David begins his second year with the Cubs and his 10th season in the majors ... prior to Chicago, he played for Kansas City (2003-10) and Oakland (2011) ... has spent significant time at all three outfield positions, including center field from 2003-08, left field in 2009 and right field in 2010-12. ...Entering 2013, has batted .281 (1,210-for-4,303) with 235 doubles, 58 triples, 80 home runs, 486 RBI and a .355 on-base percentage in 1,155 career big league games. ...Is averaging 33 doubles, eight triples, 11 home runs and 68 RBI per 162 games in his career. ...Has played 577 games in center field, 318 in right field and 292 in left field ... owns a .992 fielding percentage (22 E/2,631 TC). ...Has 62 career outfield assists, including a career-best 13 in 2009 with Kansas City. ...Has recorded 12 career lead-off home runs as well as three career inside-the-park home runs. ...Was the Cubs nominee for the 2012 Roberto Clemente Award. ...Was one of 30 nominees for the MLB Players Alumni Association 2008 Heart and Hustle Award. ...His brother, Michael, was a 15th-round pick of the Cincinnati Reds in 2005. ...Selected by the New York Mets in the 43rd round of the 1997 draft, but did not sign ... selected by the Kansas City Royals in the fourth round of the 2000 draft. ...Attended Rutgers University in New Jersey ... graduated from Manalapan (N.J.) High School in 1997. ...Is the spokesperson for Guadalupe Centers, Inc., the longest continually operating organization serving Latinos. ...Participated in the 2012-13 Cubs Caravans. ...With his wife, Kim, created the David DeJesus Family Foundation to help families in crisis in Chicago, and in parts of the world where people lack basic human needs.
2014
Spent his first full season with the Rays and appeared in 83 games, his fewest since his debut season of 2003...spent 64 games on the DL with a left hand fracture (June 19-Aug 31), sustained on a check swing June 18 vs. BAL...Started 65 games, all coming vs. RHP...saw only 9 plate apps vs. lefties all season (1-for-7, BB, HBP)...in his Rays career all 91 of his starts have come vs. righties...started 53 games at DH after entering the season with only 5 career starts there...did not appear in the outfield after returning from the DL...Prior to his DL stint, batted .269/.367/.440 (49-for-182) with 5 HR in 62 games and had reached base in 15 straight starts at the time of the injury...in 21 games (15 starts) after his return, hit .179/.270/.286 (10-for-56) with 1 HR, including 1-for-15 with RISP...With 6 HR in 238 AB, averaged 1 HR every 39.7 AB, the best rate of his career (prev. 42.9 in 2009)...also averaged a walk every 9.10 plate apps, the best ratio of his career (prev. 9.54 in 2012)...On Sep 7 vs. BAL, hit an inside-the-park HR off Bud Norris...it was the fourth inside-the-park homer of his career, tying PHI Jimmy Rollins for most among active players, according to the Elias Sports Bureau...it was the third and final inside-the-park homer hit by the Rays in 2014, most in the majors and most in one season in club history...it was the first at Tropicana Field since Ben Zobrist on Sep 25, 2011 vs. TOR...Started in left field on Opening Day vs. TOR, his 10th consecutive Opening Day start...Endured a career-long 0-for-24 stretch from April 8-20...then, from April 22-May 13, batted .397/.478/.707 (23-for-58) with 4 HR...during this stretch he led the AL in SLG and ranked 2nd in batting avg. to OAK Derek Norris (.440)...Tied his career-high with 4 hits on May 9 vs. CLE, including a career-high 3 doubles...was the first Ray to hit 3 doubles since Ben Zobrist on June 11, 2011 at BAL...On May 13 at SEA, hit a game-tying solo home run off Fernando Rodney in the 9th inning...Matt Joyce followed with an RBI single later that inning to secure a 2-1 win...Has only 1 HR off a lefty in the last three seasons (Sep 25, 2013 vs. NYY, David Huff)...Hit 2 triples...his 63 career triples rank 8th among active players.
