Despite being a career .292/.393/.514 hitter, Gary Sheffield was a member of eight different teams during his 22 year major league career. A fair number of fans have probably forgotten that Sheffield started his career as a Brewer before playing and whining his way out of town.
Sheffield played his first four major league seasons as a Brewer and hit .259/.319/.376 before this day in 1992 when the team dealt him and minor league pitcher Geoff Kellogg to the Padres for pitcher Ricky Bones, outfielder Matt Mieske and shortstop Jose Valentin. Sheffield went on to win the NL batting title in 1992 and certainly had the best career of any of the five players in this trade, but the Brewers did pretty well in the deal too:
- Bones pitched most of five seasons in Milwaukee, making the All Star team in 1994 and recording a 4.64 ERA over 883 innings. He was eventually included in a trade that brought Bob Wickman to Milwaukee.
- Mieske also played five seasons in Milwaukee, batting .260/.317/.436 overall but performing much better against lefthanded pitching.
- Valentin, finally, played his first eight major league seasons as a shortstop in Milwaukee, hitting 90 home runs and playing 716 games at shortstop, the second most in franchise history.
Sheffield, meanwhile, was barely in San Diego for more than a full year before being traded again in 1993.
With help from Brewerfan.net and the B-Ref Play Index, happy birthday today to:
- 2011 Wisconsin Timber Rattler Chad Stang, who turns 23.
- 2011 Brewer Josh Wilson, who turns 32.
- 1992-96 Brewer Kevin Seitzer, who turns 51.