| Benito Santiago | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Santiago with theFlorida Marlins in 1993 | |
| Catcher | |
| Born: (1965-03-09)March 9, 1965 (age 60) Ponce, Puerto Rico | |
Batted: Right Threw: Right | |
| MLB debut | |
| September 14, 1986, for the San Diego Padres | |
| Last MLB appearance | |
| April 11, 2005, for the Pittsburgh Pirates | |
| MLB statistics | |
| Batting average | .263 |
| Home runs | 217 |
| Runs batted in | 920 |
Stats atBaseball Reference  | |
| Teams | |
| Career highlights and awards | |
| |
Benito Santiago Rivera (born March 9, 1965) is aPuerto Rican former professionalbaseball player. He played for 20 seasons as acatcher inMajor League Baseball (MLB) from 1986 to 2005, most prominently as a member of theSan Diego Padres where he was a four-timeSilver Slugger Award winner as well as a three-timeGold Glove Award winner.[1] The five-timeAll-Star was considered the premier catcher in theNational League (NL) during his tenure with the Padres.[2] In 2015, Santiago was inducted into the San Diego Padres Hall of Fame.[3]
Santiago was signed as anamateurfree agent by the San Diego Padres on September 1, 1982.[1] After playing four seasons in theminor leagues, he made his Major League debut with the Padres on September 14,1986 at the age of 21.[1] The next year, Santiago established a Major League record for a rookie by hitting safely in 34 straight games.[4] It was also the longesthitting streak by a catcher in major league history.[5] He ended the season with what would be career-highs in hits (164), doubles (33) andbatting average (.300).[1] Santiago was the unanimous selection for the 1987 National LeagueRookie of the Year Award.[6] Although he struggled defensively, leading the league inerrors andpassed balls, his hitting performance earned him the 1987Silver Slugger Award which is awarded annually to the bestoffensive player at eachposition.[7][8]
While Santiago initially made an impression with his offensive statistics, he soon became known for his defensive prowess, most notably for his strong throwing arm.[9] Santiago was known for his ability to throw out would bebase stealers from a kneeling position.[3][9] In1988, he led National League catchers inassists and in baserunnerscaught stealing with a 45% average when the league average was 30%.[9][10] Although he still led the league's catchers with 12 errors, it was an improvement over the 22 he had committed the previous season. Santiago was awarded the first of three consecutiveGold Glove Awards in 1988.[11] Santiago also claimed his second successive Silver Slugger Award as the Padres improved to finish in third place in theNational League Western Division.[12][13]
Although he was hitting for only a .236 average at mid-season in 1989, his defensive reputation earned him the starting catcher's role in the1989 All-Star Game.[14][15] He was awarded the 1989 National League Gold Glove Award for catchers, as the Padres climbed to second place in the season's final standings.[16][17]
Santiago rebounded in1990 and was hitting for a .317 batting average with 9 home runs in mid-June when he was hit by a pitch and had to miss six weeks of the season.[18] He finished the season with a .270 average along with 11 home runs and 53runs batted in to earn his third Silver Slugger Award.[1][19] He was also named as a reserve player for the National League team in the1990 All-Star Game and won his third consecutive Gold Glove Award.[20][21]
Before the1991 season, Santiago asked for a four-year contract worth $11 million, but lost his arbitration case and was awarded a one-year contract worth $1.65 million.[22] A disgruntled Santiago announced that he would leave the Padres when he became eligible for free agency after the 1992 season.[22] He was also disillusioned when the Padres traded away players such asJoe Carter andJack Clark.[23] In June, Padres managerGreg Riddoch benched Santiago for his lack of hustle on the playing field.[22] Despite the difficulties, Santiago led the league's catchers with 100 assists and posted a career-high 87 runs batted in.[1]
Santiago returned to arbitration before the 1992 season, this time winning a $3.3 million one-year contract that made him the highest paid catcher in professional baseball.[24] In September 1992, the Padres announced that they would not seek to re-sign Santiago, in what was seen as a cost-cutting measure.[23][25]
From 1991 to 1994, Santiago wore a jersey with theuniform number 09, making him one of the only major professional sports players to have ever worn a jersey with aleading zero as part of his uniform number.[26]