2013
Was one of six players in the majors to play for three or more teams in 2013 (veteran infielder John McDonald played for four)…acquired from Washington on Aug 23, four days after he'd been acquired by the Nationals from the Cubs…signed a two-year deal with the Rays on Nov 6... Played in 35 of the Rays 38 games after the trade (26 starts; 18-LF, 5-CF, 3-RF) and started 19 games at leadoff... Made his first career trip to the postseason…11-year veteran ranked 5th among active players in career games played (1,277) without playing in a postseason game, behind CWS Adam Dunn (1,870), NYY Vernon Wells (1,731), TEX Alex Rios (1,455) and BAL Brian Roberts (1,327)…in fact, prior to 2013 he had played on only one winning team: played 12 games as a September call-up for the 2003 Royals (83-79) in his first major league action... Against right-handed pitchers, hit .266/.345/.427 with 7 HR, 37 of his 40 extra-base hits and 34 RBI, compared to .161/.217/.250 (9-for-56) against southpaws…after joining the Rays hit .269 (25-for-93) vs. RHP and was 2-for-11 vs. LHP…all 26 of his starts for the Rays came against right-handed starters... Batted .303/.378/.464 (64-for-211) with 5 HR and 23 RBI at home, including .341/.412/.523 (15-for-44) at Tropicana Field…hit only .189 (34-for-180) on the road... On Sep 20 vs. BAL, delivered a walk-off single in the 18th inning to cap a 5-4 win, the longest game by innings and time in franchise history (6 hours, 54 minutes)…it was the third walk-off hit of his career (also July 12, 2008 vs. SEA and Sep 21, 2012 vs. STL)…tied his career high with 4 hits and logged a career-high 9 PA... His first home run as a Ray came on Sep 22 vs. BAL off Scott Feldman…it was the 15th leadoff homer of his career and third of the season…it came on the 10th pitch of the at-bat-only the fifth leadoff homer on 10-plus pitches in the majors since complete pitch count data is available (1999)…it was his first homer since June 13 vs. CIN (with CHC)... Hit .318 (7-for-22) in interleague play…owns a career .315 avg. in interleague play, 6th among active players (min. 500 AB) behind Nick Markakis (.336), Joe Mauer (.332), Albert Pujols (.328), Ichiro Suzuki (.326) and Derek Jeter (.323)... According to Baseball Reference, is one of five active players with at least 3 inside-thepark home runs, along with Jimmy Rollins (4), Carl Crawford (3), Chase Utley (3) and Curtis Granderson (3)... Has made nine consecutive Opening Day starts: 2005-08 and 2013 in CF, 2009 in LF and 2010-12 in RF... Although he had only 3 triples, has 61 in his career, 11th among active players…NYY Derek Jeter is in 10th place with 64... POSTSEASON: Appeared in all 5 games of the postseason including 4 starts in LF…singled and doubled in the Rays 5-4 win over Boston in Game 3 of the ALDS.
2012
In his first season with the Cubs, David appeared in 148 games while batting .263 (133-for-506) with 28 doubles, eight triples,
nine home runs and 50 RBI ... he led the club with a .350 on-base percentage. ...Played 100 games (86 starts) in right field, 50 games (36 starts) in
center field and three games in left field.
...Recorded a .993 fielding percentage (2 E/272 TC) and eight
outfield assists.
...Logged a .358 on-base percentage in 116 games from the leadoff position in the batting order ... that ranked third-highest among
N.L. leadoff hitters behind only Colorado's Dexter Fowler (.389) and
St. Louis' Jon Jay (.362) ... minimum 200 plate appearances.
...Drew 61 walks, his most since drawing a career-high 64 free passes in
2007 with Kansas City.
...Averaged 4.07 pitches per plate appearance, seventh-highest among
N.L. hitters.
...Hit .289 (119-for-412) against right-handed pitching compared to a
.149 average (14-for-94) against southpaws.
