| Sandy Alomar, Jr. | |
|---|---|
| Catcher | |
| Born: June 18, 1966 Salinas, Puerto Rico |
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| Batted: Right | Threw: Right |
| MLB debut | |
| September 30, 1988 for the San Diego Padres | |
| Last MLB appearance | |
| September 30, 2007 for the New York Mets | |
| Career statistics | |
| Batting average | .274 |
| Home runs | 112 |
| Runs batted in | 588 |
| Teams | |
| Career highlights and awards | |
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Santos "Sandy" Alomar, Jr., or in the Spanish-language naming system Santos Alomar Velázquez (Spanish pronunciation: [aloˈmar], English: /ˈæləmɑr/; born June 18, 1966 in Salinas, Puerto Rico), is a former Major League Baseball catcher who played for the San Diego Padres (1988–1989), Cleveland Indians (1990–2000), Chicago White Sox (2001–2002, 2003–2004) and (2006), Colorado Rockies (2002), Texas Rangers (2005), Los Angeles Dodgers (2006), and New York Mets (2007). He is the son of former major leaguer Sandy Alomar, Sr., and the brother of former second baseman Roberto Alomar. He is now the bench coach for the Cleveland Indians.
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Alomar was a highly regarded catcher in the San Diego organization after being named Baseball America Minor League Player of the Year in both 1988 and 1989, but he was stuck behind Benito Santiago at the Major League level. After two short call-ups with the Padres, he finally got his chance at an everyday job after being traded to Cleveland after the 1989 season along with Carlos Baerga and Chris James, in exchange for power-hitter Joe Carter. Once in Cleveland, he established himself immediately, becoming the first rookie catcher to start an All-Star game and winning both Rookie of the Year honors and a Gold Glove Award.
Alomar was selected as an All-Star in 1991 and 1992. However, his 1992 season was largely lost due to injuries, and he finished the year with zero home runs and only seven RBIs in 199 at-bats. Over the next few years, Alomar suffered several injuries and failed to realize his potential. He came back strong in the first half of 1996 to make his fourth All-Star team, but then faded in the second half.
In 1997, everything finally came together for Alomar. He batted .324, was the MVP of the All-Star game in his home ballpark (hitting a game-deciding two-run home run off Shawn Estes to the left field bleachers in the bottom of the seventh inning of a 3-1 American League win; he was the first player to hit an All-Star game home run in his home stadium since Hank Aaron in 1972), put together a 30-game hitting streak (one short of Nap Lajoie's Indians record and four short of his former teammate Benito Santiago's record for catchers), and helped lead Cleveland to their third straight postseason appearance. In the Division Series against the New York Yankees, Alomar hit .316 with two home runs, including a game-tying shot off Mariano Rivera in the eighth inning of Game 4. Though he was less effective against the Baltimore Orioles in the ALCS, he still provided a game-winning hit in the ninth inning of Game 4. The Indians lost the World Series to the Florida Marlins, but not on account of Alomar who hit .367 with two home runs.
Although Alomar was selected to his sixth All-Star team in 1998, he turned in a mediocre season overall and then had injury problems again in 1999. He left the Indians as a free agent after the 2000 season and played in a limited role with the Chicago White Sox, Colorado Rockies, Texas Rangers, Los Angeles Dodgers, and New York Mets.
On August 1, 2009, the Cleveland Indians inducted Sandy Alomar Jr. to their Hall of Fame during a ceremony before their game against the Detroit Tigers.
Alomar Jr. and Jaret Wright were Cleveland Indians teammates from 1997-2000. Alomar Sr. and Wright's father Clyde had also been teammates, with the California Angels from 1969-73.
On February 15, 2008, Alomar was named the catching instructor for the New York Mets organization. He spent the 2008 and 2009 seasons in that role.[1]
On November 17, 2009, Sandy Alomar Jr. was hired as the first base coach to manager Manny Acta's staff of the Cleveland Indians.
During the 2010 off-season Alomar was rumored to be one of four finalists, along with Brian Butterfield, DeMarlo Hale, and John Farrell, for the Toronto Blue Jays managerial job.[2]
On September 28, 2011, Alomar was promoted by the Indians to the position of bench coach for the 2012 season.
During the end of the 2011 season, Alomar was rumored to be on the shortlist of candidates for the vacant Chicago Cubs and Boston Red Sox managerial positions. [3]
| Preceded by Gregg Olson |
American League Rookie of the Year 1990 |
Succeeded by Chuck Knoblauch |
| Preceded by Mike Piazza |
Major League Baseball All-Star Game Most Valuable Player 1997 |
Succeeded by Roberto Alomar |
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