Gary Sheffield
Supremely confident and blatantly honest, Gary Sheffield has earned both accolades and scorn in his checkered career. But he overcame it all to produce high-popping offensive numbers, especially as he matured emotionally and physically. In his 20s, Sheffield battled position changes and injuries that helped lead to inconsistency. But in his 30s, coinciding with his arrival in Los Angeles, the right fielder settled in and began a stretch of success that included seven .300 seasons and ultimately his 400th career home run in 2005. In a complete reversal of character, Sheffield, who was panned in Milwaukee and San Diego early in his career for selfishness, became a vocal leader with Joe Torre's Yankees.
Quotes About Sheffield
"He's a franchise player. When he's waving that stick around like a Wiffle Ball bat, it puts in your mind's eye what he can do when he gets in a groove." � Detroit teammate Jason Grilli
Quotes From Sheffield
"That's the kind of person I found out I was dealing with. To me, I don't want friends like that. I never will have friends like that." � Sheffield on Barry Bonds. Sheffield trained with Bonds and his people one off-season, but quickly grew suspicious of their tactics and control over him. Sheffield described Bonds as being controlling and as wanting to dictate to Sheffield where he should go and what he should do in his training.
"I could have bad mechanics and get hits. I don't worry about that, because I'm not really a mechanically-sound guy. It's more between my ears." � explaining that a hitting slump in 2007 was mental
"I pace the stairs every inning. I move through the whole game. I don't just sit. I might go in and sit when we're hitting, but for the most part, when we're in the field, I'm pretending I'm in the field, so I'm always moving. By the time the guys sprint back into the dugout, I'm meeting them in the dugout and sitting down with them." — Gary Sheffield on adapting to the DH role
"ESPN never takes time to show pictures of me when I was coming up. They don't show my hat size and my foot size or ask my trainers and doctors. I've never had no back rash. I walk around with my shirt off all the time." — Gary Sheffield on accusations that he used steroids
Played For
Milwaukee Brewers (1988-1991)
San Diego Padres (1992-1993)
Florida Marlins (1993-1998)
Los Angeles Dodgers (1998-2001)
Atlanta Braves (2002-2003)
New York Yankees (2004-2005)
All-Time Rankings
Gary Sheffield ranks #21 among the Top 50 all-time at RF. Rankings ⇒
Best Season: 1996
Sheffield had a monster year: .314/.624/.465 with 118 runs scored, 120 RBI, 142 walks, and 16 stolen bases.
Born
Gary Antonian Sheffield was born on November 18, 1968, in Tampa, FL.
Batted: Right
Threw: Right
Primary Position: DH
Primary Team: LAN
Major League Debut
September 3, 1988
Nine Other Players Who Debuted in 1988
Craig Biggio
Roberto Alomar
Mark Grace
Gary Sheffield
Brady Anderson
John Smoltz
Randy Johnson
Curt Schilling
Gregg Olson
Family Tree
Sheffield is the nephew of Dwight Gooden.
Related Players
Barry Bonds
Post-Season Appearances
1997 National League Championship Series
1997 National League Divisional Series
1997 World Series
2002 National League Divisional Series
2003 National League Divisional Series
2004 American League Championship Series
2004 American League Divisional Series
2005 American League Divisional Series
Milestones
- July 27, 2004: 400th HR... Off Michael Nakamura
Injuries and Explanation for Missed Playing Time
Went on DL on May 6, 2006, with a bruised left wrist, missing nearly a month.
Hitting Streaks
24 games (2003)
16 games (2003)
All-Star Selections
1992 NL
1993 NL
1996 NL
1998 NL
1999 NL
2000 NL
2003 NL
2004 AL
2005 AL
Best Strength as a Player
Many experts consider Sheffield to have the quickest bat in baseball.
Largest Weakness as a Player
His throwing arm is weak for a right fielder.
Learn More about Gary Sheffield
Search Amazon.com for Books about Gary Sheffield ⇒
Search for Gary Sheffield at Google ⇒
View a map of his hometown at Mapquest ⇒