...Batted 29 points higher at home (.277) than on the road (.248).
...Posted a .286 batting average (79-for-276) against N.L. Central
division opponents ... hit .235 (54-for-230) in all other games.
...Batted a monthly-best .317 (32-for-101) in 26 May contests.
...Three times tied his career high with four hits in a contest: June 23 in
Arizona, August 15 vs. Houston and September 21 vs. St. Louis.
...His three four-hit games led the club.
...Belted a pinch-grand slam, May 11 in Milwaukee, a one-out go-ahead
blast off Kameron Loe.
...Was his first career pinch-homer and his second career grand
slam.
...Remained in the game and went on to tie his career high with
five RBI (also done June 15, 2008 against Arizona).
...Tied his career high with two triples, May 28 vs. San Diego ... also did
so, September 30, 2006, at Detroit.
...Hit .269 (18-for-67) in July after batting .224 (17-for-76) in June.
...August 15 vs. Houston, recorded his fourth career two-homer game and
tied his career high with four hits.
...Hit his 12th career lead-off home run, August 22 in Milwaukee off
Yovani Gallardo.
...September 21 vs. St. Louis, had four hits including a game-winning
walk-off RBI single in the 11th inning, going 4-for-6 with two runs, a
triple and a RBI.
2011
In his lone season with the Athletics, David batted .240 (106-for-442) with 20 doubles, five triples, 10 home runs and 46
RBI in 131 games, returning from a sprained right thumb that prematurely ended his 2010 campaign...Batted .270 (48-for-178) following the All-Star break, 50 points higher
than his .220 mark (58-for-264) in the first half...His .323 on-base percentage was 83 points higher than his batting
average, thanks to 45 walks...Manned right field for 116 games, including 114 starts...made eight
appearances (six starts) in center field...Delivered three multi-homer efforts: May 4 vs. Cleveland, May 24 at the
Angels and August 6 at Tampa Bay...Collected his 1,000th career hit, May 14 vs. the White Sox, a fifth inning,
two-run triple...Had a season-high six-game hitting streak, May 21-27, batting .500
during the run (10-for-20)...His error in right field, June 30 vs. Florida, snapped a stretch of
305-consecutive contests without a fielding miscue. Went on to post a .984 fielding percentage in the outfield for the
season (250 TC/4 E)...Played in his 1,000th career game, September 16 vs. Detroit.
2010
Was batting .318 with 23 doubles, three triples, five home runs and 37 RBI in 91 games before thumb
surgery ended his season in late July...the batting average was a career high as was his .384 on-base percentage...
hit .340 (88 for 259) against right-handed pitching and .258 (24 for 93) against left-handers...
batted .354 at Kauffman Stadium and .289 on the road...had 18 of his 23 doubles on the road...compiled
a .287 batting average and hit four of his five home runs with two strikes...his two-strike average was
the best in the majors...hit .345 with 17 of his 37 RBI with two outs...had a .330 batting average and
.394 on-base percentage when leading off an inning...batted .368 during the day and .294 at night...
posted a .358 average in 56 games in the three spot and .257 in 33 games hitting leadoff...hit .330 with
all five of his home runs with the bases empty...batted .408 in interleague play, which was the fifth best
mark in the majors...also ranked second in hits (29) and tied for sixth in doubles (7)...now has a .336
(143 for 425) career average in interleague games, which is fifth best in ML history (min. 300 PA)...
started 67 games in right field, 19 in center field and one in left field...did not commit an error in 88
games in the outfield overall and now has a 241-game errorless streak, which is the longest active streak
among all Major League outfielders...it is also a Royals record for outfielders, breaking the previous
mark of 165 set by Amos Otis from July 18, 1970 to July 29, 1971...last committed an error Sept. 15,
2008 against Seattle in center field...that is his only error over the last three years (365 games, 825 total
chances)...also went 2 for 6 (.333) in two games at designated hitter and was 0 for 1 as a pinch hitter.
