Joe Carter

For others with similar names, see Joseph Carter (disambiguation).

Joe Carter
Outfielder
Born: March 7, 1960 (1960-03-07) Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
Batted: Right	Threw: Right
MLB debut
July 30, 1983 for the Chicago Cubs
Last MLB appearance
September 28, 1998 for the San Francisco Giants
Career statistics
Batting average	.259
Home runs	396
Runs batted in	1,445
Teams
Chicago Cubs (1983) Cleveland Indians (1984–1989) San Diego Padres (1990) Toronto Blue Jays (1991–1997) Baltimore Orioles (1998) San Francisco Giants (1998)
Career highlights and awards
5× All-Star (1991, 1992, 1993, 1994, 1996) 2× World Series champion (1992, 1993) 2× Silver Slugger Award winner (1991, 1992) Blue Jays Level of Excellence

Joseph Christopher Carter (born March 7, 1960 in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma) is a former right fielder in Major League Baseball who played from 1983 to 1998. Carter is most famous for hitting a walk-off home run to win the 1993 World Series for the Toronto Blue Jays.

Career

College

Joe Carter attended Wichita State University, leaving after his junior year. He was named the Sporting News magazine's College Player of the Year in 1981 In the 1981 draft, the Cubs chose him with the second pick of the first round.

• In 1988, Carter was inducted into the Wichita State University Pizza Hut Shocker Hall of Fame.
• In 1999, Carter was inducted into the Missouri Valley Hall of Fame.
• In 2003, Carter was inducted into the Canadian baseball Hall Of Fame
• In 2008, Carter was inducted into the Kansas Baseball Hall of Fame.

Chicago Cubs and Cleveland Indians

Carter first reached the majors in 1983 with the Chicago Cubs, but was then traded to the Cleveland Indians, where he blossomed into a star. Carter emerged as a prolific power hitter, hitting as many as 35 home runs in a season and regularly driving in 100 or more runs. He usually hit nearly as many doubles as he did homers, and would get respectable numbers of triples in many years too. He was also a very good baserunner, stealing 20-30 bases a year with a high rate of success; in 1987, Carter became a rare member of the single-season 30/30 club for home runs/stolen bases. However, he was considered a below-average defensive outfielder. The Indians publicly criticized his defense and low batting average after he left [citation needed], although Cleveland was a terrible team for several years after his departure [citation needed], while Carter contributed to multiple championships elsewhere.

San Diego Padres

After a strong 1989 season, Carter was traded by Cleveland to the San Diego Padres for prospects Sandy Alomar, Jr., Carlos Baerga, and Chris James. Although he continued to drive in runs, he also continued to have defensive problems. The Padres subsequently dealt him to the Toronto Blue Jays along with Roberto Alomar in exchange for star players Fred McGriff and Tony Fernández.

Toronto Blue Jays

Joe Carter is a member of the Toronto Blue Jays' Level of Excellence.

Carter's overall game improved dramatically in 1991, as he helped the Toronto Blue Jays win the division title and hit the game-winning single that clinched the AL East Championship; he also emerged for the first time as a team leader. In 1992, he helped the Jays win their first World Series championship, the first ever won by a Canadian-based team. Carter hit two home runs and recorded the final out of the Series, taking a throw to first base from reliever Mike Timlin to nab Otis Nixon of the Atlanta Braves.

1993 World Series

In 1993, the Blue Jays reached the World Series again, facing the Philadelphia Phillies. In Game 6, with the Blue Jays leading three games to two, Carter came to bat with one out in the bottom of the ninth inning with the Blue Jays trailing 6–5 and Rickey Henderson and Paul Molitor on base. On a 2–2 count, Carter hit a three-run walk-off home run off Phillies pitcher Mitch Williams (against whom he was 0–4 career) to win the World Series, only the second time a Series has ended with a home run (the other being in 1960, when Bill Mazeroski did it for the Pittsburgh Pirates against the New York Yankees), and the only time the home run has been hit by a player whose team was trailing in the bottom of the 9th inning in a potential championship clinching game. Upon hitting the home run, Carter went into a hysteria, jumping up and down many times most notably rounding first base, where his helmet came off from the dancing. Tom Cheek, radio broadcaster for the Blue Jays at the time, then went on to say "Touch 'em all, Joe! You'll never hit a bigger home run in your life!"

Now the 2–2. Well hit, down the left field line! Way back and gone! Joe Carter with a three-run homer! The winners—and still world champions—the Toronto Blue Jays!

—CBS Sports announcer Sean McDonough.

Here's the pitch on the way, a swing and a belt! Left field! Way back! Blue Jays win it! The Blue Jays are World Series champions as Joe Carter hits a three-run home run in the ninth inning and the Blue Jays have repeated as World Series Champions! Touch 'em all, Joe, you'll never hit a bigger home run in your life!

—Blue Jays radio announcer Tom Cheek.

