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Dr Eric Berg, Lose Weight, Find Your Body Type with Dr Eric Berg drberg.com | Abigail B. Byrnes, M.D. lccancercenter.com | Dentistry | Labs | Byrnes Dental preventivedentistry.co.uk | Abigail B. Byrnes, M.D. lexclin.com |
Eric James Byrnes (born February 16, 1976, in Redwood City, California), is a Major League Baseball outfielder who currently plays for the Seattle Mariners. He has also played for the Oakland Athletics, the Colorado Rockies, the Baltimore Orioles, and the Arizona Diamondbacks. Byrnes is considered a player who relies on his speed and hustle.[1] He can hit for power, but tends to be a, "free-swinger," and goes through hitting droughts.[1] He was ranked in the top-three for best defensive left fielders in John Dewan's publication, Fielding Bible.[2]
[edit] Amateur career[edit] High schoolByrnes' high school career was spent in the Western Catholic Athletic League, where he played for St. Francis High School in Mountain View, California. After graduating in 1994, he was selected in the Major League Baseball Draft by the Los Angeles Dodgers but elected to go to college at the University of California at Los Angeles. [edit] CollegeAt UCLA (1995–98), Byrnes hit second in the batting order and played right field in a lineup that featured future major-league stars Troy Glaus (1995–97) and Garrett Atkins (1998). He was again selected in the Major League Baseball Draft, this time by the Houston Astros after his junior season, but again elected to stay in school. He finished his career at UCLA as one of the most successful hitters in Pac-10 history with a .331 career average and 75 doubles, a conference record. [edit] Professional career[edit] Oakland Athletics Byrnes was selected in the 8th round of the 1998 Major League Baseball Draft by the Oakland Athletics. He made his major league debut on August 22, 2000, against the Cleveland Indians.[3] He went 2-for-4 with a stolen base in his first games, playing designated hitter and batting seventh in the batting order.[4] Brynes batted .300 his first season, with three hits in ten at-bats.[3] The next season, 2001, Byrnes played 19 games with the A's. He hit his first home run of his major league career on June 9, 2001, against the San Francisco Giants.[5] He batted .237 with one double, three home runs, five home runs, and one stolen base with the A's in 2001.[3] Brynes played two games in the 2001 American League Division Series against the New York Yankees going hitless in two at-bats.[3] Byrnes was also involved in a 2003 baseball game that included two significant base running gaffes in a single inning. With a chance to close out the Boston Red Sox, the Athletics had a potential rally stifled by two controversial plays. Byrnes was tagged out after failing to touch home plate after a collision with catcher Jason Varitek, who had blocked the plate before attempting to catch the ball. After the collision, a hobbling Byrnes shoved Varitek and began walking back to the dugout. Varitek picked up the ball and tagged Byrnes out. This play was then followed up by Red Sox third baseman Bill Mueller running into Miguel Tejada as he was rounding third (later in the same inning). Tejada then stopped running home and was eventually tagged out. The umpires called Tejada out because he was tagged as a result of not attempting to advance home, not because of the obstruction by the third baseman. [edit] Colorado Rockies
On July 13, 2005, Byrnes, along with prospect Omar Quintanilla, was traded to the Colorado Rockies for pitchers Joe Kennedy and Jay Witasick.[6] [edit] Baltimore Orioles
A little over two weeks later, and a day before the trading deadline, on July 30, 2005, Byrnes was traded to the Baltimore Orioles for outfielder Larry Bigbie. On August 15, 2005, Byrnes and the Orioles traveled to Oakland, marking the first time Byrnes played against his former team.[7] After struggling against right-handed pitchers, the Orioles benched Byrnes and questioned his ability to be an every-day player.[8] [edit] Arizona Diamondbacks After the 2005 season, Byrnes was granted free agency. On December 30, 2005, Byrnes signed a one-year, $2.25 million dollar contract with the Arizona Diamondbacks.[9][10] Byrnes stated that he was excited for the opportunity to play center field regularly.[11] Midway through the 2007 season, Byrnes was rewarded with a three-year, $30 million dollar contract extension with the Arizona Diamondbacks. Byrnes is one of a few players to have 50 stolen bases and hit 20 home runs in one season, having accomplished the feat in 2007. On May 27, 2008, Byrnes was placed on the 15-day disabled list for the 1st time in his career with sore hamstrings.[citation needed] Byrnes underwent an MRI that showed he had tears in both of his hamstrings.[citation needed] Byrnes returned to the team on June 23, 2008, batting leadoff against the Boston Red Sox at Fenway Park.[citation needed] On June 25, 2009, Byrnes was placed on the disabled list with broken left hand.[12] He was injured during a game against the Texas Rangers after opposing pitcher Scott Feldman hit Byrnes on the hand with a pitch.[12] After he sustained the injury, he was replaced by Ryan Roberts.[12] He was reinstated from the disabled list on September 5, 2009.[13] He played 16 minor league games during his rehab stint with the Triple-A Reno Aces, batting .279 with seven doubles, one triple, two home runs, nine RBIs, and one stolen base. On January 15, 2010, Byrnes was designated for assignment by the Arizona Diamondbacks to make room on the 40-man roster for Adam LaRoche.[14] [edit] Seattle MarinersByrnes had shown interest in joining the San Francisco Giants after he was designated for assignment by the Diamondbacks, however, on January 29, 2010, Byrnes signed a one-year, $400,000 contract with the Seattle Mariners.[15][2] To make room for Byrnes on the 40-man roster, the Mariners designated first baseman Tommy Everidge for assignment.[2] The Diamondbacks are still responsible for the remaining $11 million on his contract he had with them before being released.[16] Byrnes is projected to be the starting left fielder for the Mariners, along with Milton Bradley.[2] Byrnes said this about being signed by the Mariners:
[edit] Broadcasting careerDuring the 2006 post-season, Byrnes was an analyst for ESPN's Baseball Tonight show. He has also appeared on Fox's baseball pre-game show and The Best Damn Sports Show Period talk show. He was a guest analyst for the first two games of the 2006 World Series pre-game show on FOX Sports. During the off-season, Byrnes often fills in on KNBR, a San Francisco radio station. He currently resides with his wife Tarah, daughter Chloe and their bulldogs, Bruin, Mr. Hitch and Bella. During the 2007 MLB All Star Game at AT&T Park, he was in a kayak in McCovey Cove with Bruin during the pre-game and game itself for the FOX Sports broadcast. Byrnes also has had his own TV show, called "The Eric Byrnes Show," which aired on FSN Arizona during the Diamondbacks' regular season. The show featured behind-the-scenes looks at the Arizona Diamondbacks, as well as Byrnes' personal life. During the 2007 off-season, Byrnes began a weekly radio show on XM Satellite Radio, called "Hustle with Eric Byrnes."[17] [edit] See also[edit] References
[edit] External links
Categories: 1976 births | Living people | Arizona Diamondbacks players | Baseball players who have hit for the cycle | Baltimore Orioles players | Colorado Rockies players | Major League Baseball left fielders | Major League Baseball players from California | Midland RockHounds players | Modesto A's players | Oakland Athletics players | People from San Mateo County, California | Reno Aces players | Sacramento River Cats players | Southern Oregon Timberjacks players | UCLA Bruins baseball players | University of California, Los Angeles alumni | Visalia Oaks players | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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