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Aaron Hicks

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Aaron Hicks
Hicks with the New York Yankees in 2016
New York Yankees – No. 31
Outfielder
Born: (1989-10-02) October 2, 1989 (age 35)
San Pedro, California
Bats: Switch
Throws: Right
MLB debut
April 1, 2013, for the Minnesota Twins
MLB statistics
(through 2016 season)
Batting average.223
Hits255
Home runs28
Runs batted in109
Teams

Aaron Michael Hicks (born October 2, 1989) is an American professional baseball center fielder for the New York Yankees of Major League Baseball (MLB). He made his MLB debut on April 1, 2013 with the Minnesota Twins.

Career

Minor leagues

A switch hitter, Hicks was drafted by Minnesota Twins in the first round of the 2008 Major League Baseball Draft out of Wilson Classical High School in Long Beach, California.[1] In his first professional season, Hicks was tabbed a 2008 Baseball America Rookie All-Star and named the top prospect in the Twins' organization. He batted .318 with four home runs, 27 runs batted in, twelve stolen bases and 28 walks for the Gulf Coast League Twins to earn a Gulf Coast League postseason All-Star nod. In 2009, Hicks batted .251 with four home runs, 29 RBIs, ten steals and 40 walks for the Beloit Snappers. He returned to Beloit in 2010 and hit .279 with eight home runs.

Playing for the Fort Myers Miracle in 2011, he hit .242 with five home runs. In 2012 he hit .286 with 13 home runs for the New Britain Rock Cats. After being sent down from the major leagues in August, for the 2013 season in AAA he batted .222 with the Rochester Red Wings.[2]

Hicks has been a top 100 prospect by Baseball America four times.[3][4][5][6]

Minnesota Twins

Hicks during his tenure with the Minnesota Twins in 2013

On March 24, 2013, it was announced that Hicks would be the starting center fielder for the Minnesota Twins. He chose his new number to honor Dave Winfield, who wore 32 for the Twins.[7] He was sent down to AAA on August 1, and was not called back up in 2013.[8][9]

In 2013, Hicks batted .192 in 281 at bats, with a .259 on-base percentage.[9][10] Jim Souhan of the Star Tribune wrote that he became: "the latest unpaid spokesman for the Public Service Announcement that reminds baseball fans not to believe anything they see in spring training."[11]

Despite his underwhelming 2013 performance, Hicks was named the starting center fielder for the 2014 season amid protest and controversy. Hicks' 2014 season did not show improvement at the plate. Through 47 games, Hicks hit .201 and was demoted to Double A on June 9.[12]

Hicks gave up switch hitting during the 2014 season due to a lack of confidence in his ability to bat left-handed.[13] However, he went back to switch hitting less than a month later.[14]

New York Yankees

On November 11, 2015, the Twins traded Hicks to the New York Yankees for John Ryan Murphy.[15] The Yankees targeted Hicks due to his athleticism, strong throwing arm, and ability to hit left-handed pitching.[16] During a game against the Oakland Athletics on April 20, 2016, Hicks made a throw that nabbed Danny Valencia at home plate for an out. The throw was recorded at 105.5 miles per hour (169.8 km/h), the fastest throwing speed recorded by Statcast.[17]

References

  1. ^ "Twins select best talent with picks". Minnesota.twins.mlb.com. March 27, 2014. Retrieved April 28, 2014.
  2. ^ "Aaron Hicks Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved May 13, 2014.
  3. ^ "Where The Top 100 Are". Baseballamerica.com. April 9, 2009. Retrieved April 28, 2014.
  4. ^ "Top 100 Prospects: No. 1-20". Baseballamerica.com. February 23, 2010. Retrieved April 28, 2014.
  5. ^ "2011 Top 100 Prospects". Baseballamerica.com. February 23, 2011. Retrieved April 28, 2014.
  6. ^ "2013 Top 100 Prospects". Baseballamerica.com. February 19, 2013. Retrieved April 28, 2014.
  7. ^ Berardino, Mike (April 1, 2013). "Minnesota Twins: Aaron Hicks picks 32 for Dave Winfield, dad and more". Twincities.com. Retrieved April 28, 2014.
  8. ^ "Twinsights: Aaron Hicks played Saturday 'in a fog,' Gardy says". twincities.com. April 20, 2014. Retrieved April 28, 2014.
  9. ^ a b "Aaron Hicks gets another shot". March 27, 2014. Retrieved April 28, 2014.[permanent dead link]
  10. ^ "Aaron Hicks Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved April 28, 2014.
  11. ^ "Souhan: After 2013 disaster, Hicks shows signs of fulfilling promise". Star Tribune. Retrieved April 28, 2014.
  12. ^ "Twins demote starting center fielder Aaron Hicks to Double-A". HardballTalk. Retrieved November 11, 2015.
  13. ^ http://www.cbssports.com/mlb/eye-on-baseball/24572913/aaron-hicks-will-stop-switch-hitting-due-to-lack-of-confidence-from-left-side
  14. ^ "Updated Twinsights: Aaron Hicks returns to switch-hitting". TwinCities.com. Retrieved November 11, 2015.
  15. ^ "Twins trade OF Aaron Hicks to Yankees for C John Ryan Murphy". CBSSports.com. Retrieved November 11, 2015.
  16. ^ Harper, John (February 10, 2016). "GM Brian Cashman takes the Daily News inside the Yankees' offseason trades". New York Daily News. Retrieved February 11, 2016.
  17. ^ de Beaumont, Vanessa. "Yankees' Aaron Hicks Unloads Record-Breaking 105 MPH Throw for Run-Saving Out". http://bleacherreport.com/. Bleacher Report. Retrieved April 20, 2016. {{cite web}}: External link in |website= (help)
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