Gary Sheffield

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Gary Sheffield
Gary Sheffield2.jpg
Sheffield with the New York Yankees in 2005
Outfielder / Third baseman
Born: (1968-11-18) November 18, 1968 (age 55)
Tampa, Florida, U.S.
Batted: Right
Threw: Right
MLB debut
September 15, 1988, for the Milwaukee Brewers
Last MLB appearance
September 30, 2009, for the New York MetsDatesRef
National League batting champion 1 1992
National League champion 1 1997
World Series champion 1 1997
Awards received
Name of awardTimesDatesRef
ESPY Award for Best Breakthrough Athlete11993 [27]
Florida Marlins Most Valuable Player Award11996 [28]
Gatorade National High School Baseball Player of the Year 11986
Major League Baseball All-Star 9 199293, 1996, 19982000, 200305
Major League Baseball Player of the Month 1August 1992
Major League Baseball Player of the Week 121992 May 24, 1993 Jun 13, 1994 May 1, 1995 Sep 24,
1996 Aug 11, 2000 Jun 18, 2000 Jul 16, 2001 Apr 15,
2003 May 18, 2004 Jun 6, 2005 Jul 17, 2007 Jun 10
Silver Slugger Award 5
1
4

1992
1996, 2003−05
Sporting News Comeback Player of the Year 11992
Sporting News Major League Player of the Year 11992
Sporting News Minor League Player of the Year 11988[ citation needed ]
USA Today Top High School Baseball Player11986[ citation needed ]

Achievements

Statistical leader

National Baseball Hall of Fame consideration

Sheffield first appeared on balloting for the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 2015, when he received 11.7% of the vote, well short of the 75% required for election, but above the 5% minimum required to remain on the ballot. In 2024, his tenth and final appearance on the BBWAA ballot, he received 63.9%, falling short of the necessary threshold.

Steroid allegations

During a workout with Barry Bonds in 2001, a cream was applied to Sheffield's knee by a trainer to help heal ripped stitches from a knee surgery. Sheffield states in his book, Inside Power, that he had no knowledge of the cream containing steroids, and had no reason to assume so at the time. He goes on to say in his book that the cream did nothing to strengthen his knee, and also states that a look at his numbers shows no improvement after the incident. [33]

On December 13, 2007, Sheffield was named in the Mitchell Report as one of the players who had obtained and used steroids. [34] Sheffield agreed to meet with the report's investigators for an interview but, due to the unavailability of his attorney, no interview could be scheduled before the report was published. [34] :121

In their book Game of Shadows , reporters Mark Fainaru-Wada and Lance Williams allege that Sheffield worked with and received steroids such as testosterone and human growth hormone from his and Barry Bonds's personal trainer Greg Anderson. The book also details steroid calendars found in possession of Anderson outlining numerous steroid cycles Sheffield was to have undertaken after the 2001 season.

Personal life

In 1986, Sheffield was arrested alongside his uncle, Dwight Gooden, and fellow Tampa baseball player Vance Lovelace and charged with resisting arrest with violence and battery on a police officer. He pleaded no contest in January 1987 and was sentenced to two years probation. [35]

In October 1987, while still on probation, Sheffield was arrested and charged with driving while intoxicated and related offenses. Those charges were eventually consolidated into one reckless driving charge. His probation was extended for an additional 18 months. [36]

On December 5, 1993, Sheffield was arrested after being clocked driving a Ferrari Testarossa 110 miles per hour (180 km/h) on Interstate 4 in Florida and failing a breathalyzer test. In May 1994, he pleaded no contest to reckless driving and was sentenced again to nine months of probation and 40 hours of community service. [37]

In October 1995, Sheffield was shot in his left shoulder after an attempted robbery when he stopped his car at a traffic light in Tampa. [38]

Throughout his career, Sheffield was verbal about his need for sufficient financial compensation and respect, demanding better pay when he was with the Dodgers, and refusing to play in the inaugural World Baseball Classic, saying the regular "season is when [he's] getting paid." [39]

Sheffield and his wife Deleon reside in Tampa, Florida. They have three sons Jaden Sheffield, Noah Sheffield, and Christian Sheffield. Sheffield has five other children from previous relationships. Deleon is a gospel recording artist and has sung the National Anthem at Yankee Stadium during a playoff game with Sheffield on the lineup. [40] In February 2005, a man was arraigned in federal court on charges of extorting Sheffield by threatening to release a sex tape of Deleon with an ex-boyfriend. [41] In January 2006, the man was sentenced to 27 months in prison. [42]

Sheffield's cousin, Derrick Pedro, played outfield in the Milwaukee Brewers organization. [6] [43] Sheffield's cousin, Tim Carter, played professional football as a wide receiver. [44]

In the June 2007 issue of GQ magazine, Sheffield (a Detroit Tiger at the time) was quoted saying that there are more Latin baseball players than African-American players because Latinos are easier to control. "What I said is that you're going to see more black faces, but there ain't no English going to be coming out. ... (It's about) being able to tell (Latin players) what to do — being able to control them.... Where I'm from, you can't control us." He continued "They have more to lose than we do. You can send them back across the island. You can't send us back. We're already here." [45]

