Conor Gillaspie
| Conor Gillaspie | |||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Gillaspie with Chicago White Sox | |||
| San Francisco Giants – No. 21 | |||
| Third baseman / First baseman | |||
|
Born: July 18, 1987 Omaha, Nebraska | |||
| |||
| MLB debut | |||
| September 9, 2008, for the San Francisco Giants | |||
| MLB statistics (through 2016 season) | |||
| Batting average | .256 | ||
| Hits | 344 | ||
| Home runs | 31 | ||
| Runs batted in | 150 | ||
| Teams | |||
Conor Michael Gillaspie (born July 18, 1987) is an American professional baseball third baseman for the San Francisco Giants of Major League Baseball (MLB). He previously played for the Chicago White Sox and Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim.
Early life
Gillaspie attended Millard North High School in Omaha, Nebraska, where he played baseball, football, and basketball.[1] Gillaspie attended Wichita State University, majoring in geology, from 2006–08.[1] He hit .362 with 58 doubles and 24 home runs over three seasons and was a three-time All-Missouri Valley Conference selection.[2]
Gillaspie played in the Cape Cod Baseball League during the summer of 2007, leading the entire league in hitting with a .345 batting average. He led the Falmouth Commodores to the championship series against the Yarmouth-Dennis Red Sox, but could not play in the series as he had to return to school. He was named the MVP of the Cape League.[1]
Professional career
San Francisco Giants
Gillaspie was drafted by the San Francisco Giants 37th overall in the 2008 Major League Baseball Draft. He played only 24 games in the minors before being called up to the majors on September 6, 2008. He got his first major league hit off Dan Haren on September 16, 2008.[3]
Gillaspie spent 2009 at Single-A San Jose and 2010 in Double-A Richmond. He started the 2011 season with Triple-A Fresno. On June 5, 2011, Gillaspie was recalled to the major leagues when Brandon Belt was placed on the 15-day disabled list.[4] On September 27, 2011, Gillaspie hit an inside-the-park home run against Colorado Rockies pitcher Esmil Rogers for his first Major League home run.[5]
Gillaspie began 2012 with Triple-A Fresno, hitting .362 with 3 HR and 13 RBI in 23 games before being recalled to San Francisco when Pablo Sandoval was placed on the 15-day DL.[6] He got his first hit (a single) of the 2012 season on June 10 against the Texas Rangers.
Chicago White Sox
On February 22, 2013, the San Francisco Giants traded Gillaspie to the Chicago White Sox for minor-league pitcher Jeff Soptic.[7] He became the White Sox primary third baseman in 2013 and 2014. He hit .245 with 13 home runs in 134 games in 2013 and hit .282 with 7 home runs and 57 RBIs in 130 games in 2014.[8] He struggled in 2015 and was designated for assignment on July 19, 2015.[9]
Los Angeles Angels
The White Sox traded Gillaspie to the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim for cash considerations on July 24, 2015.[10] He was designated for assignment on August 18.[11]
Second stint with the Giants
In February 2016, the San Francisco Giants signed Gillaspie to a minor league deal with an invitation to spring training.[12] He started the season with the Giants' Triple-A affiliate, the Sacramento River Cats of the Pacific Coast League. He was called up on April 22,[13] and spent the season mainly as a bench player for the Giants.[14]
On October 5, Gillaspie hit a three-run home run in the top of the ninth inning of the 2016 National League Wild Card Game off Jeurys Familia to break a 0–0 tie, helping the Giants defeat the New York Mets 3–0.[15]
Personal
Gillaspie and his wife Amanda have one son.[16] Gillaspie's brother, Casey Gillaspie, was drafted in the first round of the 2014 MLB Draft by the Tampa Bay Rays.
References
- 1 2 3 "Wichita State Athletics - Conor Gillaspie - 2008 Baseball". Wichita State Athletics. Retrieved April 22, 2016.
- ↑ "Former Wichita State star Conor Gillaspie signs with San Francisco Giants". The Wichita Eagle. February 6, 2016.
- ↑ Schulman, Henry (September 16, 2008). "It's good Haren this time". San Francisco Chronicle.
- ↑ Shea, John (June 4, 2011). "SF Giants fall to Rockies; Brandon Belt to DL". San Francisco Chronicle.
- ↑ Schulman, Henry (September 28, 2011). "Giants beat Rockies, prepare farewell for Burrell". San Francisco Chronicle.
- ↑ Schulman, Henry (May 11, 2012). "SF Giants' Conor Gillaspie chasing his dreams". San Francisco Chronicle.
- ↑ Merkin, Scott (February 22, 2013). "White Sox land Gillaspie in trade with Giants". MLB.com.
- ↑ Schulman, Henry (February 22, 2016). "Giants give Conor Gillaspie, a 'bad apple,' a 2nd chance". San Francisco Chronicle.
- ↑ Padilla, Doug (July 19, 2015). "Conor Gillaspie designated for assignment by White Sox". ESPN.com.
- ↑ Cotillo, Chris (July 24, 2015). "Angels acquire Conor Gillaspie from White Sox". MLB Daily Dish.
- ↑ Adams, Steve (August 18, 2015). "Angels Designate Conor Gillaspie For Assignment". MLB Trade Rumors.
- ↑ Brisbee, Grant (February 6, 2016). "Giants sign Conor Gillaspie, surprising exactly no one". McCovey Chronicles.
- ↑ Baggarly, Andrew (April 22, 2016). "Giants add Conor Gillaspie, option Mac Williamson to address infield deficit". Bay Area News Group.
- ↑ Schonbrun, Zach (October 6, 2016). "Conor Gillaspie's Winning Homer Culminated a Journey of Soul-Searching".
- ↑ Pedulla, Tom (October 5, 2016). "Giants' Gillaspie takes roundabout road to playoff hero". Bay Area News Group.
- ↑ Baggarly, Andrew (February 21, 2016). "A second act: Older, wiser and more socially equipped, Conor Gillaspie hopes to be a positive in return to Giants". Bay Area News Group.
External links
- Career statistics and player information from MLB, or ESPN, or Baseball-Reference, or Fangraphs, or The Baseball Cube, or Baseball-Reference (Minors)