- Brian Ostrosser
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Brian Ostrosser Shortstop Born: June 17, 1949
Hamilton, OntarioBatted: Left Threw: Right MLB debut August 5, 1973 for the New York Mets Last MLB appearance August 13, 1973 for the New York Mets Career statistics Batting average .000 Home runs 0 Runs batted in 0 Teams Career highlights and awards - 4 Major League games
- 5 Major League at bats
- 1.000 Major League fielding percentage; 1 putout, 4 assists, no errors
- National League pennant: 1973
Brian Leonard Ostrosser (born June 17, 1949 in Hamilton, Ontario) was a Major League Baseball shortstop who played for the New York Mets in 1973. He played 4 games for the that season when injuries to several players left the team short of infielders.
He had a 1.000 fielding percentage fielding 5 chances without an error.[1] Although the Mets won the National League pennant in 1973 he was not on the postseason roster. He is one of the few Canadians to have played for the Mets.[2]
In 1974 he was traded to the Cleveland Indians for Dwain Anderson, but never played a Major League game for the Indians.[1]
Professional career
After signing with the Mets in 1970, Ostrosser played with both the Rookie League Marion Mets and the Class A Pompano Beach Mets that year. He spent the 1971 season with Pompano Beach, and was promoted to the Class AA Memphis Blues of the Texas League in 1972. As Memphis' starting shortstop Ostrosser had a .262 batting average in 470 at bats. He only had 21 extra base hits for a .323 slugging percentage but his 71 walks produced a solid .370 on-base percentage.[3] He led Texas League shortstops in fielding in 1972, and developed a reputation as an outstanding defensive shortstop.[4]
He played for Class AAA Tidewater Tides briefly in 1972 and most of 1973. With Tidewater in 1973 Ostrosser had a batting average of .230 in 283 at bats. His slugging percentage was just .297 but again a large number of walks (47 in this case) produced a solid on-base percentage of .354.[3]
It was during the 1973 that Ostrosser was briefly called up to the New York Mets to replace injured Met shortstop Bud Harrelson.[5] He made his major league debut against the St. Louis Cardinals on August 5, 1973, going 0 for 2, striking out twice.[1] He also played two games against the San Francisco Giants before his final Major League game on August 13, 1973 against the San Diego Padres.[6] He did not get a hit in any of the 5 at bats he received during his 4 game stint with the Mets.
In 1974 Ostrosser played again for Tidewater but had a batting average of just .192 in 172 at bats with no home runs. Even another impressive walk total of 32 relative to his at bats brought his on-base percentage only up to .332.[3] After being traded to the Cleveland Indians on June 21, 1974, Ostrosser played for the Oklahoma City 89ers.[7] There he played 59 games at third base and only 11 games at shortstop, since the 89ers used future Major Leaguer Tom McMillan as their regular shortstop.[8] He batted .261 for the 89ers in 1974 with a slugging percentage of .279 and an on base percentage of .332.[8] In 1975, still with the 89ers, played just 63 games, mostly at third base, where he batted just .202 with a slugging percentage of .230 and an on-base percentage of .344, ending his career.[8]
References
- ^ a b c Brian Ostrosser Statistics - Baseball-Reference.com
- ^ Major League Baseball Players Born in Canada
- ^ a b c Ultimate Mets Database - Brian Ostrosser
- ^ Vass, George (March 1973). "Exclusive Scouting Reports on 1973 Major League Rookies". Baseball Digest: p. 88. http://books.google.com/books?id=4zEDAAAAMBAJ&printsec=frontcover&source=gbs_summary_r&cad=0_0#PPA88,M1.
- ^ "Foli Rejoins Expos". The Star Phoenix: p. 24. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=MzhgAAAAIBAJ&sjid=AnANAAAAIBAJ&pg=2126,1436962&dq=brian+ostrosser&hl=en.
- ^ Ultimate Mets Database - Brian Ostrosser
- ^ Ultimate Mets Database - Brian Ostrosser
- ^ a b c "Brian Ostrosser Minor Leagues". Baseball-Reference. Sports Reference LLC. http://www.baseball-reference.com/minors/player.cgi?id=ostros001bri. Retrieved 2009-04-14.
Categories:- People from Hamilton, Ontario
- 1949 births
- Major League Baseball players from Canada
- Pompano Beach Mets players
- Memphis Blues players
- Marion Mets players
- Tidewater Tides players
- Oklahoma City 89ers players
- Living people
- Major League Baseball shortstops
- Baseball people from Ontario
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