Jim Eisenreich
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James Michael Eisenreich (born April 18, 1959 St. Cloud, Minnesota) was a Major League Baseball utility player with a 15 year career from 1982-1984, 1987-1998. He played for the Minnesota Twins and Kansas City Royals of the American League, and the Philadelphia Phillies, Florida Marlins and Los Angeles Dodgers, all of the National League. He played first base, outfield and designated hitter.
In 1993, his first year with the Phillies, Eisenreich put together one of his best years, batting .318 and helping the Phillies to win the National League pennant. As the Phillies began their slide the next year (1994), Eisenreich was one of the team's few bright spots, batting .361 for the last place Phillies in 1996.
Eisenreich is notable as being part of arguably one of the biggest baseball trades in the 90s. On May 14, 1998, Eisenreich was traded from the Florida Marlins, with Bobby Bonilla, Gary Sheffield, Charles Johnson, and Manuel Barrios, to the Los Angeles Dodgers for Todd Zeile and catcher Mike Piazza.
Eisenreich has Tourette syndrome, and his condition caused him to go on to the voluntary retirement list between 1984 and 1987 while he was undergoing treatment. Eisenreich was replaced on the Twins roster by Kirby Puckett, who became one of baseball's superstars in the late 1980s to mid-1990s.
[edit] External links
- Jim Eisenreich at:
- Baseball Reference
- Jim Eisenreich Foundation Accessed 18 February 2006.