Highlighted Year: Andres Galarraga, 1993

First Baseman, Colorado Rockies

Age:  32 (June 18)

1^st season with Rockies

Bats – Right, Throws – Right

Height: 6’3”    Weight: 235 

Prior to 1993:

A native of Caracas, Venezuela, Galarraga played sandlot baseball before joining the Venezuelan Winter League at age 16. Initially the stocky youth played as a third baseman and catcher. Signed as a first baseman by the Montreal Expos in 1979, he was tagged with his enduring nickname “the Big Cat” (“El Gran Gato” in Spanish) while playing for Calgary of the Rookie-level Pioneer League in 1979 and ’80 due to his agility and quickness while playing first base. Not speaking any English when he first arrived in the minors, Galarraga taught himself the language by using a dictionary and watching television, also receiving help from teammates. Struggling with the language and adjusting to a new culture, his baseball performance suffered. Initially playing with West Palm Beach of the Class A Florida State League in 1979, he was soon demoted to Calgary where he hit .214 with 4 home runs in 42 games. Improving to .263 in 1980, he was promoted to Jamestown of the Class A New York-Pennsylvania League in 1981 and returned to West Palm Beach in 1982 and ’83. Advancing to the Jacksonville Suns of the Class AA Southern League in 1984, Galarraga batted .289 with 27 home runs, 87 RBIs, a .508 slugging percentage, and a .367 on-base percentage. He was named league MVP. His next minor league stop was Indianapolis of the Class AAA American Association in 1985. He hit .269 with 25 home runs, 87 RBIs, a .344 OBP, and a .510 slugging percentage. Called up to the Expos in late August, he appeared in 24 games and slugged his first two major league home runs. The Expos installed “the Big Cat” at first base in 1986 and he started well but was hindered by knee and rib injuries during his rookie season. Appearing in 105 games he batted .271 with 10 home runs, 42 RBIs, and a .338 OBP. He followed up with a solid year in 1987, hitting .305 with 40 doubles, 13 home runs, 90 RBIs, and a .361 OBP while also performing well defensively at first base. Galarraga was an All-Star for the first time in 1988 as he batted .302 while leading the NL in hits (184), doubles (42), total bases (329), and less fortunately batting strikeouts (153) to go along with 29 home runs, 92 RBIs, a .352 OBP, and a .540 slugging percentage. He was awarded a Silver Slugger and finished seventh in league MVP voting. Although he received his first Gold Glove in 1989, it was otherwise a disappointing season for Galarraga, who hit .257 with a .327 OBP, 30 doubles, 23 home runs, 85 RBIs, and again topped the circuit in striking out (158). “The Big Cat” received another Gold Glove in 1990 while batting .256 with 29 doubles, 20 home runs, 87 RBIs, and a .306 OBP while again leading the NL in striking out (169). Galarraga suffered through an injury-plagued 1991 season in which his average slid to .219 with a .268 OBP in 107 games along with 9 home runs and 33 RBIs. In the offseason he was traded to the St. Louis Cardinals for RHP Ken Hill. The 1992 season with his new team got off to a bad start when he suffered a broken wrist in the season’s second game. He ended up playing in 95 games and batted .243 with 10 home runs, 39 RBIs, and a .282 OBP. He was at his best in his last 45 games due to alterations made in his stance by hitting coach Don Baylor. A free agent after the season, he signed with the expansion Rockies, now managed by Baylor, who urged the front office to sign him. 

1993 Season Summary

Appeared in 120 games

1B – 119, PH – 1

[Bracketed numbers indicate NL rank in Top 20]

Batting

Plate Appearances – 506

At Bats – 470

Runs – 71

Hits – 174 [13, tied with Mike Piazza, Eddie Murray & Jeff Conine]

Doubles – 35 [11, tied with Jeff King & Darren Daulton]

Triples – 4

Home Runs – 22 [17, tied with Larry Walker]

RBI – 98 [12, tied with Charlie Hayes, Mark Grace & Jeff King]

Bases on Balls – 24

Int. BB – 12 [8, tied with Darren Daulton & David Justice]

Strikeouts – 73

Stolen Bases – 2

Caught Stealing – 4

Average - .370 [1]

OBP - .403 [6]

Slugging Pct. - .602 [2]

Total Bases – 283 [12, tied with Dante Bichette]

GDP – 9

Hit by Pitches – 6 [18, tied with nine others]

Sac Hits – 0

Sac Flies – 6

League-leading batting average was +.012 ahead of runner-up Tony Gwynn

Midseason snapshot: 2B – 24, HR – 13, RBI – 65, AVG – .391 SLG – .646, OBP – .424

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Most hits, game – 4 (in 4 AB) vs. LA Dodgers 6/14, (in 5 AB) vs. LA Dodgers 6/15, (in 5 AB) vs. St. Louis 7/23, (in 6 AB) vs. San Diego 9/21