On December 16, 1992, Santiago signed with the newly established franchiseFlorida Marlins and hit the firsthome run in team history. Despite hitting for a .273 average in1994, he was granted free agency after the season as the Marlins were ready to promote their young catching prospect,Charles Johnson.[1] On April 17,1995, theCincinnati Reds signed him and he briefly recovered his formbatting .286.[1] On January 30,1996, he joined thePhillies, where he became the first player to hit agrand slam offGreg Maddux in the regular season after Maddux had been pitching for nearly ten years.[27] Santiago also hit a home run in four consecutiveat bats in the same season. Santiago ended the season with a career-high 30 home runs, along with 85 runs batted in, for the last place Phillies.[1]
Santiago then signed a contract to play for theBlue Jays (1997–1998) where he lost almost the entire 1998 season to a serious injury sustained in a car crash inFlorida.[28] A free agent again, he played 89 games for theCubs in 1999 and played for Cincinnati in 2000.[1]
Santiago arrived inSan Francisco on March 17,2001. He played in 133 games and helped the Giants finish in second place, two games behind theArizona Diamondbacks in the National League West.[1][29] He shared the 2001Willie Mac Award withMark Gardner, which recognized the spirit and leadership of each.[30] Santiago had another good year in2002, appearing in 126 games and finishing third among National League catchers with a .995fielding percentage.[1] He earned his fifth All-Star berth and ended the season with a .278 batting average with 74 runs batted in as the Giants once again finished second to the Diamondbacks and claimed the National Leaguewild card berth.[1][31]
The Giants defeated theAtlanta Braves in the first round of the play-offs then met theSt. Louis Cardinals in the2002 National League Championship Series.[32] Santiago hit two home runs in the series along with 6 runs batted in, and was awarded theLeague Championship Series Most Valuable Player Award as the Giants defeated the Cardinals in five games.[33] In the2002 World Series against theAnaheim Angels, Santiago delivered 5 runs batted in as the Giants were defeated in a seven-game series.[34][35]
In2003, the 38-year-old Santiago continued to perform well, hitting fifth in thebatting order behindBarry Bonds, he appeared in 108 games while posting a .279 batting average with 56 runs batted in.[1][36]
On December 11, 2003, Santiago, again a free agent, signed with theKansas City Royals. By June 18, he was hitting .274 with six home runs and 23RBI when he washit by a pitch fromGeoff Geary that broke his hand. After the 2004 season, the Royals traded him to thePittsburgh Pirates forLeo Núñez, a minor leaguepitcher. The Pirates let Santiago go after a mere 23 at-bats in favor of giving playing time to youngDavid Ross. Santiago signed with theNew York Mets to a minor-league contract, but he appeared in only a handful of games. He opted out of his Triple-A contract, but did not play in the major leagues in 2006.
He was inducted into theSan Diego Padres Hall of Fame on August 8, 2015.[37]
In a 20-year major league career, Santiago played in 1,978games, accumulating 1,830hits in 6,951at bats for a .261 career batting average along with 217 home runs, 920 runs batted in and anon-base percentage of .307.[1] He ended his career with a .987 fielding percentage.[1]
A five-time All-Star, Santiago was known for his strong defensive skills, leading National League catchers three times in assists, once in fielding percentage and once in baserunners caught stealing.[1] As 2010 began, Santiago was tied for eighth on the all-time list of games caught withBrad Ausmus, with 1,917.[38]
In 2003, Santiago was named byFBI investigators as one of the athletes alleged to have received anabolic steroids. He was linked to performance enhancers in the bookGame of Shadows.[39]
On December 13, 2007, Santiago was named in theMitchell Report. "At the end of the 2003 season, Mike Murphy, a Giants clubhouse attendant, was cleaning out Santiago's locker when he found a sealed package of syringes," the report read. "Murphy brought the syringes to the training room, handed them to [Stan] Conte, and told Conte that he had found them in Santiago's locker. Conte responded that he "would take care of it." Murphy recalled that the Giants’ assistant athletic trainer Dave Groeschner also was present in the training room during this conversation."
Santiago has a son namedBenito Santiago Jr., who is aPuerto Rican professionalbasketball player who currently plays for theMets of Guaynabo Coached by JJ Barea in theBaloncesto Superior Nacional (BSN), the top tier basketball league inPuerto Rico.[40]
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
