Brett Gardner
New York Yankees — No. 11
Outfielder
Born: August 24, 1983 (1983-08-24) (age 26) Holly Hill, South Carolina
Bats: Left	Throws: Left
MLB debut
June 30, 2008 for the New York Yankees
Career statistics (through 2009 season)
Batting average	.256
Home runs	3
Runs batted in	39
Stolen bases	39
Teams
New York Yankees (2008-present)
Career highlights and awards
2009 World Series champion

Brett M. Gardner (born August 24, 1983, Holly Hill, South Carolina) is an American Major League Baseball center fielder for the New York Yankees. Gardner, who is 5' 10", bats and throws left-handed.

[edit] College baseball career

Gardner was a three-year starter at the College of Charleston (CofC). In 2004, he was chosen to the All-Southern Conference Team. His .447 batting average was third in the nation in 2005, and his 122 hits tied for the most hits in the country. His 85 runs in 2005 is the all-time record at CofC, and his 38 stolen bases led the Southern Conference. He wrapped up his Cougar career as a Third-Team All-American and a second-time All-Southern Conference player, sporting a .382/.456/.508 career line, mostly from the lead-off spot. He also went to Skyline Community College in Pacifica, California, but only attended for one year.

[edit] Professional baseball career

After his junior year in college he was drafted by the Yankees in the 3rd round in 2005, and received a $210,000 signing bonus.

[edit] Minor leagues (2005-08)

Gardner adjusted well to wood bats in 2005, and finished the season in the New York-Penn League season ranking 5th in at bats (with 282), 2nd in runs (62), and 5th in stolen bases (19). He was a Florida State League all star in 2006, batting .323 in 63 games with 22 RBIs with the Tampa Yankees. He was 3rd in the Florida State League in batting average, and led the league in stolen bases with 30. Gardner also was second in the league in walks with 47.^[1]

In 2007, he played 54 games for the Double-A Trenton Thunder, though he missed time with a broken bone in his hand. In 203 at bats, he stole 18 bases (tied for 5th in the league; while being caught 4 times), hit 5 triples, and batted .300 with a .392 OBP, before being promoted to the Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Yankees. There, in 45 games he batted .260 with a .343 OBP, and stole 21 bases while being caught only 3 times.^[2]

In the fall of 2007, he played in 26 games in the Arizona Fall League, leading it in runs (27) and stolen bases (16), while being caught stealing only once. He batted .343 (5th in the league) with a .433 obp (3rd), and was 3rd in the league in walks (17).^[3] In 2007, he was the 12th-best prospect in the Yankees minor league system according to Baseball America.^[4]

Gardner headed into 2008, according to Baseball America, as the Yankee's fastest minor league runner and the one with the best plate discipline.^[5] Playing for Scranton/Wilkes Barre in 2008, in 94 games Gardner was 2nd in the International League with a .414 on base percentage, 70 walks, and 11 triples, and 6th in the IL with 37 stolen bases, while being caught only 9 times.

Through 2008 in the minor leagues, he had a .291 batting average and a .389 obp. He had stolen 153 bases, and been caught 31 times, an 83% success rate.^[6]

[edit] Major leagues (2008-present)

Brett Gardner makes a sliding catch against the Chicago Cubs on April 3, 2009.

On June 30, 2008, Gardner was called up and made his major league debut,^[7] batting lead-off and going 0 for 3 with a stolen base. On July 2, he got both his first hit and first RBI off fellow rookie, Texas Rangers relief pitcher Warner Madrigal, in the seventh inning. Gardner went on to steal second and eventually score in that inning. On July 6, 2008, Gardner started in left field in place of the injured Johnny Damon. He went 2 for 5, including a two-out, game-winning single up the middle off of Red Sox closer Jonathan Papelbon.

On July 26, 2008, Gardner was optioned back to AAA after the acquisition of Xavier Nady, in order to continue to receive playing time. On August 15 Gardner was called back up to the big leagues.

On August 16, 2008, Gardner in his second game after being called up went 3-5 with a double and two singles, including a game-winning single with which he knocked in Robinson Cano in the bottom of the 13th against the Kansas City Royals. It was Gardner's second walk-off hit as a Yankee. His first was on July 6, 2008 against the Boston Red Sox, again scoring Cano, in the bottom of the 10th.

During the third to last game at Yankee Stadium, on September 19, 2008, Gardner, playing shallow center, ran all the way back to dead center (408 feet), jumped the wall and made a spectacular catch, robbing Luke Scott of a home run off Carl Pavano. On September 21, 2008, Gardner scored the final run of Major League Baseball in Yankee Stadium history as a pinch runner for Jason Giambi, scoring on a sacrifice fly by Cano in the seventh inning of an eventual 7–3 win for the Yankees over the Baltimore Orioles. Gardner finished 2008 with 13 steals in 14 attempts.^[6]

He was named the Yankees' starting center fielder for the 2009 season on March 29, 2009, beating out Melky Cabrera for the position.^[8] Thanks to his work with Kevin Long, the Yankees hitting coach, he finished spring training with an impressive .390 batting average.^[9]

On May 13, 2009, Gardner hit his first Major League home run against the Toronto Blue Jays. Two days later on May 15, 2009, he hit his second career home run, and first in Yankee Stadium, coming on an inside the park home run against the Minnesota Twins. It took Gardner only 14 seconds to go around the bases, a total distance of 360 feet. On June 18 against the Nationals, Gardner crumpled to the Yankee Stadium warning track in a play where Nationals player Austin Kearns hit a drive off left-hander Phil Coke that Gardner ran down in the gap, snaring the ball before ramming his back into the fence and crumpling to the warning track.^[10] Gardner was examined behind the scenes and was cleared by the Yankees' medical staff, who seemed satisfied that he did not suffer a concussion. On June 26, 2009, Gardner recorded his first ever five hit game, hitting three singles, a home run, and a triple. He also recorded a stolen base, his seventeenth in nineteen tries.

[edit] Playing style

Gardner's legs are his strength. He's the fastest baserunner in the organization,^[11] and has solid baserunning instincts. He's adept at picking spots, knowing when it's more valuable to the team for him to use the threat of a stolen base to get the pitcher to throw fastballs to the heart of the order.

He has outstanding plate discipline, draws a good number of walks, and uses the whole field while making consistent, hard contact. Baseball America rated him as having the best strike zone discipline in the Yankees minor league system after the close of the 2006 season.

On March 14, 2008, Yankee Manager Joe Girardi said of Gardner: "He's an exciting player. He creates havoc. He entertains the fans."

[edit] Personal life

Gardner and his wife Jessica had their first son, Hunter, on November 21, 2008.^[12] Gardner has one older brother. His father, Jerry Gardner, played in the minors for the Phillies.^[13]

[edit] References

[edit] External links

• Career statistics and player information from MLB, or ESPN, or Baseball-Reference, or Fangraphs, or The Baseball Cube, or Baseball-Reference (Minors)
• Prospect Profile
• Profile 12/29/06
• "Gardner makes fast impression in camp; Prospect pleases teammates, rattles pitchers with speed," 3/1/07
• "Gardner Promoted To AAA Scranton-Wilkes/Barre," 7/12/07
• "Gardner one step away from a dream," 7/21/07