Rafael Furcal
| Rafael Furcal | |
|---|---|
 Furcal takes the field for the Dodgers in 2010 |
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| St. Louis Cardinals – No. 15 | |
| Shortstop | |
| Born: October 24, 1977 Loma de Cabrera, Dominican Republic |
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| Bats: Switch | Throws: Right |
| MLB debut | |
| April 4, 2000 for the Atlanta Braves | |
| Career statistics (through 2011 Season) |
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| Batting average | .282 |
| Hits | 1,685 |
| Home runs | 108 |
| RBI | 536 |
| Stolen bases | 302 |
| Teams | |
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| Career highlights and awards | |
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Rafael Antonio Furcal[1] (born October 24, 1977 in Loma de Cabrera, Dominican Republic),[2] is a Major League Baseball shortstop who is currently with the St. Louis Cardinals.[3]
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[edit] Early career
Furcal attended Jose Cabrera High School and was signed as an undrafted free agent by the Atlanta Braves on November 9, 1996.
He began his professional career as a second baseman with the Gulf Coast Braves in 1997. The following season, with the Danville Braves he hit .328 and stole a league record 60 bases in only 66 games. He was named Danville's Player of the Year and Appalachian League All-Star Second Baseman.
In 1999, he switched to shortstop and joined the Macon Braves in "A" ball and hit .337 with 73 stolen bases in 83 games. He was transferred to the advanced "A" team in Myrtle Beach and hit .293 for them with 23 steals in 43 games. He led all of minor league baseball with 96 steals total. He was named to Baseball America's first team All-Star team and the South Atlantic League All-Star team. In addition, he was the Braves Minor League Player of the Year, the South Atlantic League Most Outstanding Prospect and a Class A All-Star.
[edit] Major league career
[edit] Atlanta Braves
An injury to Braves shortstop Walt Weiss prior to the 2000 season led to Furcal improbably making the jump from "A" ball to the Major League roster. He made his Major League debut on April 4, 2000 against the Colorado Rockies, getting 2 hits in 4 at-bats. His first hit was against Rockies pitcher Rolando Arrojo.
Furcal went on to hit .295 with 40 stolen bases for the Braves and won the National League Rookie of the Year Award that year.
He missed most of the 2001 season because of a dislocated left shoulder, suffered while stealing second base in a July 6 game at Boston.
Returned to the starting lineup in 2002 and tied a modern Major League record with three triples in a game on April 21 against Florida.
Furcal completed an unassisted triple play for the Braves against the St. Louis Cardinals on August 10, 2003. It was the 12th in baseball history. In the fifth inning, the shortstop caught pitcher Woody Williams' liner with the runners moving in a hit and run attempt, stepped on second base to retire catcher Mike Matheny and tagged Orlando Palmeiro before he could return to first.[4] Still, at the end of the year he led all Major League shortstops with 31 errors, and had the lowest fielding percentage among them (.959).
He was selected to the National League All-Star Team as a reserve in 2003.
In his final season with the Braves, he violated probation on a drunken driving charge, and was ordered to serve 21 days in jail. In an unusual arrangement, the beginning of the jail term was contingent upon the Braves' situation on the playoffs. Once the Braves were eliminated from post-season action, Furcal served his time.[5]
[edit] Los Angeles Dodgers
On December 7, 2005, Furcal signed a free agent contract with the Los Angeles Dodgers for three years and $39 million. In September 2006 Furcal was selected as the inaugural winner of the Roy Campanella Award, given to the Dodgers player who best exemplifies the spirit and leadership of the late Hall of Fame catcher. The award was voted on by only his fellow teammates.
In May 2007, he became one of only five Major League players to get 4 hits in 3 consecutive games.
Early in 2008, he suffered a back injury that kept him sidelined for most of the season, not returning until right before the playoffs started.
In the fifth inning of Game Five the 2008 National League Championship Series against the Philadelphia Phillies, Furcal made three errors to set records for most errors in one NLCS inning and game. He was just the second player to make three errors in one postseason inning. No shortstop had made three errors in one playoff game since Buck Weaver in the 1917 World Series. Two of the errors came on the same play as Furcal booted a routine groundball hit by Pat Burrell and then airmailed his throw behind home plate in a failed attempt to prevent Chase Utley from scoring.[6]
On December 19, 2008, after speculation that he would re-sign with the Braves as a free agent, Furcal signed a 3-year $30 million contract to stay with the Dodgers.[7]
Furcal struggled in the first year of his new contract, hitting only .269 for the Dodgers in 2009. His on-base plus slugging of .711 was also below his career average of .757.[8]
Furcal was added to the 2010 National League All-Star team as a reserve after New York Mets shortstop José Reyes suffered an injury and was forced to withdraw. Furcal walked in his only at bat in the game. Due to injuries he only appeared in 97 games for the Dodgers in 2010, but finished with a .300 batting average and stole 22 bases.