See also

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References

  1. Posnanski, Joe (January 17, 2017). "Ballot 12: Gary Sheffield". joeposnanski.substack.com. Retrieved March 6, 2020.
  2. Kepner, Tyler (June 22, 2013). "Guided by Sheffield, Journeyman Pitcher Is Now a Star". The New York Times. Retrieved July 1, 2019.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 "JockBio.com Sheffield Biography from Jock Bio". Archived from the original on August 21, 2017. Retrieved February 7, 2008.
  4. Little League Baseball (September 17, 2019). "Little League World Series Records". Little League Baseball and Softball. Retrieved October 26, 2020.
  5. Baseball-Reference.com Bio
  6. 1 2 Gammons, Peter (April 5, 1989). "Street Smarts". Sports Illustrated . Retrieved January 19, 2018.
  7. Is Older and Better [ permanent dead link ]
  8. Espn.com Interview
  9. Sheffield, Reconsidered – Part I [ permanent dead link ]
  10. "Sheffield Has an Inning to Remember". Los Angeles Times . July 14, 1997. Retrieved August 12, 2021.
  11. "Sheff prepared for Boss to lean on him". ESPN.com . Associated Press. December 17, 2003. Retrieved August 6, 2009.
  12. "Interfering Sox Fan Has Tickets Revoked". Reading Eagle . April 19, 2005. Retrieved October 2, 2014.
  13. "Gary Sheffield Stats". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved March 6, 2020.
  14. ESPN – Sheffield calls out Torre, Jeter, Bonds in HBO interview – MLB
  15. Beck, Jason (November 10, 2006). "Tigers acquire Sheffield for prospects". MLB.com . Archived from the original on June 15, 2011. Retrieved August 6, 2009.
  16. DETROIT (AP) (September 9, 2008). "Sheffield has 2 homers, 5 RBIs and Tigers beat A's". Yahoo! Sports . Retrieved August 6, 2009.
  17. "Indians win with walk-off hit as Carmona, Sheffield brawl". CBSSports.com wire reports. September 19, 2008. Archived from the original on September 23, 2008. Retrieved September 20, 2008.
  18. "Sheffield given four-game suspension: Tigers slugger won't appeal, begins serving it Monday" Archived 2008-09-27 at the Wayback Machine MLB.com, Jason Beck, September 22, 2008. Retrieved on 2008-09-26.
  19. Beck, Jason (March 31, 2009). "Tigers release Sheffield". MLB.com . Archived from the original on April 3, 2009. Retrieved August 6, 2009.
  20. "Mets statement regarding Gary Sheffield". MLB.com . April 3, 2009. Retrieved August 6, 2009.
  21. He had his first at bat as a Met on April 3, against the Cincinnati Reds. It resulted in a strikeout against Arthur Rhodes.Slugging outfielder Sheffield joins the Mets
  22. Sheffield reaches 500 [ permanent dead link ]
  23. Hoch, Bryan (July 27, 2015). "Alex Rodriguez homers on 40th birthday". MLB.com. Retrieved July 27, 2015.
  24. Hine, Chris (August 20, 2009). "Hernandez Is Released, Wagner Returns, and Sheffield Sits and Pouts". The New York Times. Retrieved September 24, 2024.
  25. Gary Sheffield Wants To Make A Comeback With The Rays At Age 42 – Business Insider
  26. Gary Sheffield says he's retired, makes pitch for Hall – ESPN
  27. The ESPN Sports Almanac . ESPN Books. 2008. pp.  528. ISBN   978-1-933060-38-5.
  28. "Gary Sheffield awards". Baseball Almanac . Retrieved August 27, 2016.
  29. "Most MLB Ballparks Played In". Google Docs. Retrieved March 6, 2020.
  30. "Effectively Wild: A FanGraphs Baseball Podcast". www.stitcher.com. Retrieved March 6, 2020.
  31. *Winner of the 2nd Annual Black Masters in 2019 Gary Sheffield Statistics and History Baseball-Reference.com
  32. Fred McGriff Batting Statistics and History Baseball-Reference.com
  33. "MLB Will Not Punish Sheffield For BALCO Admission". San Francisco: KTVU. Archived from the original on January 16, 2009.
  34. 1 2 Mitchell, George (December 13, 2007). Report to the Commissioner of Baseball of an Independent Investigation into the Illegal Use of Steroids and Other Performance Enhancing Substances by Players in Major League Baseball (PDF) (Report). Office of the Commissioner of Baseball . Retrieved October 26, 2023.
  35. "Gooden Pleads No Contest, Gets Probation". The Los Angeles Times . January 24, 1987. p. 47. Retrieved February 7, 2022.
  36. "Player's probation extended". Tampa Bay Times . January 21, 1988. p. 10. Retrieved February 7, 2022.
  37. "Outfielder Sentenced". Reno Gazette-Journal . May 25, 1994. p. 37. Retrieved February 5, 2022.
  38. "Sheffield Shot at Traffic Light". The New York Times. Associated Press. October 31, 1995. p. B11. Retrieved September 24, 2024.
  39. "Gary Sheffield, Unplugged". CNN. August 5, 2005. Archived from the original on August 7, 2005. Retrieved May 3, 2010.
  40. Doug Miller (September 24, 2008). "Gospel star finds church of baseball". MLB.com. Retrieved December 29, 2022.
  41. Oberfield, Gabriel S. (February 18, 2005). "'Activist' pleads not guilty in extortion case". The Times of Northwest Indiana . Medill News Service. Retrieved April 8, 2023 via Newspapers.com.
  42. "Man Sentenced in Sheffield Case". Clarion-Ledger . January 19, 2006. p. 24. Retrieved April 9, 2023 via Newspapers.com.
  43. "Derrick Pedro Minor Leagues Statistics & Cousin Derrell fluker was also a top Baseball player who played independent baseball for 5 seasons History". Baseball-Reference.com . Sports Reference . Retrieved January 19, 2018.
  44. Schwartz, Paul (September 22, 2004). "It's All Relative – Jints' Carter Has 7 Pro-Athlete Kin". New York Post . Retrieved January 19, 2018.
  45. "Sheffield tries to explain controversial remarks". MSNBC.com. Associated Press. June 5, 2007. Archived from the original on June 6, 2007.
Preceded by National League Player of the Month
August, 1992
Succeeded by