| Chuck Knoblauch | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Second baseman | |
| Born: (1968-07-07)July 7, 1968 (age 57) Houston, Texas, U.S. | |
Batted: Right Threw: Right | |
| MLB debut | |
| April 9, 1991, for the Minnesota Twins | |
| Last MLB appearance | |
| September 27, 2002, for the Kansas City Royals | |
| MLB statistics | |
| Batting average | .289 |
| Home runs | 98 |
| Runs batted in | 615 |
| Stolen bases | 407 |
Stats atBaseball Reference  | |
| Teams | |
| Career highlights and awards | |
| |
Edward Charles Knoblauch (/ˈnɒblɔːk/; born July 7, 1968) is an American former professionalbaseball player. He played 12 seasons inMajor League Baseball, from 1991 through 2002, for theMinnesota Twins,New York Yankees, andKansas City Royals. He played mostly as asecond baseman before moving toleft field for his final two seasons.
Born inHouston, Texas, Knoblauch came from a baseball family, as his uncle Eddie Knoblauch and father Ray Knoblauch played and managed in theminor leagues between the late 1930s and mid-1950s.[1] Knoblauch played for theBellaire High School baseball team, which also produced many other former major leaguers, includingChris Young andJose Cruz, Jr.[2][3] Knoblauch missed his senior season (1986) due to a broken leg, but he cheered from the bench as the team won the state championship.[4]
ThePhiladelphia Phillies selected Knoblauch in the 18th round of the1986 amateur draft, but he did not sign. He attendedTexas A&M University and playedcollege baseball for theTexas A&M Aggies, where he was a second-teamAll-American. He later played on the 1989 team that finished the season with 58 wins, the highest total in school history.[5]
In 1988, Knoblauch playedcollegiate summer baseball with theWareham Gatemen of theCape Cod Baseball League (CCBL), and received the league's Outstanding Pro Prospect award. In 2001, he was inducted into theCCBL Hall of Fame.[6][7]
Knoblauch was drafted by theMinnesota Twins in the first round of the1989 MLB draft. Knoblauch won theAmerican LeagueRookie of the Year award and aWorld Series ring as a member of the1991 Minnesota Twins. In Game 7 of theWorld Series, Knoblauch attempted to deceiveLonnie Smith by appearing to start a double play on aTerry Pendleton double (causing Smith to get only to third base when he might have scored for theAtlanta Braves). Smith claimed he lost track of the ball and Knoblauch's decoy was not a factor.
During the 1994–96 seasons, Knoblauch batted .312, .333, and .341, respectively, won the ALGold Glove Award at second base in 1997, andstole over 40 bases in three consecutive seasons.
The Twins traded Knoblauch to theNew York Yankees forEric Milton,Cristian Guzmán,Brian Buchanan,Danny Mota, and $3 million on February 6, 1998.[8] Once a popular player in Minnesota, his request to be traded from the Twins resulted in being booed on successive trips to theMetrodome. This included throwing hot dogs, bottles, and golf balls at Knoblauch during a visit to the Metrodome in 2001.[9]
Knoblauch's arrival in New York was greeted with anticipation.Buster Olney, then withThe New York Times, predicted that Knoblauch andDerek Jeter would form the greatestdouble play combination in history.[10] Though he struggled early on with the team, he hit a career-high 17home runs as the Yankees won a then-American league-record 114 games. In game 2 of the1998 American League Championship Series against theCleveland Indians, Knoblauch was involved in an infamous defensive play. In the 12th inning with the score tied 1–1, Indians batterTravis Fryman bunted, and Knoblauch covered first base for a possibleputout.Jeff Nelson's throw hit Fryman and rolled away, but instead of retrieving the ball, Knoblauch argued with the first-base umpireinterference should have been called, while theball was still live at which Indians baserunnerEnrique Wilson was able to score from first base on the play, giving Cleveland the lead in an eventual 4–1 victory. A New York newspaper called Knoblauch a "Blauch-head". Knoblauch recovered and was an important factor in theWorld Series victory over theSan Diego Padres, and the1999 World Series victory over theAtlanta Braves. In Game 3 of the1999 World Series, Knoblauch scored the game's first run and hit a dramatic two-run home run in the eighth inning to tie the score, with the Yankees eventually winning in the 10th inning. In Game 5 of2001 World Series, Knoblauch scored the winning run, having led off the inning with a single and scoring on a single by his replacement at second base,Alfonso Soriano. The Yankees won the American League pennant every year he was with the team, winning three World Series championships.
Towards the end of his career, Knoblauch's performance at the plate grew worse, with many observers believing he was preoccupied by his fielding troubles and trying too hard to hit home runs. Knoblauch was benched in the final game of the 2001 World Series (he hit just .056), and left for Kansas City as a free agent in the off season. Knoblauch played in just 80 games in left field for the Royals, batting .210, and the team declined to offer him a new contract the following year. In 2003, having failed to gain a job with an MLB team, Knoblauch announced his retirement.