KANSAS CITY: Was the Royals' Opening Day starter in right field and went 2 for 5 that day against
Detroit...it was his sixth consecutive Opening Day start, but his first in right (also has four starts in
center and one in left)...hit his third career inside-the-park home run April 23 against Minnesota...led
off the game with a home run for the 11th time in his career April 28 against Seattle...four of his five
home runs came over a 24-game span from April 13 to May 8...was batting .272 over his first 45 games
through May 23...missed two games for the birth of his first child, David Jr., May 25 but then hit .363
over his final 46 games...his average from May 27 through July 22, when his season ended, was second
best in the majors behind the Rangers' Josh Hamilton (.415)...had a season-best 11-game hitting streak
from May 16 to 29...hit .400 (18 for 45) during the streak...went 0 for 4 May 30 but then hit safely in
each of his next 10 games (16 for 38, 421)...matched his career high with four hits May 28 at Boston...
went 3 for 3 with a double, home run, two walks and a career-high tying four runs June 13 at Cincinnati...
that began a stretch of three straight games of three or more hits (10 for 13, 769), which he capped
with his ninth career four-hit game, June 16 against Houston...finished June with a .410 (41 for 100) batting
average, which was second best in the majors (Hamilton, TEX .454)...it was the best single-month
batting average of his career and it was the best June average by a Royal since 1980 (Clint Hurdle, .432)...was batting .326 at the All-Star Break with his
107 hits tied for sixth in the AL...it marked the second
time he has topped the century mark by the break in his
career (also 2007)...sprained his right thumb in a collision
with the wall at Yankee Stadium July 22 attempting
to make a catch...was placed on the 15-day disabled list
the next day and had surgery July 26...the surgery was
performed by Dr. Tom Graham at the Cleveland Clinic...
was transferred to the 60-day DL Sept. 1 and missed the
remainder of the season.
2009
Ranked tied for eighth in the Majors and tied for third in the American League with 9 triples...Posted the fifth-best on-base plus slugging pct. numbers (.835) among Major League leadoff hitters with at
least 350 at bats...Started slowly, hitting .231 (46-for-199) with just 10 doubles, three home runs, 21 RBI and 22 runs scored in
53 games through June 9...rebounded to bat .309 (111-for-359) with 18 doubles, 10 home runs, 50 RBI and 52
runs scored in his fi nal 91 games...Hit .316 in July, .324 in August and .320 in September...batted .316 following the break, the 14th-highest mark
in the A.L...Similarly struggled early against left-handed pitchers, posting a .189 (18-for-95) mark in 47 games through
June 29 before hitting .381 (40-for-105) the rest of the way to fi nish at .290...his .381 average from June 30 on
against southpaws was the highest in baseball among left-handed hitters...Also struggled early hitting with runners in scoring position, batting .205 (8-for-39) in those clutch situations
through May 17 before compiling a .358 (29-for-81) mark the rest of the season, the 10th-highest mark in baseball
and the sixth-highest in the A.L. from May 18 on...Posted one of the best years defensively of any outfi elder in Royals history and received votes for the Rawlings
Gold Glove Award...was 1 of 3 outfi elders in MLB to not commit an error (min. 140 games)...ranked tied for
second in the A.L. and tied for fourth in the Majors with a career-high 13 outfi eld assists...the 13 outfi eld assists
tied for the eighth-most all-time in Royals history...Threw out the winning run at the plate in the bottom of the 9th and 11th in Cleveland on September 11...the
Royals won the game, 2-1, in 12 innings...DeJesus became the first player in the Majors to throw out the potential
winning run at home plate in the bottom of the ninth inning or later twice in one game since the Cardinals' Bernard
Gilkey at Houston on August 25, 1992.
