Willy Taveras | |
---|---|
![]() Taveras during the 2007 World Series | |
Center fielder | |
Born: Tenares, Dominican Republic | December 25, 1981|
Batted: Right Threw: Right | |
MLB debut | |
September 6, 2004, for the Houston Astros | |
Last MLB appearance | |
May 15, 2010, for the Washington Nationals | |
MLB statistics | |
Batting average | .274 |
Home runs | 8 |
Runs batted in | 128 |
Stolen bases | 195 |
Teams | |
Career highlights and awards | |
|
Willy Taveras (born December 25,1981) is a Dominican former professional baseball center fielder in Major League Baseball (MLB). He played a total of seven seasons for the Houston Astros,Colorado Rockies,Cincinnati Reds,and Washington Nationals.
As a rookie in 2005,Taveras was instrumental in the Astros' first-ever league pennant win and World Series appearances. Behind his hitting,speed,and defense,Taveras won the Players Choice Award for National League (NL) Outstanding Rookie,the Sporting News NL Rookie of the Year,and a selection to the Topps All-Star Rookie Team.
Taveras made his major league debut as a member of the Houston Astros late in the 2004 season,appearing in 10 games,primarily as a pinch runner.
In 2005,Taveras became the Astros' starting center fielder as a rookie,replacing Carlos Beltrán,who had signed as a free agent with the New York Mets in the prior offseason. Taveras batted .291 while leading the majors in infield hits (71),bunt hits (31),and singles (152),and was tops among rookies in runs (82),hits (172),and stolen bases (34;6th in the National League,NL).
In Game 4 of the 2005 National League Championship Series (NLCS) against the St. Louis Cardinals,Taveras entered in the seventh inning as a pinch runner and scored the winning run on a short sacrifice fly to center field. In the eighth,Taveras' catch while running up Tal's Hill deep in center field at Minute Maid Park ended the inning and preserved a 2–1 lead.
Following the season,Taveras was named in the Players Choice Awards as the NL Outstanding Rookie. He also won the Sporting News NL Rookie of the Year Award and selection to the Topps All-Star Rookie Team. For the Baseball Writers' Association of America (BBWAA) awards,Taveras finished second to Ryan Howard of the Philadelphia Phillies for the NL Rookie of the Year Award. [1]
In 2006,Taveras' batting average regressed to .278,though he again led the majors in bunt hits (21) and had 33 stolen bases (10th in the NL),but just 30 RBI. Taveras had a 30-game hitting streak that ended August 29,2006,during a game in which he was hit twice by Milwaukee Brewers pitcher Tomo Ohka. Taveras' streak is a franchise record,breaking the record of 25 previously held by Jeff Kent. The streak made him part of a rare club of less than a hundred to have hit in thirty straight games. [2] Within that streak,Taveras had a streak of singles in 28 consecutive games,tying a National League record set by Willie Davis in 1969. As of 2020 [update] ,Taveras and Davis still hold the league record. [3]
On December 12,2006,Taveras was traded along with Taylor Buchholz and Jason Hirsh by the Astros to the Colorado Rockies for pitchers Jason Jennings and Miguel Asencio.
During the 2007 regular season,Taveras hit .320,including an MLB-leading 27 bunt singles,2 home runs,24 RBIs,33 stolen bases,and caught stealing 9 times. He was part of the World Series roster after making a big play in the NLCS vs the Arizona Diamondbacks. In the World Series,the Rockies were swept by the Boston Red Sox.
In a 22-inning game played at Petco Park between April 17–18,2008,Taveras established a Rockies' club record with 10 at-bats in the game.
Taveras led MLB with 68 stolen bases during the 2008 season,and led the NL with 24 bunt hits. [4] At the same time,his .296 slugging percentage was the lowest in the majors. [5] Defensively,however,his .976 fielding percentage was the lowest of all qualifying major league center fielders. [6]
On December 12,2008,the Rockies non-tendered Taveras,making him a free agent. [7]
On December 27,2008,Taveras signed a two-year deal worth $6.25 million with the Cincinnati Reds. [8] In his debut with the Reds,he hit a pinch-hit triple in the 8th inning after being down with the flu for over a week.
In 2009,Taveras had the lowest slugging percentage,.285,and the lowest on-base percentage,.275,of all National League players with at least 350 plate appearances. On February 1,2010,Taveras was traded along with Adam Rosales to the Oakland Athletics for Aaron Miles and a player to be named later. He was later designated for assignment by Oakland. Taveras declined a Triple-A assignment and was granted free agency.
