| Sixto Lezcano | |
|---|---|
 Lezcano in 1983 | |
| Right fielder | |
| Born: (1953-11-28)November 28, 1953 (age 71) Arecibo, Puerto Rico | |
Batted: Right Threw: Right | |
| Professional debut | |
| MLB: September 10, 1974, for the Milwaukee Brewers | |
| NPB: April 19, 1987, for the Yokohama Taiyo Whales | |
| Last appearance | |
| MLB: September 29, 1985, for the Pittsburgh Pirates | |
| NPB: 1987, for the Yokohama Taiyo Whales | |
| MLB statistics | |
| Batting average | .271 |
| Home runs | 148 |
| Runs batted in | 591 |
| NPB statistics | |
| Batting average | .217 |
| Home runs | 3 |
| Runs batted in | 7 |
Stats atBaseball Reference  | |
| Teams | |
| Career highlights and awards | |
Sixto Joaquin Lezcano Curras[1] (born November 28, 1953) is aPuerto Rican former professionalbaseballoutfielder, who played inMajor League Baseball (MLB) for 12 seasons (1974–1985). He played for five MLB teams and won aGold Glove during his career.
Born inArecibo, Puerto Rico, Lezcano attendedColegio San Jose High School inRío Piedras, Puerto Rico.
In 1970, at age 16, Lezcano was signed as an amateurfree agent by theMilwaukee Brewers.[2] After spending four seasons in their minor league system,[3] he reached the big leagues for the first time in 1974; Lezcano made his big league debut on September 10, 1974.[2]
Lezcano became the Brewers' startingright fielder in 1975, a job he held for the next six seasons.[4] Lezcano showed a particularly strong throwing arm in right field, and ledAmerican League (AL) outfielders inassists, in 1978.
Lezcano’s best offensive numbers came in 1979, when he finished among the top 10 in the AL inbatting average andhome runs, and finished with the third-highestslugging percentage in the American League.[2] That season, Lezcano was honored for his defensive skills with the only Gold Glove of his major league career.[2]
While with the Brewers, Lezcano became the only player in Major League Baseball history to hit agrand slam onOpening Day twice, doing so in 1978 and 1980.
After the 1980 season, Lezcano was part of a blockbuster 7-player trade with theSt. Louis Cardinals, being one of four players traded in exchange forRollie Fingers,Pete Vuckovich, andTed Simmons. Lezcano wasn't able to consistently crack the starting lineup in St. Louis, and batted .266 with the Cardinals in 1981.[2]
Lezcano was involved in another major trade after the 1981 season, being traded to theSan Diego Padres withGarry Templeton forOzzie Smith. Lezcano hit well in his first year with the Padres, and was among the top 10 in theNational League (NL) inon-base percentage.[2] However, Lezcano’s numbers fell off with the Padres in the 1983 season, and he was traded to thePhiladelphia Phillies late in the year in exchange for fourplayers to be named later.[2]
Lezcano joined a Phillies team which won the NL pennant in 1983. Heplatooned withJoe Lefebvre during the postseason, and homered offRick Honeycutt during the1983 National League Championship Series (NLCS).[5] Lezcano had one base hit in eight at-bats in the Phillies' 5-gameWorld Series loss to theBaltimore Orioles.
Lezcano continued to platoon with Philadelphia in 1984 before leaving the team as a free agent, following the season.[2] He signed with thePittsburgh Pirates in 1985 and served as one of the team's primarypinch hitters. Duringspring training 1986, Pittsburgh released Lezcano, ending his Major League career.[2]
In 1,291 games over 12 seasons, Lezcano posted a .271 batting average (1,122-for-4,134) with 560runs, 184doubles, 34triples, 148 home runs, 591runs batted in (RBI), 37stolen bases, 576bases on balls, .360 on-base percentage, and .440 slugging percentage. Defensively, he recorded a .980 fielding percentage playing at all three outfield positions. In the1983 postseason, Lezcano hit .238 (5-for-21) in eight games with two runs, one home run, two RBI, and onewalk.[2]
In1987, Lezcano joined theYokohama Taiyō Whales of theNippon Professional Baseball League (NPBL); however, he achieved only limited success while playing inJapan.
Lezcano was thebatting coach for theDanville Braves (the Rookie league affiliate of theAtlanta Braves).
Lezcano’s cousin,Carlos Lezcano, played two seasons in MLB for theChicago Cubs.