Juan Samuel
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| Juan Samuel | ||
|---|---|---|
| Second baseman / Outfielder | ||
| Born: December 9, 1960 San Pedro de Macoris, Dominican Republic |
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| Batted: Right | Threw: Right | |
| MLB debut | ||
| August 24, 1983 for the Philadelphia Phillies |
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| Final game | ||
| September 26, 1998 for the Toronto Blue Jays |
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| Career statistics | ||
| AVG | .259 | |
| Hits | 1578 | |
| SB | 396 | |
| Teams | ||
| Career highlights and awards | ||
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Juan Milton Samuel (born December 9, 1960 in San Pedro de Macorís, Dominican Republic) is a baseball coach and a former second baseman in Major League Baseball. From 1983 through 1998, Samuel played for the Philadelphia Phillies (1983-89), New York Mets (1989), Los Angeles Dodgers (1990-92), Kansas City Royals (1992, 1995), Cincinnati Reds (1993), Detroit Tigers (1994, 1995) and Toronto Blue Jays (1996-98). He batted and threw right-handed.
In 2005, Samuel entered his sixth season as a coach with the Detroit Tigers, his third as the club's third base coach, after four seasons as the first base coach – a position to which he was named in 1999.
In a 16-season playing career, Samuel was a .259 hitter with 161 home runs and 703 RBI in 1720 games
Samuel was originally signed as a non-drafted free agent by the Philadelphia Phillies in 1980. A three-time All-Star, Samuel earned National League Rookie of the Year honors from The Sporting News in 1984, when he tied for the NL lead with 19 triples and placed second with 72 stolen bases.
In 1987, Samuel became the first player in major league history to reach double figures in doubles, triples, home runs and stolen bases in each of his first four major league seasons. A year later, he fell short by one triple to repeat his feat by fifth consecutive year.
During his majors career, Samuel collected 1,578 hits, 396 stolen bases, and also reached double figures in home runs nine times. A popular player in Philadelphia, he appeared in the 1983 World Series, going 0-for-1 in three games. Samuel, an aggressive hitter who infrequently drew bases on balls was once quoted as saying, "You don't walk off the Island (meaning his home country). You Hit."
Samuel was sent to the New York Mets during the 1989 midseason in the same transaction that brought Lenny Dykstra and Roger McDowell to Philadelphia. He also played two and a half seasons both for the Dodgers and Tigers, spent a year in Cincinnati, had two brief stints with the Royals, and provided three years of good services for Toronto, pinch-hitting, serving as DH, and playing at first base, second, third, left field and right. He retired after the 1998 season.
Samuel holds the major league record for most at-bats by a right-handed hitter in one season with 701, set in 1984. That mark is also the most for any National League batter in a single campaign. He also tied an ML record for consecutive strikeout titles with four (1984-87), shared with Hack Wilson (1927-30) and Vince DiMaggio (1942-45).
In January 2006, Samuel was named the manager of the Double-A Binghamton Mets.
Samuel has a son named Samuel, whose name therefore is Samuel Samuel. The two names are pronounced differently, thus making it Sam-yull Sam-well.
In October 2006, Samuel was named the 3rd base coach for the Baltimore Orioles.
[edit] See also
- Davey Lopes
- List of NL Silver Slugger Winners at Second Base
- Players from Dominican Republic in MLB
- Major League Baseball titles streaks
- Phillies awards winners and league leaders
- TSN Rookie of the Year
- Top 500 home run hitters of all time
- List of Major League Baseball players with 100 triples
- List of Major League Baseball triples champions
[edit] External links
- Career statistics and player information from Baseball-Reference, or Fangraphs, or The Baseball Cube
- Baseball Library
