Minnie Mendoza

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Minnie Mendoza (born November 16, 1933 in Ceiba del Agua, Cuba)[1] is a former Major League Baseball infielder who played 16 games for the Minnesota Twins during the 1970 MLB season as a 36-year-old rookie. In 16 at-bats, Mendoza compiled 3 hits and 2 runs, while recording a .188 batting average.

Mendoza's largest contribution to the game of baseball is arguably his role in the controversy surrounding the naming of the Mendoza Line, meaning a .200 batting average. While most believe that the "Mendoza Line" first referred to by George Brett is named after 9-year veteran Mario Mendoza (who had a .215 career batting average and hit .198 in his biggest season), there is some controversy as to whether Brett was actually referring to Minnie Mendoza when he coined the famous phrase.[citation needed] However, since Minnie did not play during the time of George Brett, and was a complete unknown, few people believe that Brett was referring to Minnie.[citation needed]

[edit] References

  1. ^ [1], BaseballReference.com

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