Sean Casey

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**Sean Casey**

Detroit Tigers — No. 21
First baseman
Bats: Left	Throws: Right
Major League Baseball debut
September 12, 1997 for the Cleveland Indians
Selected MLB statistics (through April 7, 2007)
Batting Average	.302
Home Runs	126
Runs Batted In	664
Former teams
Cleveland Indians (1997) Cincinnati Reds (1998-2005) Pittsburgh Pirates (2006) Detroit Tigers (2006-present)

Sean Thomas Casey (born on July 2, 1974, Willingboro, New Jersey), nicknamed "the Mayor," is a first baseman in Major League Baseball who plays for the Detroit Tigers. A graduate of the University of Richmond, where his .461 batting average in 1995 lead all Division I players, he was drafted in 1995 in the 2nd round by the Cleveland Indians and was traded to the Reds before the 1998 season. Casey had his best year in 2004 hitting .324 with 24 HRs and 99 RBIs in 146 games. In 1999, he won the Hutch Award.

During his tenure in Cincinnati, Sean Casey was regarded as approachable and friendly, and his nickname, "the Mayor", comes from his reputation for chatting casually with every runner who makes it to first base, and from his very public charity work. It was frequently expanded to "the Mayor of Riverfront" when the Reds played at Riverfront Stadium. Casey is also regarded as among the slowest-running players in the game, grounding into 27 double plays in the 2005 season.

Sean Casey was signed to the Reds through the 2006 season. However, he was traded December 6, 2005 to his hometown Pittsburgh Pirates for left handed pitcher Dave Williams. During an injury plagued 2006 season, Casey hit .296 with three home runs and 29 RBI in 59 games for the Pirates. On July 31, 2006, Casey was traded to the Detroit Tigers for minor league pitcher Brian Rogers. One game against the Chicago White Sox he hit a line drive to third baseman Joe Crede, in which the ball bounced off his glove, although Casey did not realize this. He ended up getting thrown out on a strong throw by left fielder Pablo Ozuna. During the American League Championship Series against the Oakland Athletics he partially tore his left calf muscle in Game 1. After coming back from his torn calf in Game 2 of the World Series, he became the hottest hitter for the Tigers, belting 2 home runs and batting in five in five games. His .432 batting average was one of the best in Tigers postseason history. On November 16th, Sean signed a 1 year $4 million contract to return to Detroit as their First baseman.

Casey has made the sports news for his charitable work almost as often as his fieldwork. He has been active in Big Brothers and Make-A-Wish Foundation, as well as the "Casey's Crew" program, where he provided free high-priced tickets to disadvantaged youth. Casey credits his Christian upbringing, in Pittsburgh's affluent Upper St. Clair suburb, for his generosity.[1]