Jim Eisenreich

Infobox MLB retired
bgcolor1=#15317E
bgcolor2=#15317E
textcolor1=white
textcolor2=white
name=Jim Eisenreich
position=Outfielder / First Baseman
bats=Left
throws=Left
debutdate=April 6
debutyear=1982
debutteam=Minnesota Twins
finaldate=September 26
finalyear=1998
finalteam=Los Angeles Dodgers
stat1label=Batting average
stat1value=.290
stat2label=Stolen bases
stat2value=105
stat3label=Runs
stat3value=492
teams=
*Minnesota Twins (1982–1984)
*Kansas City Royals (1987–1992)
*Philadelphia Phillies (1993–1996)
*Florida Marlins (1997–by|1998)
*Los Angeles Dodgers (by|1998)
highlights=
*National League pennant: 1993, 1997
*World Series champion: 1997

James Michael Eisenreich (pronEng|ˈaɪ̪zɨnˌɹaɪ̪k; born April 18, 1959 in St. Cloud, Minnesota) is an American former Major League Baseball player with a 15-year career from 1982–1984 and 1987–1998. He played for the Minnesota Twins and Kansas City Royals of the American League, and the Philadelphia Phillies, Florida Marlins and Los Angeles Dodgers of the National League.He played first base, outfield and designated hitter.

Major League career

In 1993, his first year with the Phillies, Eisenreich put together one of his best years, batting .318 and helping the Phillies to win the National League pennant. As the Phillies began their slide the next year (1994), Eisenreich was one of the team's few bright spots, batting .361 for the last place Phillies in 1996.

Eisenreich is notable as being part of arguably one of the biggest baseball trades in the 90s. On May 14, 1998, Eisenreich was traded from the Florida Marlins, with Bobby Bonilla, Gary Sheffield, Charles Johnson, and Manuel Barrios, to the Los Angeles Dodgers for Todd Zeile and catcher Mike Piazza.

Eisenreich was infamous in Los Angeles for his long time domination of Dodger pitching staffs, despite those staffs being among the best in baseball throughout his career. His .405 batting average and .620 slugging percentage absolutely dwarf his other career numbers and rank among the most successful of any one player against any one team. [ [http://www.baseball-reference.com/pi/bsplit.cgi?n1=eisenji01&year=00 Jim Eisenreich Career Batting Splits - Baseball-Reference PI ] ]

Personal life

Eisenreich has Tourette syndrome (TS); [ [http://www.tourettes.org/ Jim Eisenreich Foundation.] Retrieved on 2006-02-18.] his condition caused him to go on to the voluntary retirement list between 1984 and 1987 while he was undergoing treatment. Eisenreich was replaced on the Twins roster by Kirby Puckett, who became one of baseball's superstars in the late 1980s to mid-1990s. In by|1990, he was the first player to receive the then-newly instituted Tony Conigliaro Award, which is given annually to a Major League Baseball player who has overcome a significant obstacle (in Eisenreich's case, Tourettes) in his lifetime. Eisenreich now dedicates his time to helping improve the lives of children with TS.

Eisenreich resides in the Kansas City area with his wife Leann and four children; Lauren, Tyler, Zachary and Matthew. They run the Jim Eisenreich Foundation for Children with Tourette Syndrome which they founded in 1996. It helps children with TS to achieve personal success.

References

External links

*Jim Eisenreich at:
** [http://www.baseball-reference.com/e/eisenji01.shtml Baseball Reference]