Troy Glaus

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Troy Glaus

Toronto Blue Jays — No. 25
Third base
Bats: Right	Throws: Right
Major League Baseball debut
July 31, 1998 for the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim
Selected MLB statistics (through October 15, 2006)
Batting average	.253
Home runs	257
Runs batted in	716
Former teams
Anaheim Angels (1998-2004) Arizona Diamondbacks (2005)

Troy Edward Glaus (born August 3, 1976 in Tarzana, California) is a Major League Baseball player who plays third base for the Toronto Blue Jays. Previously, Glaus played with the Anaheim Angels (1998-2004) and the Arizona Diamondbacks (2005). Glaus lettered in baseball while attending UCLA. He bats and throws right-handed.

Contents 1 Career 2 Highlights 3 Interesting Facts 4 References 5 See also 6 External links

[edit] Career

Glaus began his career with the Angels in 1998 and was installed as the team's starting third baseman in 1999. He had a breakout season in 2000, becoming an All-Star and leading the American League in home runs that year.

Glaus was a key member of the Angels' 2002 World Series championship team and was named the Most Valuable Player of that series.

Glaus followed that up with an another All-Star year in 2003, but he would miss much of the 2004 season with a shoulder injury. 2004 was the last year of his contract with the Angels. As an established veteran, he was in demand on the free agent market and able to field lucrative offers for long term contracts. Although Glaus had spent his entire career an Angel, and was a fan favorite, the team decided not to pursue Glaus' return. Amid concerns about Glaus' future health after his injury, the team decided to go with the much lower-priced alternative of turning the third base position over to young prospect Dallas McPherson, whom they felt had a good chance to soon become as productive as Glaus had been.

Glaus ultimately signed with the Arizona Diamondbacks for $45 million USD over four years. Glaus' 2005 season with Arizona, while by no means terrible, was still a slight disappointment and he was traded to the Toronto Blue Jays in the off-season along with minor-league shortstop Sergio Santos. The trade sent pitcher Miguel Batista and second baseman Orlando Hudson to the Diamondbacks.

Through nine seasons, Glaus has hit .253 with 257 home runs and 716 RBI in 1129 games. In 19 postseason games, he hit .347 with nine home runs and 16 RBI. Glaus has been selected for three All-Star Games.

Although Glaus is a third baseman, he played a game for the Toronto Blue Jays against the Chicago White Sox on May 27, 2006 as a shortstop, due the demotion of Toronto shortstop Russ Adams. As Blue Jays manager John Gibbons pointed out, this change in position was only for one game. Glaus was not expected to do much fielding due to the fact the pitcher was known to induce many fly balls, instead of ground balls.^[1] This defensive alignment did not affect his hitting, going 2-4 with 1 HR. Since then, Glaus has made several starts at shortstop, usually when the Blue Jays are facing National League opponents.

As a batter, Glaus is known for his natural, easy swing that produces majestic home runs through an upper-cut motion. However, like many sluggers in MLB, Glaus is very prone to striking out. Troy Glaus once said in a post-game interview that "I'm not paid to walk" when asked why he swung on a 3-0 count.

On August 25, 2006, Glaus registered his 1,000th career hit on a single versus the Kansas City Royals. After hitting 38 home runs and 104 RBI in the 2006 season, Glaus earned a single 10th place vote for the 2006 American League MVP Award.

[edit] Highlights

• 4-time All-Star (2000, 2001, 2003, 2006)
• World Series MVP Award (2002)
• Twice won Silver Slugger Award (2000-01)
• AL Home Run Champion in 2000, slugging 47.

[edit] Interesting Facts

• When Glaus enters a Toronto home game, "Crazy Train" by Ozzy Osbourne plays loudly over the Rogers Centre speakers.
• Glaus' wife is a competitive equestrian. Within Glaus' contract there is a specific bonus he is paid which dedicates up to $325,000 on his wife's equestrian expenses.
• Glaus has participated in two MLB Home Run Derbies and has one home run combined in the two appearances.
• Glaus was a member of the USA Men's Baseball Team competing in the 1996 Summer Olympics held in Atlanta, GA, USA and won a bronze medal.

[edit] References

[edit] See also

• List of Olympic medalists in baseball
• USA Baseball
• Top 500 home run hitters of all time

[edit] External links

• MLB Profile
• Troy Glaus at ESPN.com
• Baseball-Reference.com - career statistics and analysis
• Troy Glaus: Behind the Dugout

Preceded by Ken Griffey, Jr.	American League Home Run Champion 2000	Succeeded by Alex Rodriguez
Preceded by Randy Johnson and Curt Schilling	World Series MVP 2002	Succeeded by Josh Beckett