Greg Vaughn

Infobox MLB retired


width=165
name=Greg Vaughn
position=Outfielder / DH
bats=Right
throws=Right
birthdate=birth date and age|1965|7|3
city-state|Sacramento|California
debutdate=August 10
debutyear=by|1989
debutteam=Milwaukee Brewers
finaldate=July 10
finalyear=by|2003
finalteam=Colorado Rockies
stat1label=Batting average
stat1value=.242
stat2label=Home runs
stat2value=355
stat3label=Run batted in
stat3value=1,072
teams=
* Milwaukee Brewers (by|1989-by|1996)
* San Diego Padres (by|1996-by|1998)
* Cincinnati Reds (by|1999)
* Tampa Bay Devil Rays (by|2000-by|2002)
* Colorado Rockies (by|2003)
highlights=
* 4x All-Star selection (1993, 1996, 1998, 2001)
* Silver Slugger Award winner (1998)
* 1998 NL Comeback Player of the Year

Gregory Lamont Vaughn (born July 3, 1965) is a former Major League Baseball left fielder and right-handed batter who played for the Milwaukee Brewers (1989-96), San Diego Padres (1996-98), Cincinnati Reds (1999), Tampa Bay Devil Rays (2000-02) and Colorado Rockies (2003). He was born in Sacramento, California, where he attended Kennedy High. He then attended the University of Miami's heralded baseball program. He is the cousin of fellow former Major Leaguer, Mo Vaughn.

Vaughn was selected by the Brewers in the first round (4th pick) of the 1986 amateur draft. A slugger whose batting average dropped below .250 as often as rising above it, he compensated with excellent power. He had three seasons with at least 100 runs batted in, and four with 30 or more home runs - including the legendary by|1998 season, when he hit 50 to finish 4th in the major leagues behind Ken Griffey, Jr., Sammy Sosa, and Mark McGwire, who set the home run record that season. In 1999, he became the first and only player in major league history to be traded after a 50-homer season when the Padres traded him to the Cincinnati Reds. With the Reds in 1999, he hit 45 homers and became the second player in major league history to hit 40 or more homers in consecutive seasons with two different teams (one year after Andres Galarraga became the first).

Throughout his career, Vaughn batted .242 with 355 home runs, 1072 RBI, 1017 runs, 1475 hits, 284 doubles, 23 triples and 121 stolen bases in 1731 games.

For his career, Vaughn has one of the worst strikeout-walk ratios of all time. His propensity to strikeout routinely prevented him from consideration as one of his generation's elite players, despite enormous production numbers. Largely because of his propensity to strikeout, he was designated ESPN's Least valuable player (LVP) of the Half-Year during the 2002 season, [cite web |url=http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/print?id=1403014&type=columnist|title=Handing out halfway hardware|accessdate=2008-09-08 |work=ESPN.com |publisher= |date= ] largely because of his inability to put the ball in play.

See also

* MLB players who have hit 30 or more home runs before the All-Star break
* 50 home run club
* Top 500 home run hitters of all time
* List of Major League Baseball players with 1000 runs
* List of Major League Baseball players with 1000 RBI
* Major League Baseball hitters with three home runs in one game
* Tampa Bay Devil Rays all-time roster

References

External links

*baseballstats|br=v/vaughgr01 |fangraphs=1233 |cube=V/greg-vaughn
* [http://z.lee28.tripod.com/sbnsstraightfromthesource/id23.html/ Simply-Baseball-Notebook.com: Baseball is Fun Again for Vaughn]