José Vidal

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José (Nicolas) Vidal (born April 3, 1940 in Batey Lechugas, Dominican Republic) is a former Major League Baseball outfielder. He was signed by the San Francisco Giants as an amateur free agent before the 1958 season, and played for the Cleveland Indians (1966-1968) and Seattle Pilots (1969).

Vidal was a very good minor league hitter, but a poor fielder. He led his league three times in errors by an outfielder (1959, 1965, and 1966). Playing for the Hobbs Pirates of the Sophomore League in 1960, he hit .342 with 17 home runs and 81 runs batted in from just 93 games. In 1963, Vidal won the California League Triple Crown while playing for the Reno Silver Sox. He had a batting average of .340 with 40 HR and 162 RBI in 139 games and was named the league's Most Valuable Player. He was called up to the Indians in September of 1966 after hitting .293 for the Portland Beavers of the Pacific Coast League.

He made his major league debut as a pinch hitter on September 5, 1966 against the Boston Red Sox at Cleveland Stadium. Batting for pitcher Tom Kelley in the bottom of the 6th inning against Lee Stange, he flew out to right fielder Tony Conigliaro. The Tribe lost that game, the first of a doubleheader, 5-1, but won the nightcap by a score of 3-1. His first major league hit came 12 days later, in his first appearance in the starting lineup, with a 2-run triple against Mickey Lolich at Tiger Stadium.

During his four stints in the big leagues Vidal never got untracked at the plate, with successive averages of .188, .118, .167, and .192. He made 53 appearances in the outfield, 35 of which were starts, and, ironically, was charged with just one error in 65 total chances. On May 19, 1969 he was traded by the Seattle Pilots to the New York Yankees, and never again appeared in a big league game.

His career totals for 88 games include a .164 batting average (24-for-146), 3 HR, 10 RBI, 20 runs scored, a .261 on base percentage, and a .260 slugging percentage.

Career highlights include:

hit a walk-off home run against Jack Fisher of the Chicago White Sox in the bottom of the 14th inning (June 3, 1968)
hit the sixth home run in Seattle Pilots history (April 13, 1969)
hit a combined .316 (6-for-19) against All-Stars Blue Moon Odom, Jim Perry, and Gary Peters

[edit] Trivia

Vidal's first and last big league hits were both triples.
His home run on June 3, 1968 earned teammate Hal Kurtz his first and only major league win.
His nickname is "Papito."