Longest hitting streak – 15 games

HR at home – 13

HR on road – 9

Most home runs, game – 1 on twenty-two occasions

Multi-HR games – 0

Most RBIs, game – 4 at Florida 4/30, at Pittsburgh 9/10 – 11 innings

Pinch-hitting – 0 for 1 (.000)

Fielding

Chances – 1132

Put Outs – 1018

Assists – 103

Errors – 11

DP – 88

Pct. - .990

Awards & Honors:

All-Star

10^th in NL MVP voting (45 points, 11% share)

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In their inaugural season, the Rockies went 67-95 to finish sixth in the NL Western Division, 37 games behind the division-winning Atlanta Braves, while leading the league in triples (59) and fewest walks drawn (388). The hard-hitting Rockies started off slowly during a 33-54 first half, which included a 2-17 stretch in May. Following a 13-game losing streak from July 25 to August 6, the club turned things around and went 31-21 from August 8 to season’s end. They drew a record attendance of 4,483,350 to their temporary home at Mile High Stadium. Galarraga became the first player from an expansion team to win a batting championship.

Aftermath of 1993:

Popular with fans and a key member of the Colorado lineup, Galarraga received a four-year, $12 million contract extension following his outstanding 1993 season. He missed the last 13 games of the strike-shortened 1994 season due to a broken hand suffered on July 28, and the Rockies lost 10 of their last 13 games leading up to the strike without him in the lineup. At the time his season ended, he was hitting .319 with 31 home runs, 85 RBIs, a .356 OBP, and a .592 slugging percentage. The club moved into the new Coors Field in 1995, and “the Blake Street Bombers” (a reference to the new ballpark’s location, as well as the club’s batting prowess) reached the postseason. Galarraga contributed by batting .280 with 31 home runs, 106 RBIs, a .331 OBP, and a .511 slugging percentage while remaining an asset defensively. Along the way he hit a record-tying three home runs in consecutive innings in a game at San Diego. The team accomplished less in 1996, but remained a power-hitting powerhouse at home, helped by Denver’s altitude, and Galarraga led the NL in home runs (47) and RBIs (150) while hitting .304 with a .357 OBP and .601 slugging percentage. He placed sixth in NL MVP balloting. In 1997 he again topped the circuit in RBIs (140) while batting .318 with 41 home runs, a .389 OBP, and a .585 slugging percentage. Finishing seventh in league MVP voting, and with Colorado ready to hand the first base job over to hot prospect Todd Helton, Galarraga departed the Rockies as a free agent in the offseason. “The Big Cat” signed with the Atlanta Braves and had another productive season in 1998, hitting .305 with 44 home runs, 121 RBIs, a .397 OBP, and a .595 slugging percentage. Diagnosed with non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma during spring training, he missed the entire 1999 season while undergoing treatment. Desiring to play baseball again and with his cancer in remission, “the Big Cat” returned to the Braves in 2000 and batted .302 with 28 home runs, 100 RBIs, a .369 OBP, and a .526 slugging percentage while appearing in 141 games, drawing kudos for his comeback in a season in which he turned 39. A free agent in the offseason, the Braves turned down his request for a two-year contract and Galarraga signed with the Texas Rangers. Unable to dislodge Rafael Palmeiro at first base, Galarraga spent most of his time with the Rangers in 2001 as a Designated Hitter and batted only .235 with 10 home runs in 72 games before being dealt to San Francisco where he hit .288 with 7 homers and 35 RBIs the rest of the way. A return to Montreal as a free agent in 2002 only served to highlight his declining skills and he was back with the Giants in 2003, where he batted .301 with 12 home runs and 42 RBIs in 110 games. Another bout with cancer ensued and following a final seven appearances with the Anaheim Angels in 2004 and a spring trial with the Mets in 2005, “the Big Cat’s” career came to an end. For his major league career, Galarraga batted .288 with 2333 hits that included 444 doubles, 32 triples, and 399 home runs. He scored 1195 runs and compiled 1425 RBIs, a .347 OBP, and a .499 slugging percentage. With Colorado he batted .316 with 843 hits, 476 runs scored, 155 doubles, 13 triples, 172 home runs, 579 RBIs, a .367 OBP, and a .577 slugging percentage. In 18 postseason games he hit .182 with a home run and 7 RBIs. A five-time All-Star (twice with Colorado), Galarraga received two Silver Sluggers and Gold Gloves apiece, and he finished in the top 10 in National League MVP voting five times.  

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Highlighted Years feature players who led a major league in one of the following categories: batting average, home runs (with a minimum of 10), runs batted in, or stolen bases (with a minimum of 20); or pitchers who led a major league in wins, strikeouts, earned run average, or saves (with a minimum of 10). Also included are participants in annual All-Star Games between the National and American Leagues since 1933. This category also includes Misc. players who received award votes, were contributors to teams that reached the postseason, or had notable seasons in non-award years.