The 2–2 pitch, line drive in deep left, this ball is outta here. Three-run home run, Joe Carter, and the Toronto Blue Jays are the world champions of baseball for the second straight year. A three-run home run in the bottom of the ninth by Joe Carter who's being mobbed at home plate.

—Phillies radio announcer Harry Kalas.

Carter has the unique honor of being the first person to score a run in a World Series outside of the United States (Game 3, 1992 World Series) and the last person to do so (Game 6, 1993 World Series), a distinction that will remain in place until Toronto wins the American League pennant again (in 1993 there were two Canadian teams, but the Montreal Expos never reached a World Series and exist today as the Washington Nationals). He is also the only player ever to both record the final out in one World Series, and get a series-clinching walk-off hit in another.

1994-1997

On July 14, 1994, Carter wore a jersey with the "n" and second "t" in "Toronto" reversed for six innings during a game against the Texas Rangers. Carter continued to play for the Blue Jays until 1997, and led the Blue Jays in home runs and RBIs in 1994 and 1995.

When he represented the Blue Jays at the 1996 All-Star Game, he received boos for his home run that won the Blue Jays the 1993 World Series, as the game took place at Veterans Stadium, then the home of the Philadelphia Phillies.

Baltimore Orioles and San Francisco Giants

He became a free agent in 1998 played briefly for the Baltimore Orioles and San Francisco Giants before retiring. Carter ended his career by popping out to end the game in a one game playoff against the Chicago Cubs.[1]

Career statistics

Carter was named to five All-Star teams. In his career he hit 396 home runs and drove in 1445 runs. He drove in 100 runs in a season ten times, including the 1994 year, which was cut short due to the strike that happened about 144 games into the year. He was the first player to record 100 RBI for three different teams in three consecutive seasons. In 1993, while a Toronto Blue Jay, Joe set an American League record when he hit 3 home runs in a game for the fifth time in his career. (The record was tied 10 years later by another Blue Jay - Carlos Delgado.)

Carter was also involved in the final plays of four games in which the Blue Jays clinched a championship: 1) The game-winning single to clinch the 1991 American League East Division championship, 2) catching the final out at first base in the 1992 World Series, 3) catching the final out on a fly ball to right field in the 1993 American League Championship Series, and 4) the walk-off home run in Game 6 of the 1993 World Series.

Post retirement

From 1999-2000 Carter served as announcer for the Toronto Blue Jays on CTV Sportsnet, leaving to work for the Cubs. From 2001–2002 Carter served as the color commentator, alongside play-by-play man Chip Caray, for the Chicago Cubs on WGN-TV. Carter was replaced by the man whom Carter himself replaced, Steve Stone.

Carter became eligible for the Baseball Hall of Fame in 2003, however, he only received 19 votes, representing 3.8% of the vote and was dropped from future ballots.

Carter was inducted into the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame.

In September 2006, Carter was awarded the Major League Baseball Hometown Heroes Award as the former or current player who best represents the legacy of his franchise's history, as voted by fans.

In 2008, Carter appeared on an episode of Pros vs. Joes.

On August 7, 2009, Carter - along with many of his 1992 & 1993 Toronto Blue Jay World Series alumni teammates, attended a reunion/pre-game ceremony at the Rogers Centre (formerly known as Skydome). The event was organized by Carter himself and included three dozen players, coaches and athletic trainers from the 1992 and 1993 World Series Champion Toronto Blue Jay roster.

See also

• List of top 300 Major League Baseball home run hitters
• List of major league players with 2,000 hits
• List of Major League Baseball players with 400 doubles
• List of Major League Baseball players with 1000 runs
• List of Major League Baseball players with 1000 RBI
• List of Major League Baseball leaders in career stolen bases
• 30-30 club
• List of Major League Baseball RBI champions

External links

• Career statistics and player information from Baseball-Reference, or Fangraphs, or The Baseball Cube
• The Sporting News' Baseball's 25 Greatest Moments: Carter's Swing Beats the Wild Thing
• Radio play-by-play of Tom Cheek calling Joe Carter's 1993 World Series winning home run
• Video of Carter's 1993 World Series winning home run called by Tom Cheek from MLB.com
• Video of Carter's 1993 World Series winning home run called by Sean McDonough from MLB.com
• Video of "Baseball's Best Moments" segment on Joe Carter's 1993 World Series winning home run, including Carter's recollections of it, from MLB.com
• Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History and Culture - Carter, Joe
• The Annual Joe Carter Classic Golf Tournament - benefitting The Children's Aid Foundation

Preceded by Don Mattingly	American League RBI Champion 1986	Succeeded by George Bell
Preceded by Rubén Sierra Chris Hoiles	American League Player of the Month June 1991 April 1994	Succeeded by Robin Ventura Frank Thomas
Preceded by Steve Stone	Chicago Cubs Television Color Commentator 2001–2002	Succeeded by Steve Stone
Preceded by Otis Nixon	Last hitter of the World Series (3 run home run) 1993	Succeeded by Carlos Baerga