Pete Incaviglia

Pete Incaviglia
Left fielder
Born: (1964-04-02) April 2, 1964
Monterey, California
Batted: Right Threw: Right
MLB debut
April 8, 1986, for the Texas Rangers
Last MLB appearance
September 27, 1998, for the Houston Astros
MLB statistics
Batting average .246
Home runs 206
Runs batted in 655
Teams

Peter "Pete" Joseph Incaviglia (born April 2, 1964) is a retired Major League Baseball (MLB) left fielder. He was drafted in the first round (eighth overall pick) by the Montreal Expos in the 1985 amateur draft out of Oklahoma State University, but was traded later the same year to the Texas Rangers. He debuted in the major leagues on April 8, 1986, without having spent any time in the minor leagues. Incaviglia played for 12 seasons from 1986 to 1998 with six different teams. His last game was on September 27, 1998. He was noted for his power, but also for his tendency to strike out. He led the majors in strikeouts by a hitter in 1986 and 1988. He struck out 1,277 times in his career. He owns the single-season National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) home run record, with 48, and run batted in record, with 143.

College career

At Oklahoma State, Incaviglia became one of the greatest power hitters in College Baseball history. In three seasons he amassed 100 home runs (in 213 games) and had a career slugging percentage of .915. In his junior season, he hit 48 home runs and finished the year with an NCAA record 1.140 slugging percentage.[1] He also led Oklahoma State to the College World Series in each of his three seasons. He is still the NCAA Division I baseball all-time leader in home runs in a career and home runs in a season.

He was elected to the College Baseball Hall of Fame in 2007.[2]

Major League career

Incaviglia's rookie season came in 1986. Drafted by the Montreal Expos, he refused to play a day in the minor leagues. He was traded to the Texas Rangers who would grant the request and make him the 15th player in Major League history to debut in the majors without ever playing minor league ball since the amateur draft began in 1965.[1] He had the tenth most home runs in the league (30) and set a Rangers club record, but also struck out the most times in 1986, and currently holds eighth place on the single-season strikeout record. His rookie season set a standard that he would be unable to match the rest of his career. In 1987, his home run output decreased by three, but his batting average climbed 21 points, he had a better slugging percentage, and he cut down his strikeouts by 17.

Incaviglia hit at least 20 home runs in his first five seasons, all with Texas. His playing time and production dropped thereafter in single seasons with Detroit and Houston, but his career received a boost when he was signed by the Philadelphia Phillies before the 1993 season. He and fellow outfielder Jim Eisenreich were key acquisitions for the team that would go on to win the division and reach the World Series (one year after finishing in last place). In just 368 at-bats, Incaviglia hit 24 home runs and drove in a career-best 89 runs. He also posted career highs in OPS (.848) and WAR (2.9).

Pete Incaviglia Rule

As a result of the Expos trading Incaviglia immediately after signing him, Major League Baseball instituted a rule whereby a team cannot trade a drafted player until he has been under contract to the club for at least one year. This was known as the Pete Incaviglia Rule.[3] The rule was changed during the 2015 season, allowing teams to trade drafted players the day after the World Series concludes.[4]

Coaching and managing career

Incaviglia was the hitting coach for the Erie Seawolves, the Detroit Tigers Class AA affiliate in the Eastern League, for the three seasons, but was dismissed at the end of the 2006 season.[5]

Incaviglia was announced as the first manager of the Grand Prairie AirHogs on October 24, 2007. The AirHogs began play in May 2008 in the American Association of Independent Professional Baseball and reached the Southern Division playoffs in his first season as their manager.[6] As of 2014, he is the team manager of the Laredo Lemurs.[7]

Grimsley affidavit

On December 20, 2007 Incaviglia was named in Jason Grimsley's unsealed affidavit as an alleged user of amphetamines.[8]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 Heiss, Dana (May 1, 1999). "Pete Incaviglia, College Baseball's Home Run Champion, Retires". Baseball Weekly. Archived from the original on October 14, 2007. Retrieved June 13, 2007.
  2. ↑ "Lynn, Olerud head College Baseball Hall class". The Sports Network. April 10, 2007. Retrieved June 13, 2007.
  3. ↑ Ringolsby, Tracy (April 20, 2007). "Arizona owners show true colors". Rocky Mountain News.
  4. ↑ Axisa, Mike (May 2, 2015). "May 2 Prospect Watch: MLB fixes the 'Pete Incaviglia Rule'". cbssports.com. Retrieved May 2, 2015.
  5. ↑ Leonardi, Ron. "Tigers fire SeaWolves manager, coaches". Go Erie.com. The Times Publishing Company. Retrieved 12 July 2016.
  6. ↑ AirHogs Clinch Playoffs Archived August 11, 2011, at the Wayback Machine.
  7. ↑ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on September 14, 2014. Retrieved 2014-09-13.
  8. ↑ "Affidavit: Grimsley named players". CNN. December 20, 2007. Retrieved December 31, 2007.

External links

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