Orestes Destrade

Orestes Destrade
First baseman
Born: (1962-05-08) May 8, 1962 Santiago de Cuba, Cuba
Batted: Switch	Threw: Right
MLB debut
September 11, 1987 for the New York Yankees
Last MLB appearance
May 24, 1994 for the Florida Marlins
Career statistics
Batting average	.241
Home runs	26
Runs batted in	106
Teams
New York Yankees (1987) Pittsburgh Pirates (1988) Seibu Lions (1989-1992) (NPB) Florida Marlins (1993-1994) Seibu Lions (1995) (NPB)
Career highlights and awards
Member of the Florida Marlins 1993 Inaugural Season Led Pacific League in HR x3 (1990–1992) Led Pacific League in RBI x2 (1990, 1991) Best Nine Award x3 (1990–1992)

Orestes Cucuas Destrade (born May 8, 1962), is a former Major League Baseball infielder.

Biography

Destrade was born in Santiago de Cuba, Cuba, but emigrated to the United States with his family at the age of six. During his youth, he played Khoury League at Flagami Park (Today's Brother's to the Rescue Park) in Miami. He graduated from Christopher Columbus High School in Miami. He later attended Florida College.

Professional baseball career

After college, he played many seasons in the minor leagues before a his career at the major league level: Called up in September of 1987 with the New York Yankees, called up 1988 with the Pittsburgh Pirates, and 1993 and 1994 for the Florida Marlins. He also played 5 seasons (1989–1992 and 1995) for the Seibu Lions of the Japanese Pacific League, where he led the league in home runs for three consecutive years. Randy Johnson struck out Destrade for Johnson's first major league strikeout.

Broadcasting career

Destrade appeared on ESPN's Baseball Tonight. He provided color commentary for the 2006 World Baseball Classic and broadcasted again with the 2009 World Baseball Classic for ESPN. He helped broadcast the 2007, 2008 & 2009 Little League World Series. Until April 2007 he was co-host of XM Radio's Baseball This Morning show on MLB Home Plate, XM channel 175, along with Buck Martinez and Mark Patrick. Destrade also worked as an on-field reporter during the Tampa Bay Rays' 2010 postseason celebration after clinching a playoff spot. As of May 2011, he is a contributor to Rays radio and TV broadcasts as an analyst. He co-hosts the program Rays Live which airs as the pre and post-game analysis.

Personal life

Orestes is married and is the father of 4 children: Danielle, Devin, Armando, and Isabella.

External links

• Career statistics and player information from Baseball-Reference
• Career statistics and player information from Fangraphs
• Career statistics and player information from The Baseball Cube