In 2011, he spent more time on the disabled list than the active roster for the Dodgers, appearing in just 37 games, during which he hit only .197.
[edit] St. Louis Cardinals
Furcal was traded along with cash considerations to the St. Louis Cardinals on July 30, 2011 for AA outfielder Alex Castellanos. In 50 games with the Cardinals, he hit .255 with 7 home runs. In the 2011 World Series, he only hit .179 but picked up his first championship ring when the Cards won the series by beating the Texas Rangers in seven games.[3][9]
On October 31st, 2011, the St. Louis Cardinals declined his $12 million option for 2012.
On December 10th, 2011, the St. Louis Cardinals signed Furcal to a 2-year deal worth $14m, pending a physical
[edit] Offseason
During the offseason Furcal plays for the Aguilas Cibaeñas and resides in Santiago, Dominican Republic with his family.
[edit] See also
- List of Major League Baseball leaders in career stolen bases
- List of Major League Baseball triples champions
- Players from Dominican Republic in MLB
[edit] References
- ^ "ESPN – Rafael Furcal Stats, News, Photos – Los Angeles Dodgers – MLB Baseball". ESPN. http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/players/profile?statsId=6404. Retrieved September 16, 2007.
- ^ "Rafael Furcal Statistics". Baseball-Reference.com. http://www.baseball-reference.com/f/furcara02.shtml. Retrieved September 16, 2007.
- ^ a b "Cards Seal Deal for Furcal". St. Louis Post/StL Today. July 31, 2011. http://www.stltoday.com/sports/baseball/professional/article_c10621c9-f333-5444-982a-de160b1aa923.html. Retrieved July 31, 2011.
- ^ "Braves' Furcal turns rare unassisted triple play". Associated Press. SI.com. http://cnnsi.printthis.clickability.com/pt/cpt?action=cpt&expire=&urlID=7179040&fb=Y&url=http%3A%2F%2Fsportsillustrated.cnn.com%2Fbaseball%2Fnews%2F2003%2F08%2F10%2Funassisted_tripleplay_ap%2F&partnerID=2300. Retrieved August 20, 2007.
- ^ "Furcal begins serving 21-day stint". Associated Press. ESPN.com. October 12, 2004. http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/print?id=1900422&type=story.
- ^ Dodgers undone by poor fundamentals MLB.com
- ^ "Dodgers sign shortstop Rafael Furcal to three-year contract". Losangeles.dodgers.mlb.com. http://losangeles.dodgers.mlb.com/news/press_releases/press_release.jsp?ymd=20081219&content_id=3723906&vkey=pr_la&fext=.jsp&c_id=la. Retrieved October 9, 2011.
- ^ "Rafael Furcal Stats". Baseball-reference.com. http://www.baseball-reference.com/players/f/furcara02.shtml. Retrieved October 9, 2011.
- ^ Cardinals get Furcal in another 'win-now' deal MLB.com
[edit] External links
 |
Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Rafael Furcal |
- Career statistics and player information from MLB, or ESPN, or Baseball-Reference, or Fangraphs, or The Baseball Cube, or Baseball-Reference (Minors)
| Awards | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Scott Williamson |
National League Rookie of the Year 2000 |
Succeeded by Albert Pujols |
| Preceded by Carlos Beltran |
Baseball America Rookie of the Year 2000 |
Succeeded by Albert Pujols |
| Preceded by Preston Wilson |
Sporting News NL Rookie of the Year 2000 |
Succeeded by Albert Pujols |
| Preceded by Preston Wilson |
Players Choice NL Most Outstanding Rookie 2000 |
Succeeded by Albert Pujols |
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- 1977 births
- Living people
- Major League Baseball second basemen
- Major League Baseball shortstops
- Major League Baseball players from the Dominican Republic
- Atlanta Braves players
- Los Angeles Dodgers players
- St. Louis Cardinals players
- Major League Baseball Rookie of the Year Award winners
- National League All-Stars
- All-Star Futures Game players
- Águilas Cibaeñas players
- Gulf Coast Braves players
- Danville Braves players
- Macon Braves players
- Myrtle Beach Pelicans players
- Greenville Braves players
- Inland Empire 66ers of San Bernardino players
- Las Vegas 51s players
- Albuquerque Isotopes players
- Rancho Cucamonga Quakes players