2008
Had a career year in the Royals outfi eld, setting personal bests in average, hits, home runs, RBI, stolen bases,
on-base pct. and slugging pct...Led all of baseball by hitting .419 (44-for-105) with runners in scoring position, fi nishing second only to Hall of
Famer George Brett's .469 mark in 1980 in Royals history...the .419 mark was the seventh-highest in baseball since
the 2000 season...also set a KC record for best average with RISP (.460) at All-Star break, besting Mike Sweeney
who hit .438 in 2000...Finished fourth in the Majors and second in the A.L. hitting .359 (65-for-181) with runners on base...Finished tied for sixth in the A.L. with 7 triples...has entered the Royals all-time top 10 with 33 triples...Was hit by a pitch 5 times and now is fourth on the Royals all-time list with 59...Sprained his left ankle after one at bat in the season opener on March 31 in Detroit and missed 11 games, returning
on April 14 in Seattle...Batted .359 (52-for-145) over a 37-game span from May 27-July 7...the average was fi fth-best in baseball...Set a single-season career high with a 16-game hitting streak from June 14 - July 4...hit .406 (26-for-64) with 5
doubles, 4 home runs and 16 RBI...Had an afternoon to remember on June 15 at Arizona, going 3-for-5 with an RBI double and fi rst career grand
slam...he drove in a career-high 5 runs...Recorded a 2-run walk-off home run with 2 outs in the ninth on July 12 vs. Seattle, giving KC a 5-4 win...the
walk-off was his fi rst career and the fi rst for the Royals since April 19, 2005 when Alberto Castillo went deep off
the Indians...Hit .388 (33-for-85) in September, the ninth-highest mark in the Majors and fi fth-best in the A.L...Posted a 14-game hitting streak from September 11-23...hit .415 (22-for-53) during the hitting streak...His inside-the-park homer September 20 vs. Chicago was the second of his career (8/14/05 vs. Detroit-Gm. 1)...Equaled his career high with 4 hits on September 22 at Detroit...it was his seventh career 4-hit game, all coming
on the road with 3 at Comerica Park.
2007
Made his 3rd-straight Opening Day roster...despite hitting a career-low .260, set
career highs in games (157), at bats (605), runs (101), hits (157), triples (9), RBI
(58), walks (64), strikeouts (83), stolen bases (10) and hit by pitches (23)...Did not go on the disabled list for the fi rst time in his career...Set a new Royals single-season record with 23 hit by pitches, breaking the
previous mark of 18 set by Mike Macfarlane in 1994 and tied by Angel Berroa
in 2003...led the A.L. and was second to the Phillies' Chase Utley (25)...Moved from 10th to tied for fourth (Willie Wilson) on the Royals all-time hit
by pitch list with 54...Was hit by a pitch just 3 times through his first 62 games and 20 times in his
final 95 games...Became the first Royals player to top the century mark in runs scored since
Carlos Beltran posted 102 in 2003.
Struggled down the stretch after a solid fi rst 4 months, hitting .212 (39-for-
184) with 2 home runs and 15 RBI combined in the fi nal 2 months...His 9 triples ranked tied for third in the American League...Hit .333 (18-for-54) with 22 RBI with runners in scoring position and 2 outs...Had a great start to the season, named the Royals Player of the Month for
April hitting .308 (33-for-107) and leading the squad in at bats, hits and runs
(22) and tied for fi rst in homers (4)...His 4 home runs in April marked the most he has ever recorded in a month,
besting the 3 he hit in July of 2005...Ranked in the American League top 3 in the month of April in hits (33, t-3rd)
and runs (22, t-3rd), while tied for the most at bats (107)...Recorded his 5th career 4-hit game on April 17 at Detroit...hit a home run,
driving in 2 and scoring 3...Posted his 6th career 4-hit game on May 13 at Chicago...had 2 doubles, driving
in a pair and scoring 3...Hit .342 (26-for-76) in Interleague play and now has a .344 career mark against
N.L. opponents, the 10th-best mark in the Majors since DeJesus broke in in
2003...Equaled his career best by scoring 4 runs on June 10...was the 3rd time in his
career he's crossed the plate 4 times (also Sept. 4 and 9, 2004)...Recorded his 100th career double on July 2 vs. Seattle...Posted 100 hits at the All-Star break for the 1st time in his career.
