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Gary Sheffield

Starting Over

After the Marlins won the World Series, owner Wayne Huizenga sold the team and the new owners unloaded their high-priced players. Sheffield was sent to Los Angeles in a blockbuster trade. Through the 2001 season Sheffield was a fixture in the Dodgers' lineup. Playing left field for Los Angeles, Sheffield continued to bat over.300 with power and plenty of walks. In 2000 he had 43 home runs and 109 RBI while batting .325 with a .438 on-base percentage and a .643 slugging percentage. In 2001 he became the first player in major league history to win three 1-0 games in a season with home runs.

Yet, after three solid seasons, Sheffield demanded to be traded, saying he was unhappy in Los Angeles. In 2002, he went to the Atlanta Braves, his fourth major league team, in a trade for Brian Jordan, Odalis Perez and a minor-league pitcher. In Atlanta, Sheffield was overjoyed to be playing for Bobby Cox, a manager he'd liked ever since Cox batted him third in the National League All-Star team lineup in 1993. Sheffield seemed relaxed as he helped the Braves to a National League Eastern Division title with another outstanding season.

Career Statistics

Yr Team AVG GP AB R H HR RBI BB SO SB E
ATL: Atlanta Braves; FLA: Florida Marlins; LA: Los Angeles Dodgers; MIL: Milwaukee Brewers; SD: San Diego Padres.
1988 MIL .238 24 80 12 19 4 12 7 7 3 3
1989 MIL .247 96 368 34 91 5 32 27 33 10 16
1990 MIL .294 125 487 67 143 10 67 44 41 25 25
1991 MIL .194 50 175 25 34 2 22 19 15 5 8
1992 SD .330 146 557 87 184 33 100 48 40 5 16
1993 SD .295 68 258 34 76 10 36 18 30 12 15
1993 FLA .292 72 236 33 69 10 37 29 34 5 19
1994 FLA .276 87 322 61 89 27 78 51 50 12 5
1995 FLA .324 63 213 46 69 16 46 55 45 19 7
1996 FLA .314 161 519 118 163 42 120 142 66 16 6
1997 FLA .250 135 444 86 111 21 71 121 79 11 5
1998 FLA .272 40 136 21 37 6 28 26 16 4 1
1998 LA .316 90 301 52 95 16 57 69 30 18 1
1999 LA .301 152 549 103 165 34 101 101 64 11 7
2000 LA .325 141 501 105 163 43 109 101 71 4 10
2001 LA .311 143 515 98 160 36 100 94 67 10 6
2002 ATL .307 135 492 82 151 25 84 72 53 12 4
TOTAL .296 1727 6153 1064 1819 340 1100 1024 741 182 154

Sheffield's accomplishments might have given him a shot at the Hall of Fame, had he not missed so much playing time early in his career with injuries. In baseball he is widely known as one of the top offensive threats, but he has failed to achieve the superstardom once predicted for him.

Additional topics

Famous Sports StarsBaseballGary Sheffield Biography - Fearless And Promising, Trouble Brewing, Homecoming, Chronology, Awards And Accomplishments, Starting Over