Rob Butler
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Rob Butler | |
|---|---|
| Outfield | |
| Batted: Left | Threw: Left |
| MLB Debut | |
| June 12, 1993 for the Toronto Blue Jays | |
| Final game | |
| July 10, 1999 for the Toronto Blue Jays | |
| Career Statistics | |
| Batting average | .243 |
| Home runs | 0 |
| RBI | 21 |
| Teams | |
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| Career Highlights and Awards | |
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Robert Frank John Butler (born April 10, 1970 in East York, Ontario) is a former Major League Baseball outfielder with the Toronto Blue Jays and the Philadelphia Phillies. He is also a former baseball player with the Toronto Maple Leafs baseball club of the Intercounty Baseball League.
Butler first signed with the Blue Jays as an amateur free agent on September 24, 1990.
On June 12, 1993, Butler made his major league début with the Blue Jays, but he only played in 17 regular season games due to a hand injury he suffered when attempting to steal a base. In that short time, he had a .271 batting average with four doubles, two RBI's and 12 strikeouts. He also drew seven walks and went 2-for-4 stealing bases. When the Blue Jays reached the World Series, he went 1-for-2 with a with a pinch hit single. He went on to win the World Series championship with his hometown team making him the only Canadian player on a Blue Jays' roster to have played and won a World Series on a Canadian based team.
In 1994, Butler played in 41 games for the Blue Jays, batting .176 with one triple and five RBI's. Much of his time was split between the Blue Jays and their AAA affiliate, the Syracuse Chiefs. On December 5 of that year, he was traded to Philadelphia Phillies.
With the Phillies organization, Butler spent much of it in their minor league system, but was called up in 1997, and played in only 43 games, batting .292 with nine doubles, one triple, and 13 RBI's.
On December 22, 1997, Butler signed with the Houston Astros and spent 1998 in their minor league system.
On December 23, 1998, returned to the Blue Jays as a free agent and appeared in only eight games with the Jays during the 1999 season. On July 10, 1999, Butler played his last game as a Major League Baseball player.
In 2001, Butler joined the Toronto Maple Leafs Baseball Club as their outfielder. He was also joined by his brother Rich Butler, and later by former Blue Jays pitcher Paul Spoljaric. For much of those years, Rob finished the season as the team's batting leader, and in 2002, he won the League championship with them. In 2005, Butler played his last game with the Leafs, announcing his retirement from the game.
