A look at players to be inducted into Baseball Hall of Fame
COOPERSTOWN, N.Y. (AP) A look at the players to be inducted July 26 into the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum:
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CRAIG ALAN BIGGIO: Born Dec. 14, 1965 in Smithtown, New York. ... 5-foot-11, 185 pounds, throws right. ... only player in major league history with at least 3,000 hits, 600 doubles, 400 stolen bases and 250 home runs. ... spent all 20 seasons with Houston Astros, hitting .281 with 1,844 runs scored (15th all-time), 291 home runs and 414 stolen bases. ... was hit by a pitch 285 times, second all-time. .. won five Silver Slugger Awards (one at catcher and four at second base) and four Gold Glove Awards at second base (1994-97). ... led NL in runs with 123 in 1995 and 146 in 1997 and topped the league in doubles three times with a high of 56 in 1999. ... starred at Kings Park High School on Long Island in football. ... accepted partial baseball scholarship to Seton Hall University and in 1987 was taken in first round of the draft with the 22nd overall pick by the Astros. ... after batting .344 in 141 minor league games over parts of two seasons was called up in June 1988. ... took over as Houston's regular catcher in 1989 and had 13 homers and 60 RBIs to win the NL's Silver Slugger Award for catchers. ... in 1991 batted .295 and made the first of seven All-Star appearances. ... in 1992 became Houston's second baseman and appeared in all 162 games. ... from 1993-99 averaged 17 homers, 33 steals and 116 runs scored as Houston's leadoff hitter. ... finished career with 668 doubles, fifth all-time. ... in 2003 moved to center field for two years before moving back to second base for the final three years of his career. ... joined 3,000-hit club in 2007, his last year in the majors, and finished career with 3,060 hits.
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RANDALL DAVID JOHNSON: Born Sept. 10, 1963 in Walnut Creek, California. ... nicknamed the Big Unit, the 6-foot-10 left-hander was an elite athlete who excelled in both baseball and basketball. ... played 22 seasons in major leagues and led his league in strikeouts nine times, earning four ERA titles and recording 100 complete games and 37 shutouts. ... his 4,875 strikeouts rank No. 2 all-time behind Nolan Ryan's 5,714, and his 10.61 strikeouts per nine innings rank first all-time. ... owns six of the 33 300-strikeout seasons in the modern-era history of the game and five of the top 11 single-season strikeout seasons. ... named to 10 All-Star Games ... his 303 victories rank fifth all-time among lefthanders, behind only Warren Spahn, Steve Carlton, Eddie Plank and Tom Glavine. ... turned down the Atlanta Braves after they drafted him in the fourth round in 1982, opting for a combination baseball/basketball scholarship at the University of Southern California. ... began concentrating solely on baseball following his sophomore year and was drafted by the Montreal Expos on the second round in 1985. ... made the Expos roster in 1988, becoming the tallest player in big-league history. ... midway through the 1989 season, Montreal traded Johnson to the Seattle Mariners. ... hurled a no-hitter against the Detroit Tigers on June 2, 1990. ... led AL in walks three times. ... on Sept. 27, 1992, threw 160 pitches in eight innings, striking out 18 Rangers in a 3-2 loss. ... in 1993 went 19-8, led the AL with 308 strikeouts and finished second in the Cy Young Award voting. ... posted a 13-6 record in the strike-shortened 1994 season and led AL in strikeouts with 204. ... went 18-2 in 1995, struck out 294 and led AL with a 2.48 earned-run average, winning his first Cy Young Award. ... missed most of the 1996 season after undergoing back surgery. ... rebounded in 1997 to go 20-4 with 291 strikeouts. ... was traded midway through 1998 season to Houston and went 10-1 with a 1.28 ERA in 11 starts, leading the Astros to a playoff berth. ... signed a four-year deal with Arizona Diamondbacks prior to 1999 season ... from 1999-2002 captured four straight NL Cy Young Awards, three ERA titles and struck out at least 334 batters each season. ... in 2001 went 21-6 in the regular season and 3-0 in the World Series, sharing Most Valuable Player honors with Curt Schilling and leading Arizona to a seven-game series win over the Yankees. ... at age 40 struck out 13 batters in pitching a perfect game at Atlanta's Turner Field on May 18, 2004, breaking a record set a century earlier by Cy Young, who pitched a perfect game at age 37 on May 5, 1904. ... traded to Yankees after 2004 season and won 34 games in two seasons in New York. ... returned to Arizona for two more seasons and finished his career in 2009 with the Giants, where he won his 300th game.