On February 15,2010,Taveras signed a minor league contract with the Washington Nationals with an invite to spring training. He played 27 games,and on May 21,2010 he was granted his unconditional release.
On June 3,2010,he signed a minor league contract with the Phillies. [9] He was assigned to the Triple-A Lehigh Valley.
On June 29,2010,he was released after playing 23 games for the IronPigs,batting .208 in 96 AB's,with nine stolen bases.
On August 15,2010,Taveras signed a minor league deal with the Texas Rangers.
On January 25,2011,Taveras signed a minor league contract with the Colorado Rockies. He spent the 2011 season with the Rockies Triple-A affiliate Colorado Springs Sky Sox,batting .308 in 97 games with a .336 on-base percentage. [10] Due to problems with the sports agency that formerly represented him Taveras was out of American baseball for the entire 2012 season. [10]
On December 11,2012,Taveras was signed to a minor league contract by the Kansas City Royals with an invitation to spring training. [10] At the time of the signing Taveras was playing baseball in the Mexican Pacific League with the Yaquis de Obregón. [10]
Taveras signed with the Sugar Land Skeeters of the Atlantic League of Professional Baseball for the 2015 season. This was Taveras' first year playing in an independent baseball league.
On April 11,2016,Taveras signed with the Pericos de Puebla of the Mexican Baseball League.
On February 21,2017,Taveras,along with Chad Gaudin,Daric Barton,Nyjer Morgan,Manny Rodriguez,and Rodolfo Amador,were traded to the Acereros de Monclova in exchange for RHP Joaquín Lara. Taveras became a free agent following the 2017 season.
On May 13,2019,after spending all of 2018 out of professional baseball,Taveras re-signed with the Sugar Land Skeeters. He was released on July 22.
Taveras has good skills for slap-hitting;however,he strikes out frequently (103 times in 2005) and rarely walks. His career-high in walks is 36,resulting in a low on-base percentage. In addition,Taveras is an exceptionally poor power hitter,producing the lowest slugging percentage among all regular major league outfielders for both the 2005 and 2006 seasons. He has great speed and has been clocked at 3.57 seconds from home to first as a right-handed hitter. Taveras has also led the league in infield singles,and his BABIP (batting average on balls in play) was .374 in 2007.
A cousin of Taveras,Leody,is also an outfielder in Major League Baseball who signed with the Texas Rangers as an international free agent in 2015 and made his MLB debut in 2020. [11]
Kazuo Matsui is a Japanese former professional baseball player who played as a shortstop and is the current manager of the Saitama Seibu Lions. He is a switch-hitter.
Felipe Rojas Alou is a Dominican former Major League Baseball outfielder, first baseman, coach and manager. He managed the Montreal Expos (1992–2001) and the San Francisco Giants (2003–2006). The first Dominican to play regularly in the major leagues, he is the most prominent member of one of the sport's most notable families of the late 20th century: he was the oldest of the trio of baseball-playing brothers that included Matty and Jesús, who were both primarily outfielders, and his son Moisés was also primarily an outfielder; all but Jesús have been named All-Stars at least twice. His son Luis, in turn, managed the New York Mets.
Craig Alan Biggio is an American former baseball second baseman, outfielder and catcher who played 20 seasons in Major League Baseball for the Houston Astros, from 1988 to 2007. A seven-time National League (NL) All-Star often regarded as the greatest all-around player in Astros history, he is the only player ever to be named an All-Star and to be awarded Silver Slugger Award at both catcher and second base. With longtime teammates Jeff Bagwell and Lance Berkman, he formed the core of the "Killer B's" who led Houston to six playoff appearances from 1997 to 2005, culminating in the franchise's first World Series appearance in 2005. At the end of his career, he ranked sixth in NL history in games played (2,850), fifth in at bats (10,876), 21st in hits (3,060), and seventh in runs scored (1,844). His 668 career doubles ranked sixth in major league history, and are the second-most ever by a right-handed hitter; his 56 doubles in 1999 were the most in the major leagues in 63 years.
Bob Kelly Abreu, nicknamed "El Comedulce" and "La Leche", is a Venezuelan former professional baseball outfielder, who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Houston Astros, Philadelphia Phillies, New York Yankees, Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, Los Angeles Dodgers, and New York Mets.
