In baseball, a utility player or utility man is a player who has the ability to play more than one position in the field and is primarily used as a substitute. The term super utility player may be used to refer to a player who can play all or most positions, or a player who regularly appears in the starting lineup at different positions.
Utility infielders typically play both second base and shortstop, sometimes also third base, and more rarely first base. A "fourth outfielder" is likewise an outfielder who can play all three outfield positions but does not have the hitting skills to be a starting player. Some utility players have the defensive ability to play in both the infield and outfield—recent players in Major League Baseball (MLB) fitting this description include Marwin González, Brock Holt, Cory Spangenberg, and Ben Zobrist.
Playing time for fourth outfielders has been called "erratic and unpredictable". [1] Often, fourth outfielders are outfield prospects who have not settled on one outfield position when arriving in the major leagues, [2] veteran players seeking additional playing time to extend their careers, [3] [4] or part-time position players who double as designated hitters. [1] Often, the fourth outfielder can be used in a platoon system against certain pitchers; for example, one outfielder will play only when the starting pitcher is a right-handed pitcher and the other plays only when the starting pitcher is a left-handed pitcher, if one player's performance is better against certain types of pitchers.
Within MLB, César Tovar, [5] Cookie Rojas, [6] Bert Campaneris, [7] Shane Halter, [8] Don Kelly, Jose Oquendo [9] Scott Sheldon, [10] and Andrew Romine all played every position (including pitcher) during their respective careers, with Tovar, Campaneris, Halter, Sheldon, and Romine all doing it in one game.
In 1991, the Detroit Tigers' Tony Phillips was the first player to start 10 games at five different positions in the same season. [11]
In 2005, Chone Figgins started 48 games at third, 45 in center field and 36 at second, and finished 17th in American League Most Valuable Player balloting. [12]
Second baseman Ben Zobrist of the Chicago Cubs has played first base, second base, third base, shortstop and outfield; José Bautista of the Toronto Blue Jays has played first base, second base, third base, and outfield; and Josh Harrison of the Pittsburgh Pirates has played second base, shortstop, third base, outfield, and pitcher. All three have been named All Stars while playing multiple positions in their All-Star seasons. [13] Zobrist and Bautista both finished in the top 10 in MVP voting while starting at least 40 games at two different defensive positions.
In 2015, Brock Holt of the Boston Red Sox was the first player ever to be selected to the All Star Game after starting at seven or more positions before the All-Star break. [14]
Willians Astudillo of the Minnesota Twins has played every position except for shortstop in his major league career.[ citation needed ]
In the sport of baseball, each of the nine players on a team is assigned a particular fielding position when it is their turn to play defense. Each position conventionally has an associated number, for use in scorekeeping by the official scorer: 1 (pitcher), 2 (catcher), 3, 4, 5, 6 (shortstop), 7, 8, and 9. Collectively, these positions are usually grouped into three groups: the outfield, the infield, and the battery. Traditionally, players within each group will often be more able to exchange positions easily ; however, the pitcher and catcher are highly specialized positions and rarely will play at other positions.
The Rawlings Gold Glove Award, usually referred to as simply the Gold Glove or Golden Glove, is the award given annually to the Major League Baseball (MLB) players judged to have exhibited superior individual fielding performances at each fielding position in both the National League (NL) and the American League (AL). The Gold Glove is widely considered one of the most prestigious defensive awards in baseball.
The Silver Slugger Award has been awarded annually since 1980 to the best offensive player at each position in both the American League and the National League, as determined by the coaches and managers of Major League Baseball.
César Leonardo Tovar, nicknamed "Pepito" and "Mr. Versatility", was a Venezuelan professional baseball player and coach. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) from 1965 to 1976, most notably as the leadoff hitter for the Minnesota Twins teams that won two consecutive American League Western Division titles in 1969 and 1970. He later played for the Philadelphia Phillies, Texas Rangers, Oakland Athletics, and New York Yankees.