Recorded a team season-high 13-game hitting streak from July 22 to Aug. 4...
hit .400 (20-for-50) with 11 RBI during the streak.
2006
Turned in another oustanding season for the Royals, hitting .295 with 36 doubles, 7
triples, 8 homers and 56 RBI...saw his average improve for the 3rd straight season,
while posting career-highs in runs (83), doubles (36), triples (7) and walks (43)...
matched his career-high with 56 RBI set in 2005...Posted numbers that were nearly identical to his 2005 totals where he hit .293
with 31 doubles, 6 triples, 9 homers, 56 RBI and 42 walks in 122 games...Was hit by pitch 12 times, tied for 6th-most in the American League...has been
hit 31 times in his career, ranking 10th on the Royals all-time charts...His 7 triples were tied for the team-high (also Teahen) and were tied for 7th in the
American League...The Royals were 31-28 when he scored at least 1 run and just 20-40 when he did
not score...Got off to a slow start, batting just .167 (4-24) before suffering a strained left
hamstring...was placed on the 15-day D.L. on April 19 and did not return until May
29 after missing 33 games...Hit .385 (5-for-13) in 3 rehab games for Omaha (AAA)...Caught fire after returning from the D.L., including hitting a leadoff homer on May 30 at
Oakland...it was the Royals 1st leadoff home run since Sept 25, 2005 vs. Cleveland...Hit safely in 11 of his 1st 13 games after being reinstated from the D.L., including
a 9-game hitting streak from June 3-11, where he went 13-for-34 (.382) with 2
doubles, 1 triple, 1 HR and 5 RBI...Batted .299 (26-87) with runners in scoring position, including a .455 (5-11) mark
with the bases loaded...Was impressive in June, his 1st full month, hitting .327 (32-98) with 19 runs, 10
RBI and 12 extra-base hits in 26 games...earned Royals Player of the Month honors
after leading the team in hits, runs, doubles (9) and walks (14)...Reached base safely in 28 of 32 games, including hits in 27 of 32, from May 30 to
July 4...posted a .376 average, .469 OBP, and .568 SLG with 27 runs scored over
that time...Had a season-best 11-game hitting streak from June 23-July 4...hit .490 (24-49) with 12
runs scored during the streak...was hitting a season-high .331 at the end of the streak...Reached base safely in 19 consecutive games from July 26 to Aug. 13...hit safely
in 14 of those games, posting a .308 average (24-78) with 8 walks and 2 hit by
pitches...Ranked 5th among all Major Leaguers with a .436 average (24-55) during Interleague
play...ranked 4th in on-base percentage (.516).
Posted 7 straight multi-hit games from June 28-
July 4, batting .531 (17-32) with a run scored in
6 of the games...also had 2 or more hits in 9 of
10 games from June 24-July 4, a stretch where
he batted .523 (23-44)...Tied a career-high for hits (3rd time) by going 4-
for-6 with 3 runs at St. Louis on July 1...collected
4 hits again (4th time) 2 weeks later going 4-for-6
on July 16 at Detroit...Tied a club record by drawing 4 walks at
Cleveland in the 2nd game of a doubleheader
on Aug. 12, going 0-for-1 with a stolen base in
KC's 6-5 loss...Recorded a 9-game hitting streak from Aug. 20-
30, going 14-for-40 (.350) with a run scored in 7
of the 9 games.