Once considered one of the game's best fielders (in fact,ESPN personalities nicknamed him "Fundamentally Sound" Chuck Knoblauch), Knoblauch's play deteriorated shortly into his Yankee career; his errors at second doubled from 13 in 1998 to 26 the following year; all of these were throwing errors. In 2000, he began to have difficulty making accurate throws to first base, a condition sometimes referred to in baseball as the "yips" or "Steve Sax syndrome" in more recent years. Personal problems may have contributed to the "yips" -- his divorce from his first wife, Lisa, in 1999, and the deterioration of his father's health from Alzheimer's.[11]
Knoblauch tried various solutions to his problem, but his throwing did not improve. He made 15 errors in less than half a season in 2000, including 10 throwing miscues. (During one game, an errant throw sailed into the stands and hit sportscasterKeith Olbermann's mother in the head).[12] After making three throwingerrors in six innings of the Yankees' 12–3 loss to theChicago White Sox, on June 15, 2000, Knoblauch voluntarily left the game. He then leftYankee Stadium in his street clothes while the game was still in progress.[13] He was back at second the next day, but Knoblauch never fully recovered his throwing accuracy, especially after missing most of August with an injury. Knoblauch returned to the Yankees in September, but was often used as adesignated hitter in lieu of playing second; he was exclusively a DH in the Yankees' run to a World Series title. Finally, in 2001, he was reassigned to left field by managerJoe Torre, never to return to his old position.
On September 25, 2009, an officer from the Memorial Villages Police Department, near Houston, was told by Knoblauch's common-law wife, Stacey Stelmach, that he hit and choked her. A police officer'saffidavit[14] alleged that "redness around her neck and swelling near her eye [were] consistent with her statement."[14] On September 29, 2009, theHarris County, Texas District Attorney charged Knoblauch with assaulting a family member by choking, a third-degree felony inTexas.[14][15] Knoblauch pleaded guilty to misdemeanor assault in connection with the case on March 16, 2010.[16] The couple was reportedly going through a divorce.[17]
On July 24, 2014, the 46-year-old Knoblauch was charged with assault of a family member again, his ex-wife Cheri.[18] Due to this incident, the Twins cancelled the planned induction of Knoblauch into the Twins Hall of Fame.[19]
A four-timeAll-Star, in his career Knoblauch batted .289 with 98home runs and 615runs batted in. He stole 25 or more bases in 10 of his 12 seasons, finishing with 407 in his career — including 276 with the Twins, the most for the team since its move fromWashington in 1961. On August 18, 2018, Knoblauch returned to the newYankee Stadium to commemorate the 1998 championship team.
In December 2007, Knoblauch was included in theMitchell report, which provided evidence that he used performance-enhancing drugs during his career. In the Mitchell report,Brian McNamee stated that he procuredhuman growth hormone (HGH) fromKirk Radomski for Knoblauch in 2001 when he served as the New York Yankees assistant strength coach. McNamee stated that during the season, he injected Knoblauch seven to nine times with HGH. McNamee states that Knoblauch paid Radomski for the drugs through him orJason Grimsley, and also believed that Knoblauch obtained HGH from Grimsley. Knoblauch did not respond to a request to meet with the Mitchell investigators to discuss the allegations.[20]
On December 20, 2007, Knoblauch was named in Jason Grimsley's unsealed affidavit as an alleged user of HGH. Knoblauch and Grimsley were teammates on the Yankees from 1999 to 2000.[21]
On January 11, 2008,The New York Times published a look at Chuck Knoblauch's post-baseball life. The article painted Knoblauch's outlook on baseball and the Mitchell report as being apathetic. As he has been retired for 5 years, he expressed "bewilderment at his inclusion" in the report and stated, "I have nothing to defend and I have nothing to hide at the same time." In 2008, Knoblauch owned a condominium and house in the Houston area, and was not interested in returning to pro baseball in any capacity.[22][23]
On January 22, 2008, Knoblauch was subpoenaed by the congressional committee investigating steroids in baseball after he failed to respond to an invitation to give a deposition by a January 18, 2008, deadline.[24] On January 23,federal marshals had as yet been unable to find Knoblauch to serve him with the subpoena.[25]
On January 28, 2008, the congressional subpoena was withdrawn after Knoblauch agreed to provide adeposition on February 1, 2008.[26]
Knoblauch admitted to using HGH: "I did HGH. It didn't help me out. It didn't make me any better. I had the worst years of my career from a batting average standpoint. And I got hurt. So there was no good that came out of it for me — it was not performance-enhancing for me."[27]