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PEDRO JAIME MARTINEZ: Born Oct. 25, 1971, in Manoguayabo, Dominican Republic. ... grew up with five brothers and sisters in a one-room home on the outskirts of Santo Domingo. ... eight-time All-Star who finished career with a 219-100 record in 18 years for a winning percentage of .687. ... the 5-foot-10, 170-pound right-hander won five ERA titles en route to a career mark of 2.93. ... his 3,154 strikeouts rank 13th all-time, his strikeout-to-walk ratio of 4.15-to-1 ranks third all-time, and his average of 10.04 strikeouts per nine innings also is third all-time, behind only Randy Johnson and Kerry Wood. ... signed with the Dodgers in 1988 and made major league debut Sept. 24, 1992 at age 20. ... in 1993 got regular work in the Dodgers' bullpen, posting a 10-5 record in 65 games while striking out 119 batters in 107 innings. ... traded to the Expos in November 1993 for second baseman Delino Deshields. ... on June 3, 1995, retired the first 27 Padres batters he faced before allowing a hit in the bottom of the 10th. ... named to his first All-Star Game in 1996. ... went 17-8 in 1997 with a National League-best 1.90 ERA and 13 complete games, striking out 305 batters en route to his first Cy Young Award. ... in November 1997 was traded to Boston Red Sox and signed a seven-year contract. ... went 19-7 in 1998 and finished second in the AL Cy Young Award vote. ... in 1999 went 23-4 with a league-best 2.07 ERA and 313 strikeouts, including a then-record 13.2 strikeouts per nine innings, becoming just the eighth pitcher to post two 300-strikeout seasons, and finished second in the AL Most Valuable Player voting. ... in 2000 went 18-6 with a 1.74 ERA and 284 strikeouts to win his third Cy Young Award, allowing just 128 hits in 217 innings en route to a WHIP (walks plus hits divided by innings pitched) of 0.737, by far the best single-season mark in big league history. ... battled shoulder problems in 2001 and went 7-3. ... rebounded in 2002 with a 20-4 record, again leading the AL in ERA (2.26) and strikeouts (239) and finishing second in Cy Young Award voting. ... in 2003 led AL in WHIP, ERA and winning percentage en route to a 14-4 record. ... in 2004 posted a 3.90 ERA while going 16-9 and helped the Red Sox win the World Series for the first time since 1918, pitching seven shutout innings in Game 3 on the road in St. Louis to give the Sox a commanding 3-0 series lead. ... signed a free-agent contract with the Mets following the World Series and went 15-8 with a 2.82 ERA in 2005. ... in 2006 battled a nagging toe injury and finished 9-8, helping the Mets reach the National League Championship Series. ... after two more injury-filled seasons, sat out first part of 2009 before signing with the Phillies and going 5-1 in nine regular-season starts to become the 10th pitcher to win at least 100 games in both leagues. ... explored pitching again in 2010 and 2011 but never returned to the majors and announced his retirement on Dec. 4, 2011.
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JOHN ANDREW SMOLTZ: Born May 15, 1967 in Detroit. ... finished 21-year big league career with a 213-155 record, 154 saves, 3,084 strikeouts and a 3.33 ERA. ... winner of 14 or more games 10 times and twice led NL in wins (1996 and 2006), innings pitched (1996 and 1997) and strikeouts (1992 and 1996). ... eight-time All-Star and winner of the 1997 NL Silver Slugger Award. ... honored with Lou Gehrig Memorial Award and Roberto Clemente Award in 2005 and the 2007 Branch Rickey Award. ... starred in baseball and basketball at Waverly High School in Lansing, Michigan. ... the 6-foot-3, 210-pound right-hander signed with hometown Tigers after being selected on 22nd round of 1985 amateur draft. ... acquired by Atlanta Braves for Doyle Alexander on Aug. 12, 1987. ... from 1989-93 averaged 14 wins, 34 starts and 182 strikeouts with a 3.42 ERA. ... only Braves player to be part of the franchise's run of 14 consecutive division titles from 1991-2005. ... appeared in 41 postseason games, compiling a 15-4 record, a 2.67 ERA and a record 199 strikeouts. ... in five World Series started eight games and finished with a 2-2 record and 2.47 ERA. ... in September 1994 underwent the first of a half-dozen surgeries when doctors removed a large bone spur and some chips from the back of his right elbow. ... in 1996 went 24-8, including 14 straight victories, and posted a 2.94 ERA and league-best 276 strikeouts to capture the NL Cy Young Award. ... underwent arthroscopic elbow surgery to remove bone chips prior to 1998 season, also spent four weeks on disabled list with an inflamed elbow, and still finished with a 17-3 record. ... in 1999 was placed on the DL twice with a strained elbow and finished 11-8. ... missed entire 2000 season after tearing medial collateral ligament in his right elbow in spring training and undergoing Tommy John surgery in March. ... 2001 comeback derailed after five starts with more time on DL. ...after 159 wins as a starter was converted to a relief pitcher in July 2001 in an effort to maximize his health and finished with 10 saves in 11 chances with a 1.59 ERA. ... in 2002 set NL record by converting 55 saves (tied by the Dodgers' Eric Gagne in 2003). ... saved 154 games in 168 opportunities in 3 1/2 seasons as a closer. ... suffered right elbow tendinitis in 2003 and had right elbow surgery in October 2004 to clean up scar tissue. ... returned to starting rotation in 2005 and averaged 15 wins and 222 innings over three seasons. ... in 2008 became 16th big league pitcher to reach 3,000 career strikeouts. ... signed as free agent by the Red Sox in January 2009 and went 3-8 in a final season split between Boston and the Cardinals.