2005
Spent the entire season at the Major League level for the 1st time in his career...
set career highs in every offensive category, except stolen bases...Posted a career-best .293 average in 122 games and led the team with 6 triples...
finished 2nd on the team in runs (69) and tied for 2nd in doubles (31)...finished
4th on the team in RBI (56), despite spending the majority of the season in the
leadoff spot...Ranked 4th among Major League center fielders (min. 100 games) in average
(.293), trailing only Johnny Damon, BOS (.316), Brady Clark, MIL (.306) and
Ken Griffey Jr., CIN (.301)...also ranked 5th in on-base percentage (.359)...Finished with just 4 errors in 306 chances for a .987 fielding percentage, the
highest by a Royals centerfielder since Carlos Beltran's .988 percentage in
2001...was the 3rd-best mark in the past 10 years (also Johnny Damon, .994
in 1998)...Was the 10th-toughest player to double up in the A.L., hitting into just 6 double
plays in 461 at bats (1 GIDP per 76.8 AB)...Hit .303 (97-320) with 7 homers and 43 RBI off right-handed pitchers, compared
to a .270 average (38-141) with 2 homers and 13 RBI off lefties...Hit .327 with runners on base, going 54-165 with 12 doubles...Opened the season by hitting .321 (25-78) in his 1st 20 games, only to see
his average dip to .248 on May 22 after going 12-for-71 (.169) over a 19-game
stretch...rebounded to hit .339 (65-192) with 5 HR and 29 RBI over a 49-game
stretch from May 24 to July 19, raising his batting average from .248 to .299...Led the Royals in hits (92) and triples (6) and tied for the team lead with 134
total bases at the All-Star break...tied for 2nd on the team with 38 RBI prior to
the break despite spending the entire season in the 1st and 2nd spots in the
batting order...Hit safely in his 1st 4 games of 2005 and had a 19-game hitting streak dating
back to 2004...the streak was tied for the 7th-longest in franchise history...Registered the 4th leadoff homer of his career vs. Chicago on April 23...Finished the season with a .292 (92-315) average in 81 games as the team's
leadoff hitter, compared to a .296 average (42-142) in 37 games in the 2nd spot
in the order...hit 8 of his 9 homers when leading off...Hit in the 2nd spot in the order May 11 at
Toronto for the 1st time in 2005...went 3-for-5
to record his 2nd 3-hit game...Matched his career-high with 3 RBI on 4
different occasions (5/21 vs. STL, 6/10 at ARI,
7/5 vs. SEA, 7/9 vs. MIN)...Reached base in 13 of his 26 plate appearances
(.500 OBP) on the Royals road trip to Texas
and Los Angeles, May 24-29...Hit .391 (9-for-23) during a 6-game hitting
streak from May 29 to June 4...Went 4-for-5 on June 29 at Minnesota for his
2nd-career 4-hit game (also 8/25/04 at LAA)...Recorded a season-best 13-game hitting
streak from July 7-21, going 20-for-50 (.400)
with 11 runs scored, 3 homers and 10 RBI...Hit his 2nd leadoff homer of the season and 4th of his career on July 16 at Detroit off Jason Johnson...hit another leadoff homer on July 18 at
Cleveland...Named American League Co-Player of the Week with the Yankees' Gary Sheffield for the week of
July 14-17...hit .500 (7-14) with 3 doubles, 1 HR and 4 RBI in that 4-game stretch...slugged .929 and
reached base in 60% of his plate appearances during the week...Hit .300 (21-70) against National League opponents...posted his best month during July, hitting .330 (37-
for-112) with 13 doubles, 3 homers and 17 RBI...finished with a .386 on-base percentage for the month...Suffered a strained right shoulder on a diving catch at New York on Aug. 28 and made only 1 appearance
in the team's final 30 games, pinch-running vs. Detroit on Sept. 21.
