Curtis Pride

Curtis Pride
Outfielder
Born: December 17, 1968 (1968-12-17) (age 42)
Batted: Left	Threw: Right
MLB debut
September 14, 1993 for the Montreal Expos
Last MLB appearance
October 1, 2006 for the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim
Career statistics
Batting average	.250
Home runs	20
Runs batted in	82
Teams
Montreal Expos (1993, 1995) Detroit Tigers (1996–1997) Boston Red Sox (1997) Atlanta Braves (1998) Boston Red Sox (2000) Montreal Expos (2001) New York Yankees (2003) Anaheim Angels / Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim (2004–2006)
Career highlights and awards
1996 Tony Conigliaro Award

Curtis John Pride (born December 17, 1968 in Washington, D.C.) is a former Major League Baseball outfielder and is currently the head baseball coach at Gallaudet University. Pride stands at 6'0" tall and weighs 210 pounds. He batted left-handed and threw right-handed.

Youth

Deaf at birth from rubella, Pride developed oral skills early in his life and graduated from John F. Kennedy High School in Silver Spring, Maryland. He excelled in baseball, basketball and soccer in high school. After high school, Pride attended the College of William and Mary. He played for the baseball team and was also the starting point guard on the basketball team. He also was an excellent soccer player who played for the United States at the 1985 FIFA U-16 World Championship in China (1985), scored two goals in the tournament, including the match winner against Bolivia.^[1] He was named one of the top 15 youth prospects in the world for that year and was a 1986 Parade Magazine High School All American soccer player.^[2] Pride uses his 5% residual hearing to help him speak and is a fluent lip-reader.

Career

Pride was originally signed by the New York Mets, but reached the major leagues with Montreal in 1993. At that time, he became the first deaf player in the majors since Dick Sipek in 1945. A left-handed hitter, with good plate discipline, and considerable speed, he never played regularly in the majors. Instead, he pinch hit or played in the outfield, usually left or right, as an injury replacement, and is regarded as an excellent fielder with a strong arm. His first Major League hit was 23 September 1993 in Montreal.^[3]

Pride became a free agent before the 1996 season and signed with Detroit, where he played well in a part-time outfield role. With fewer than 300 plate appearances in 95 games, he compiled career-high numbers in batting average (.300), home runs (10), RBI (31), runs (52), hits (80), doubles (17) triples (5) and stolen bases (11), and expected to gain more at bats in future seasons as a result. But 1997 found him on the disabled list, and he was released and signed by the Red Sox. After that, he played with the Braves, returned to Boston and Montreal, and saw a little action with the Yankees. He was signed by the Angels in the 2004 season and was called up from Triple-A Salt Lake. In 2005, he was signed to a minor league contract with the Angels, and was called up after an injury to Vladimir Guerrero. He was returned to the minors after Guerrero recovered from the injury. After spending 2007, spring training as a non-roster invitee for the Angels, he was assigned to start the 2007 season as a member of the Salt Lake Bees.

Pride with The President's Council on Fitness, Sports and Nutrition in 2011

Pride signed with the Southern Maryland Blue Crabs of the independent Atlantic League on April 15, 2008. He was released by the Blue Crabs on August 23.

In an eleven-season major league career, Pride batted .250 (199-for-796) with 20 home runs and 82 RBI in 421 major league games.

Coaching career

In 2008, Pride was selected to be the baseball coach at Gallaudet University.

Personal life

When he is not playing baseball, Pride and with his wife Lisa are actively involved in the Together With Pride foundation, which aids hearing impaired children through a hearing aid bank, according to the foundation's website. There are several activities the foundation supports or hopes to support, such as a scholarship program, literacy, and mentoring.

In 1996, Pride received the Tony Conigliaro Award, given annually to an MLB player who best overcomes adversity through the attributes of spirit, determination and courage. He keeps homes in both the Washington, D.C. area and Wellington, Florida.

References

1. ^ FIFA player profile
2. ^ 1986 Parade Magazine High School All American Soccer Team
3. ^ http://keynotespeakers.com/speaker_detail.php?speakerid=4765

External links

• Career statistics and player information from MLB, or ESPN, or Baseball-Reference, or Fangraphs, or The Baseball Cube
• Together with Pride website
• Minor League Splits and Situational Stats
• FIFA: Curtis Pride

Persondata
Name	Pride, Curtis
Alternative names
Short description
Date of birth	December 17, 1968
Place of birth	Washington D.C.
Date of death
Place of death