Todd Anthony "Moose" Linden (born June 30, 1980 in Edmonds, Washington) is an outfielder in the Pacific League for the Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles organization.

[edit] Early life

Before being drafted by the San Francisco Giants, he attended Central Kitsap High School in Silverdale, Washington and played collegiate baseball at the University of Washington. After a tumultuous two years at Washington, Linden transferred to Louisiana State University, where he played Center Field. At LSU, Linden distinguished himself as a switch hitter by setting a Southeastern Conference record for games in a season with home runs hit from both sides of the plate.^[1] Nicknamed "Moose" by his Scranton Wilkes-Barre Yankees teammates after a horrible offensive showing in Charlotte, where he was visibly frustrated by a Charlotte Knights fan in the front row who berated him with moose references.

[edit] Professional career

[edit] San Francisco Giants

His first major league home run came on September 22, 2003, off Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Kazuhisa Ishii. Linden, in only his 24th major league at-bat, became just the 12th player to hit a home run into the second deck at Dodger Stadium, which opened in 1962. On May 10, 2007, he was designated for assignment.

[edit] Florida Marlins

He was claimed off waivers by the Florida Marlins on May 18, 2007. The Marlins released him following the 2007 season.

[edit] Oakland Athletics

On November 21, 2007, he was signed by the Oakland Athletics to a minor league contract with an invitation to spring training, but did not make the A's roster. On May 20, 2008, Linden was released by the Oakland A's.

[edit] Cleveland Indians

On May 27, 2008, Linden signed a minor league contract with the Cleveland Indians and was assigned to their Triple-A affiliate, the Buffalo Bisons. He became a free agent at the end of the season.

[edit] New York Yankees

In January 2009 Linden signed a minor league contract with an invitation to spring training with the New York Yankees.

[edit] Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles

On June 12, 2009, the Yankees sold Linden's contract to the Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles of the Japanese Pacific League.

[edit] References

[edit] External links

• Career statistics and player information from MLB, or ESPN, or Baseball-Reference, or Fangraphs, or The Baseball Cube