Warren Cromartie

Infobox MLB retired
bgcolor1=#EE1422
bgcolor2=#083884
textcolor1=white
textcolor2=white
name=Warren Cromartie


position=Outfielder/First baseman
bats=Left
throws=Left
birthdate=birth date and age|1953|9|29
debutdate=September 6
debutyear=1974
debutteam=Montreal Expos
finaldate=September 15
finalyear=1991
finalteam=Kansas City Royals
stat1label=AVG
stat1value=.281
stat2label=Hits
stat2value=1,104
stat3label=Runs
stat3value=459
teams=
*Montreal Expos (by|1974-by|1983)
*Yomiuri Giants (by|1984-by|1990) (NPB)
*Kansas City Royals (by|1991)
highlights=
*Led NL in Intentional Walks (24) in 1980

Warren Livingston Cromartie (born September 29, 1953, in Miami Beach, Florida) is a retired American baseball player.

He debuted with the Montreal Expos of the Major Leagues on September 6, 1974 after being picked 6th in the 1973 amateur draft. Expectations were high for the outfielder, but he was, in his own words, "a .300 hitter on a team of superstars." On December 28, 1983, the then-30-year old Cromartie signed with the Yomiuri Giants of Tokyo, Japan. Cromartie was perhaps the most prominent American player still in his prime to sign with a Japanese baseball team. Cromartie spent seven seasons with the Giants. In 1989, he had a .378 batting average with 15 home runs and 78 RBI and was named MVP of the Central League. In 1991, he returned to Major League Baseball, playing with the Kansas City Royals where he hit .313 in limited action. Cromartie was the manager of the Japan Samurai Bears, an all-Japanese team in the independent U.S. Golden Baseball League which existed for one season.

Popular culture

In 2005, Cromartie sued the makers of a film based on the manga/anime series "Cromartie High School" in Japanese court. The series does not feature Cromartie himself but does depict students who "smoke, fight with students from other schools and are depicted as ruffians" which he says defames his character as the school shares his name [http://mdn.mainichi-msn.co.jp/national/archive/news/2005/06/30/20050630p2a00m0na001000c.html] .

A reference to a Warren Cromartie Secondary School appears in the cover art for Rush's 1982 album "Signals".

Bibliography

* Cromartie, Warren and Robert Whiting. "Slugging It Out in Japan: An American Major-Leaguer in the Tokyo Outfield", Kodansha, 1991.

Broadcasting

* Currently hosts a radio show on 640am 'WFTL Sports' in Ft. Lauderdale, FL. "Talking Hardball with The Cro" currently airs on Saturday and Sunday during baseball season, preceding New York Yankees games. Cromartie's previous broadcasting experience includes one year (2004) as the television colour commentator for the Montreal Expos.

Filmography

* "Season of the Samurai (2006)" (himself)

Trivia

*Nicknamed "Cro", he does not want a "w" on the end.

*He mentioned once in an interview that he wanted a candy bar named after him. Shortly afterwards, he got his wish; the Cro-bar was a popular item sold at the Olympic Stadium.

ee also

* Montreal Expos all-time roster

External links

* [http://www.baseball-reference.com/c/cromawa01.shtml Baseball-reference.com]
* [http://www.baseballlibrary.com/baseballlibrary/ballplayers/C/Cromartie_Warren.stm Baseballlibrary.com]
* [http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0476014/ IMDB Reference]
* [http://www.hustlehustle.com/ HUSTLE homepage] Japanese