Dagoberto Campaneris Blanco, nicknamed "Bert" or "Campy", is a Cuban American former professional baseball shortstop, who played Major League Baseball (MLB) for four American League (AL) teams, primarily the Kansas City / Oakland Athletics. One of the mainstays of the Athletics' championship teams of 1972 to 1974, he holds the A's franchise records for career games played (1795), hits (1882), and at bats (7180).
Scott Patrick Sheldon is an American former professional baseball third baseman/shortstop and right-handed batter who played for the Oakland Athletics and Texas Rangers of Major League Baseball (MLB). He also played for the Orix BlueWave of Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB).
Shane David Halter is an American former Major League Baseball utility player.
Maicer Eduardo Izturis is a Venezuelan former professional baseball infielder. During his career he played for the Montreal Expos, Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, and the Toronto Blue Jays of Major League Baseball (MLB). Izturis is the half brother of shortstop César Izturis and minor league shortstop Julio Izturis.
Desmond DeChone Figgins, nicknamed "Figgy", is an American former professional baseball third baseman and outfielder. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, Seattle Mariners, and Los Angeles Dodgers. Figgins was a utility player, playing all positions except catcher, pitcher, and first base.
Mitchell Jack "Mickey" Stanley is an American former professional baseball player.
Leonardo Lazaro Cárdenas Alfonso is a Cuban former professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball as a shortstop from 1960 to 1975, most prominently as a member of the Cincinnati Reds, where he was the starting shortstop for seven seasons.
José Manuel Oquendo Contreras, nicknamed "the Secret Weapon", is a Puerto Rican former infielder and current coach in Major League Baseball (MLB). He currently serves as Minor League Infield Coordinator of the St. Louis Cardinals, an organization with whom he has been affiliated since 1985. He managed the Puerto Rico national team in the 2006 and 2009 World Baseball Classics. During his playing career, Oquendo proved highly versatile defensively: he played primarily second base and shortstop, but also frequently in the outfield, and made at least one appearance at every position during his MLB playing career. Oquendo has the second-highest career fielding percentage for second basemen at .9919 (99.19%), behind only Plácido Polanco's career mark of .9927 (99.27%).
Benjamin Thomas Zobrist is an American former professional baseball second baseman and outfielder. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Tampa Bay Devil Rays/Rays, Oakland Athletics, Kansas City Royals, and Chicago Cubs. Zobrist played in three World Series and won the last two, becoming a two-time World Series champion in consecutive seasons of 2015 with the Royals and 2016 with the Cubs. He was the World Series MVP in 2016.
The 1968 Minnesota Twins season was a season in American baseball. The team finished 79–83, seventh in the American League.
The Colorado Rockies' 1997 season was the fifth for the Major League Baseball (MLB) franchise located in Denver, Colorado, their fifth in the National League (NL), and third at Coors Field. The team competed in the National League West, finishing in third place with a record of 83–79. Right fielder Larry Walker won the NL Most Valuable Player Award (MVP), becoming the first Rockies player and Canadian-born player to do so in MLB.
The 2010 Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim season is the franchise's 50th season and 45th in Anaheim. The Angels began this season as the three-time defending American League West champions. During the 2010 season, the Angels hosted the MLB All-Star Game at Angel Stadium for the third time in franchise history.
The 2010 Seattle Mariners season was the 34th season in franchise history. The Mariners finished the season with 61 wins and 101 losses. As the Texas Rangers won their first pennant that season, the Mariners became one of only two teams to have never played in the World Series, along with the Washington Nationals.
William Tolan Gray, also spelled Bill Grey, was an American third baseman and utility player in Major League Baseball between 1890 and 1898. He played two seasons each with the Philadelphia Phillies and the Cincinnati Reds, and was the starter at third base for the Pittsburgh Pirates during his final season in the major leagues. He was officially listed as standing 5 feet 11 inches (180 cm) and weighing 175 pounds (79 kg).
Andrew James Romine is an American former professional baseball utility player. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Los Angeles Angels, Detroit Tigers, Seattle Mariners, Texas Rangers, and Chicago Cubs. He is the brother of MLB catcher Austin Romine and son of former MLB outfielder Kevin Romine. On September 30, 2017, Romine became the fifth player in major league history to play all nine defensive positions in a single game.
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