Nate Colbert

Nate Colbert
First baseman
Born: April 9, 1946 (1946-04-09) (age 65) St. Louis, Missouri
Batted: Right	Threw: Right
MLB debut
April 14, 1966 for the Houston Astros
Last MLB appearance
October 1, 1976 for the Oakland Athletics
Career statistics
Batting average	.243
Home runs	173
Runs batted in	520
Teams
Houston Astros (1966, 1968) San Diego Padres (1969–1974) Detroit Tigers (1975) Montreal Expos (1975–1976) Oakland Athletics (1976)
Career highlights and awards
3× All-Star selection (1971, 1972, 1973)

Nathan Colbert Jr. (born April 9, 1946 in St. Louis, Missouri), is a former American Major League Baseball player who was a first baseman with the Houston Astros (1966, 1968), San Diego Padres (1969–74), Detroit Tigers (1975), Montreal Expos (1975–76) and Oakland Athletics (1976).

Signed by his hometown St. Louis Cardinals as an amateur free agent in 1964, Colbert saw some action with the Houston Astros in 1966 and 1968 before being selected by the Padres in the December 1968 expansion draft. In 1969, the Padres' inaugural season, and his first full season in the big leagues, Colbert hit 24 homers, which led the club in home runs, and drove in 66 runs while batting .255. He was a National League All-Star from 1971 to 1973. Colbert's best day in the majors was August 1, 1972, when he slammed 5 home runs - one of two players to have done so - and drove in 13 runs in a doubleheader, breaking Stan Musial's record of 11 runs batted in. Coincidentally, a young Nate had attended the game where Stan originally set the record. This helped the Padres sweep the Atlanta Braves, 9-0 and 11-7.

Colbert's .508 slugging percentage, 87 runs, 286 total bases, 38 home runs, 111 RBIs, 70 walks, 67 extra-base hits, 14 intentional walks and 14.8 at bats per home run helped him finish eighth in voting for the NL MVP in 1972. He finished second only to the Cincinnati Reds' Johnny Bench (40) in home runs that year. His 111 RBIs also set a record that still stands for driving in the highest percentage of his team's runs. Throughout his career with the Padres from 1969 to 1974, he often was the only bright spot in an otherwise dismal San Diego lineup. After hitting .207 in 1974, he was traded to the Detroit Tigers in a three-way deal. Colbert also played for the Montreal Expos and Oakland Athletics before back problems forced his retirement at 30. Colbert played on nine consecutive last-place teams, from 1968–1976.

Colbert was the first real star for the Padres and also played a solid first base.^{[citation needed]} Colbert is the San Diego Padres all-time home run leader with 163.

References

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

Persondata
Name	Colbert, Nate
Alternative names
Short description
Date of birth	April 9, 1946
Place of birth	St. Louis, Missouri
Date of death
Place of death