Warren Morris

Last updated

Warren Morris
Second baseman
Born: (1974-01-11) January 11, 1974 (age 50)
Alexandria, Louisiana, U.S.
Batted: Left
Threw: Right
MLB debut
April 5, 1999, for the Pittsburgh Pirates
Last MLB appearance
September 28, 2003, for the Detroit Tigers
Men's baseball
Representing Flag of the United States (23px).png  United States
Olympic Games
Bronze medal icon (B initial).svg 1996 Atlanta Team

Warren Randall Morris (born January 11, 1974) is an American former college and Major League Baseball player. He is most remembered for his two-out, 9th inning walk-off home run that won the 1996 College World Series for the Louisiana State University Tigers.

Contents

Early life

Morris grew up in Alexandria, Louisiana and graduated from Bolton High School. He played baseball, basketball and cross country at Bolton High. [1]

College career

Morris joined the LSU baseball team in 1993. [1] He did not receive an athletic scholarship to play baseball, but made the team while on academic scholarship as a second baseman. He did not play at second base in his first season at LSU, because the Tigers already had All-American Todd Walker at the position. Morris did see action at other positions. Walker went pro after the 1994 season, and Morris became the team's starting second baseman from 1995 to 1996. His best season at LSU came in 1995. He hit .369 with 8 home runs, 50 RBI, and 18 stolen bases.

LSU was expecting big things from Morris in 1996, but a broken hamate bone kept him out of the lineup for 42 games that season. [2] He did rejoin the team in time for the 1996 postseason, which would include the College World Series. However, the wrist injury still lingered. He could not hit for power, and was placed at the bottom of the lineup.

College World Series hero

LSU reached the championship game of the College World Series in 1996, and was trailing Miami 8–7 in the game with two outs in the bottom of the ninth inning. Morris came up to the plate with one runner on base, and hit Miami relief pitcher Robbie Morrison's first pitch just inches over the right field fence. The walk-off home run won the game for the Tigers 9–8. It was his only home run of the season, and is the only walk-off championship-winning home run in College World Series history. In addition, it is the only 2-out, ninth inning, walk-off home run in a championship of any collegiate or professional level. [3] The home run also won Morris the 1997 Showstopper of the Year ESPY Award.

Major League Baseball career

Morris was drafted in the fifth round of the 1996 Major League Baseball Draft by the Texas Rangers as a second baseman. He started out in the Rangers' farm system, but was later traded to the Pittsburgh Pirates along with relief pitcher Todd Van Poppel for starting pitcher Esteban Loaiza. He made his major league debut in 1999, going from non-roster invitee in spring training to starting second baseman early in the season. Morris had a promising rookie season with the Pirates, hitting .288 with 15 home runs and 73 RBI, while placing third in National League Rookie of the Year voting. He also made the 1999 Topps All-Star Rookie Roster at second base. It was his best season as a pro. However, the Pirates released him before the 2002 season. Morris was the starting second baseman for the 2003 Detroit Tigers, following the release of Damion Easley. For the rest of his career, he was a journeyman infielder in the minor leagues. He announced his retirement from baseball in 2006.

See also

Related Research Articles

The 1968 World Series was the championship series of Major League Baseball's (MLB) 1968 season. The 65th edition of the World Series, it was a best-of-seven playoff between the American League (AL) champion Detroit Tigers and the National League (NL) champion St. Louis Cardinals. The Tigers won in seven games for their first championship since 1945, and the third in their history.

The following are the baseball events of the year 2002 throughout the world.

The following are the baseball events of the year 1999 throughout the world.

Timothy Leo Cullen is an American former infielder in Major League Baseball who played for the Washington Senators, Chicago White Sox (1968) and Oakland Athletics (1972). He batted and threw right-handed.

The following are the baseball events of the year 1961 throughout the world.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1960 in baseball</span> Overview of the events of 1960 in baseball

The following are the baseball events of the year 1960 throughout the world.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Richie Hebner</span> American baseball player

Richard Joseph Hebner is an American former professional baseball player and coach. He played in Major League Baseball as a third baseman from 1968 through 1985, most prominently as a member of the Pittsburgh Pirates teams that won five National League Eastern Division titles in six years between 1970 and 1975 and won the World Series in 1971. After his playing career, Hebner spent several years as a hitting coach at the major league and minor league levels. He also managed minor league teams in the Pirates, Toronto Blue Jays and Baltimore Orioles organizations.

The following are the baseball events of the year 2006 throughout the world.

The 1996 LSU Tigers baseball team won the NCAA national championship in one of the most memorable College World Series games in history.

The 1999 Major League Baseball season ended with the New York Yankees sweeping the Atlanta Braves in the World Series.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Neil Walker</span> American baseball player (born 1985)

Neil Martin Andrew Walker is an American former professional baseball second baseman and current broadcaster. He played 12 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Pittsburgh Pirates (2009–2015), New York Mets (2016–17), Milwaukee Brewers (2017), New York Yankees (2018), Miami Marlins (2019), and Philadelphia Phillies (2020).

The 1945 Detroit Tigers was the team's 45th since they entered the American League in 1901. The team won the American League pennant, then went on to win the 1945 World Series, defeating the Chicago Cubs 4 games to 3. It was the second World Series championship for the Tigers. Detroit pitcher Hal Newhouser was named the American League's Most Valuable Player for the second consecutive season.

The 1984 Detroit Tigers won the 1984 World Series, defeating the San Diego Padres, 4 games to 1. The season was their 84th since they entered the American League in 1901.

The 1909 Detroit Tigers won the American League pennant with a record of 98–54, but lost to the Pittsburgh Pirates in the 1909 World Series, 4 games to 3. The season was their ninth since they were charter members of the American League in 1901. It was the third consecutive season in which they won the pennant but lost the World Series. Center fielder Ty Cobb won the Triple Crown and pitcher George Mullin led the league in wins (29) and winning percentage (.784).

The 1960 Major League Baseball season was played from April 12 to October 13, 1960. It was the final season contested by 16 clubs and the final season that a 154-game schedule was played in both the American League and the National League. The AL began using the 162-game schedule the following season, with the NL following suit in 1962.

The following are the baseball events of the year 2009 throughout the world.

The following are the baseball events of the year 2012 throughout the world.

The following are the baseball events of the year 2013 throughout the world.

The following are the baseball events of the year 2016 throughout the world.

The following are the baseball events of the year 2018 throughout the world.

References

  1. 1 2 Domangue, Dylan (June 8, 2021). "Warren Morris walk-off homerun, 25 years later". kalb.com. Retrieved July 21, 2021.
  2. ↑ Helman, David (June 25, 2011). "Former LSU player Warren Morris never tires of reliving the College World Series dream". NOLA.com. Retrieved September 3, 2018.
  3. ↑ Kurkjian, Tim (June 17, 1996). "LSU steals the College World Series from Miami with a ninth-inning homer, Bagwell busts out, Rockie roads". Sports Illustrated . Retrieved June 7, 2010.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.