Steve Buechele

Steve Buechele
Third baseman
Born: September 26, 1961 (1961-09-26) (age 50)
Lancaster, California
Batted: Right Threw: Right 
MLB debut
July 19, 1985 for the Texas Rangers
Last MLB appearance
July 29, 1995 for the Texas Rangers
Career statistics
Batting average     .245
Home runs     137
Runs batted in     547
Teams

Steven Bernard Buechele (born September 26, 1961 in Lancaster, California) is a former Major League Baseball third baseman. Buechele played from 1985 to 1995 for the Texas Rangers, Pittsburgh Pirates, and Chicago Cubs. He joined the Rangers in 1985 after he was named the Tom Grieve Minor League Player of the Year.[1] He was traded from the Rangers to the Pirates in 1991 following the emergence of Dean Palmer. He returned to the Rangers for an eighth season in 1995.[2]

1991 was a career year for Buechele. While with Texas, he had a batting average of .267 along with 18 home runs and 66 RBI while only committing three errors for an MLB-record .991 fielding percentage at third base.[2] Although he did not fare as well in 31 games with the Pirates, hitting just .246, he still finished the year with career highs in hits, home runs, slugging percentage, RBI, and runs scored. He also made his only postseason appearances, hitting .304 for Pittsburgh in the 1991 National League Championship Series against the Atlanta Braves.

Buechele's career stats include 137 home runs, 547 RBI, and a .971 fielding percentage. Throughout his career, Buechele was known for hitting solo home runs.[3]

Buechele ranks 12th in Rangers' club history for total games with 889 games played and 16th for at-bats (2723). Additionally, the 25 times he was hit by a pitch is the 13th highest in Rangers' franchise history and his 73 grounded into double plays is the 14th highest. In Rangers' fielding stats, he is 21st (2476) in total chances, 7th (1675) in assists, 15th (66) in errors, and 33rd (165) in double plays. He was a candidate for the Texas Rangers Baseball Hall of Fame in 2005 and 2006.[2][4]

Buechele continues to be a part of the professional baseball world, including serving as one of the hosts and coaches for the Texas Rangers 2006 Media Spring Training.[5] In August 2008, Buechele began to serve as a studio commentator for the Ranger's pre and post-game shows on Fox Sports Southwest. He is currently the manager of the Frisco RoughRiders.

Personal life

Steve and his wife currently reside in Arlington, Texas. They have five children. His son Garrett plays baseball for the University of Oklahoma and was drafted by the San Francisco Giants 14th round of the 2011 Major League Baseball Draft, and his other son Tanner plays Baseball for Fullerton College.

At Stanford, he was roommates with Hall of Fame quarterback John Elway. He is a member of Delta Tau Delta fraternity.

References

  1. ^ "Diamond and Metcalf named Rangers Minor League Pitcher and Player of the Year". 2006. http://texas.rangers.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/news/press_releases/press_release.jsp?ymd=20050908&content_id=1202339&vkey=pr_tex&fext=.jsp&c_id=tex. Retrieved 19 July 2006. 
  2. ^ a b c "2006 Texas Rangers Baseball Hall of Fame ballot announced". 2006. http://texas.rangers.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/news/press_releases/press_release.jsp?ymd=20060324&content_id=1361545&vkey=pr_tex&fext=.jsp&c_id=tex. Retrieved 19 July 2006. 
  3. ^ Jamey Newberg (2005). "The Newberg Report". http://texas.rangers.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/news/article.jsp?ymd=20050509&content_id=1043668&vkey=news_tex&fext=.jsp&c_id=tex. Retrieved 19 July 2006. 
  4. ^ "John Wetteland and Mark Holtz selected as 2005 inductees to Texas Rangers Baseball Hall of Fame". 2006. http://texas.rangers.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/news/press_releases/press_release.jsp?ymd=20050615&content_id=1090686&vkey=pr_tex&fext=.jsp&c_id=tex. Retrieved 19 July 2006. 
  5. ^ Abby Teaff (2006). "First Media Spring Training a success". http://texas.rangers.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/news/article.jsp?ymd=20060302&content_id=1331628&vkey=news_tex&fext=.jsp&c_id=tex. Retrieved 19 July 2006. 

External links