2004
Enjoyed a solid rookie campaign, hitting .287 (104-363) in 96 games with 15
doubles, 3 triples, 7 homers and 39 RBI...Was named the Royals Player of the Year by the Kansas City chapter of the
Baseball Writers of America...joined Bob Hamelin (1994) as just the 2nd rookie
in club history to win Player of the Year honors...Led the team in nearly every offensive category following the All-Star Break...led
the team in hits (93), average (.314), runs (51), at bats (296), on-base percentage
(.385), extra-base hits (24) and stolen bases (tied, 7) after the break...Recalled from Omaha (AAA) for the 1st time on April 24 after OF Rich Thompson
was designated for assignment...was hitting .351 (20-57) with 10 runs and 2
RBI in 14 games for Omaha at the time of his promotion...Was optioned to Omaha on May 11 when the Royals purchased the contract
of OF Adrian Brown...went 1-for-23 in his 1st 11 games for KC...Was recalled from Omaha on June 25 following the Carlos Beltran trade...Hit .303 (103-340) with 54 runs, 15 doubles, 3 triples, 7 homers and 38 RBI
after his 1-for-23 slump...Finished the season by hitting .331 (78-236) in his fi nal 59 games with 42
runs, 11 doubles, 6 home runs and 30 RBI...Hit his 1st career homer with a leadoff shot off Brad Radke vs. Minnesota on July
16...it was KC's 1st leadoff HR of the season...Collected a then-career-high 3 hits at Detroit on July 21, going 3-for-4 with a
double and accounting for 3 of KC's 8 hits in the game...Went 3-for-3 and reached base in all 5 plate appearances with a double, run
and RBI vs. Cleveland on July 31...Recorded a pair of 15-game hitting streaks, matching the longest by a Royal in
2004 (also Ken Harvey, May 22-June 6)...His 1st 15-game streak came from July 30-Aug. 16 and established a club
rookie record...he batted .418 (23-55) during the streak to raise his average
from .205 to .269...Mark Quinn held the previous rookie record with a 13-game
hitting streak from July 23-Aug. 5, 2000...Went 1-for-4 on Oct. 3, the fi nal game of the season to fi nish the season with his
2nd 15-game hitting streak which began Sept. 19...went 22-for-64 (.344) with 8
runs, 4 doubles, 3 HRs and 9 RBI...Left the Aug. 22 game vs. Texas in the 5th inning with a left knee contusion
after being hit by a pitch in the 4th...Set a career high in hits by going 4-for-5 at
Anaheim on Aug. 25...also hit his 2nd big
league homer to lead off the game...Homered at Seattle on Aug. 27, a 2-run shot,
for his 2nd home run in 3 games...Hit at a .381 clip during a 28-game stretch
from July 30-Aug. 29...Left the Aug. 30 game vs. Detroit following a
collision with shortstop Angel Berroa on a fl y
ball to end the top of the 3rd inning...suffered
a neck strain and mild concussion...Named Royals Player of the Month for August
after ranking 8th in the AL with a .359 average
(37-103)...led the club in hits (37) and runs
(21), while recording 4 doubles, 2 triples, 2
home runs and 11 RBI...Scored 4 runs in the 1st game of a doubleheader at Detroit on Sept. 9...teamed with Joe Randa (6) to
tie an AL record for most runs scored in a game by 2 players (10)...Cleveland's Harry Bay (5) and Bill
Bradley (5) set the mark on Sept. 2, 1902 vs. Baltimore and the Kansas City A's Chico Carrasquel (5)
and Minnie Minoso (5) tied the record on April 23, 1955 vs. Chicago...Randa and Angel Berroa also
combined for 10 runs in the game.
2003
Finished 2nd among all Royals minor leaguers with a career-high .308 combined average with Omaha
and Wichita in 2003...Was a September call-up and appeared in 12 games for Kansas City, going 2-for-7...Made his big league debut as a defensive replacement (8th inning) in center field at Texas on Sept. 2...Collected his 1st Major League hit with a triple off of Bartolo Colon in the 6th inning of Kansas City's
19-3 loss to Chicago on Sept. 27.
2002
Was named 2002 Royals Minor League Player of the Year...was also selected to the Carolina League
All-Star team.
2001
Missed the entire season as he was recovering from surgery on his left elbow.
2000
Drafted by the Royals in the fourth round of the June draft, and signed August 17 ... did not play due to a left elbow injury suffered while playing at Rutgers.
