLB debut | ||
| April 9, 1990 for the Montreal Expos |
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| Final game | ||
| August 8, 2002 for the Chicago Cubs |
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| Career statistics | ||
| Batting average | .268 | |
| Hits | 1548 | |
| Stolen bases | 463 | |
| Teams | ||
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| Career highlights and awards | ||
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Delino Lamont DeShields (born January 15, 1969 in Seaford, Delaware) is a former second baseman in Major League Baseball who played for the Montreal Expos (1990-93), Los Angeles Dodgers (1994-96), St. Louis Cardinals (1997-98), Baltimore Orioles (2000-01) and Chicago Cubs (2001-02). He batted left-handed and threw right-handed. DeShields was to attend Villanova University where he would have played point guard on the basketball team; however, after being selected as the 12th overall pick in the 1987 MLB draft, he chose a career in baseball. DeShields has two sons and two daughters.
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[edit] Career
In a 13-season career, DeShields posted a .268 batting average with 80 home runs and 561 runs batted in in 1615 games. After a decent 1993 campaign with Montreal, in which he stole 43 bases and hit .295, he was traded to the Dodgers.
Delino "Bop" DeShields is currently the Co-Founder and VP of The Urban Baseball League www.theubl.com and along with Dennis "Oil Can" Boyd are traveling and playing on The Oil Can Boyd Urban All Stars to promote baseball in African American communities.
[edit] "The Trade"
Although DeShields compiled a solid career, his name is most recognizable as being a part of one of the worst trades in major league history. On November 19, 1993, DeShields was traded from the Expos to the Dodgers for a skinny pitching prospect named Pedro Martínez. In three years in L.A., DeShields did not hit higher than .256. Martinez went on to win three Cy Young Awards and establish himself amongst the greatest pitchers in the game's history. While in hindsight the trade was a horrible one for Los Angeles, at the time DeShields was building a reputation as one of the more versatile hitters in the game, capable of putting the ball into play or getting a walk, which, combined with his stolen base capabilities, had made him a much sought-after player at the time of the trade.
[edit] Highlights
- Placed second in Rookie of the Year Award voting in 1990
- Led National League in triples (14, 1997)
- 9-time Top 10 finisher among NL base stealers (1990-98)
- His career 463 stolen bases ranks him 44th on the all-time list
- Wore his socks just below the knee, to honor the players of the defunct Negro Leagues
- Has a blog (not) named after him [1]. Professional poker player Alex "Yahtzem" Jacob is reportedly one of the site's bloggers, and one of DeShields' fans.
[edit] See also
- List of Major League Baseball players with 400 stolen bases
- List of Major League Baseball triples champions
[edit] External links
- Career statistics and player information from Baseball-Reference
- BaseballLibrary