Tommie Lee Agee was an American professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball as a center fielder from 1962 through 1973, most notably as a member of the New York Mets team that became known as the Miracle Mets when, they rose from being perennial losers to defeat the favored Baltimore Orioles in the 1969 World Series for one of the most improbable upsets in World Series history. Agee performed two impressive defensive plays in center field to help preserve a Mets victory in the third game of the series.
Steven Allen Finley is an American former center fielder in Major League Baseball who played for eight teams between 1989 and 2007, most notably the Houston Astros, San Diego Padres, and Arizona Diamondbacks; he is one of only two players, along with Matt Herges, to play for all five National League West teams. An outstanding all-around player with power, speed, and defensive skill, he is one of only four players since 1945 with 300 home runs and 100 triples, along with Stan Musial, Willie Mays, and George Brett. He is also one of three players, along with Mays and Ken Griffey Jr., to have 2,500 hits and win five Gold Glove Awards in center field.
José Bernabe Reyes is a Dominican-American former professional baseball infielder. He played, most notably at shortstop, in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the New York Mets, Miami Marlins, Toronto Blue Jays, and Colorado Rockies.
Juan D'Vaughn Pierre is an American former professional baseball outfielder. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) from 2000–2013 for the Colorado Rockies, Florida/Miami Marlins, Chicago Cubs, Los Angeles Dodgers, Chicago White Sox, and Philadelphia Phillies. Known for his speed, he stole 614 bases in his career, the 18th-most in MLB history at the time of his retirement. He worked as an MLB Network on-air analyst before joining the Marlins as a Minor League Outfield Coordinator for the 2019 season.
Clint Harold Barmes is an American former professional baseball second baseman and shortstop. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) from 2003 through 2015 for the Colorado Rockies, Houston Astros, Pittsburgh Pirates, and San Diego Padres.
Troy Trevor Tulowitzki, nicknamed "Tulo", is an American former professional baseball shortstop who played 13 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB), primarily with the Colorado Rockies. He also played for the Toronto Blue Jays and New York Yankees.
Jason Ryan Jennings is an American former professional baseball pitcher. He pitched in Major League Baseball with the Colorado Rockies (2001-2006), Houston Astros (2007) and Texas Rangers (2008-2009).
Michael Ray Bourn is an American former Major League Baseball (MLB) center fielder who played for the Philadelphia Phillies, Houston Astros, Atlanta Braves, Cleveland Indians, Arizona Diamondbacks, and Baltimore Orioles between 2006 and 2016. He also played internationally for the United States national baseball team.
The Colorado Rockies' 2007 season started off with the team trying to improve on their 2006 record (76-86). They finished second in the National League West with a franchise record of 90 wins in 163 games and earned a playoff berth as the National League Wild Card team. The team would go on to lose the World Series to the Boston Red Sox, four games to none.
William Dexter Fowler is an American former professional baseball center fielder. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Colorado Rockies, Houston Astros, Chicago Cubs, St. Louis Cardinals, and Los Angeles Angels. He participated in the 2008 Summer Olympics as a member of the United States national baseball team and won the World Series with the Cubs in 2016. He led all MLB players with 72 triples during the 2010s.
David JohnLeMahieu is an American professional baseball infielder for the New York Yankees of Major League Baseball (MLB). He has previously played in MLB for the Chicago Cubs and Colorado Rockies.
Jean Carlos Enrique Segura is a Dominican professional baseball infielder who is a free agent. He has previously played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, Milwaukee Brewers, Arizona Diamondbacks, Seattle Mariners, Philadelphia Phillies, and Miami Marlins. Segura was an All-Star in 2013 and 2018, and led the National League in hits in 2016. He played for the Dominican Republic national baseball team at the 2017 World Baseball Classic.
Raimel Antonio Tapia Linarez is a Dominican professional baseball outfielder who is a free agent. He has played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Colorado Rockies, Toronto Blue Jays, Boston Red Sox, Milwaukee Brewers, and Tampa Bay Rays.
Víctor Enrique Robles Brito is a Dominican professional baseball outfielder for the Seattle Mariners of Major League Baseball (MLB). He has previously played in MLB for the Washington Nationals. Robles signed with the Nationals as an international free agent in 2013, and made his MLB debut in 2017.
Myles James Noble Straw is an American professional baseball center fielder in the Cleveland Guardians organization. He was drafted by the Houston Astros in the 12th round of the 2015 Major League Baseball draft, and made his major league debut with them in 2018. He has also played in MLB for the Guardians.
Yainer Radhames Díaz is a Dominican professional baseball catcher for the Houston Astros of Major League Baseball (MLB).