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Johnny Damon hit a home run in Games 3 and 4 of the [[2009 ALCS]], defeating the [[Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim]] in 6 games. When the Yankees went on to play the Philadelphia Phillies in the [[2009 World Series]], Damon got credit for stealing two bases in one play when the Phillies defense was shifted against batter [[Mark Teixeira]]. Damon got his second championship ring as the Yankees would eventually defeat the Phillies in 6 games.
Johnny Damon hit a home run in Games 3 and 4 of the [[2009 ALCS]], defeating the [[Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim]] in 6 games. When the Yankees went on to play the Philadelphia Phillies in the [[2009 World Series]], Damon got credit for stealing two bases in one play when the Phillies defense was shifted against batter [[Mark Teixeira]]. Damon got his second championship ring as the Yankees would eventually defeat the Phillies in 6 games.


Damon, after winning his second World Series, entered free agency after the 2009 season despite expressing his desire to return to the Yankees.<ref name=DamonReturn/> He insisted that the Yankees not even make him an offer, however, unless they pay him at least the $13&nbsp;million he earned for the past four years.<ref name=DamonReturn>{{cite news|url=http://www.nytimes.com/2009/08/18/sports/baseball/18damon.html?_r=3&ref=sports&pagewanted=print|title=Damon Feels Like Staying, and the Yanks Seem Willing|first=Tyler|last=Kepner|work=The New York Times |date=August 18, 2009|accessdate=August 18, 2009}}</ref> As a result of his contract demands, the Yankees signed 1B/DH [[Nick Johnson]] to a one-year/5.5MM deal, despite Damon lowering his salary demands at the last minute.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.nytimes.com/2009/12/19/sports/baseball/19yankees.html|title=In Signing Nick Johnson, Yankees Turn Johnny Damon Away|first=Tyler|last=Kepner|work=New York Times|date=December 18, 2009|accessdate=December 20, 2009}}</ref> The Yankees then signed outfielder [[Randy Winn]] to a one-year/2MM {{Clarify|date=July 2012}} deal which essentially closed the door on Damon's return to the Bronx.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/28/sports/baseball/28yankees.html|title=Its Farewell to Damon After Yanks Sign Winn|first=Tyler|last=Kepner|work=New York Times|date=January 28, 2010|accessdate=January 30, 2010}}</ref>
Damon, after winning his second World Series, entered free agency after the 2009 season despite expressing his desire to return to the Yankees.<ref name=DamonReturn/> He insisted that the Yankees not even make him an offer, however, unless they pay him at least the $13&nbsp;million he earned for the past four years.<ref name=DamonReturn>{{cite news|url=http://www.nytimes.com/2009/08/18/sports/baseball/18damon.html?_r=3&ref=sports&pagewanted=print|title=Damon Feels Like Staying, and the Yanks Seem Willing|first=Tyler|last=Kepner|work=The New York Times |date=August 18, 2009|accessdate=August 18, 2009}}</ref> As a result of his contract demands, the Yankees signed 1B/DH [[Nick Johnson]] to a one-year/5.5MM deal, despite Damon lowering his salary demands at the last minute.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.nytimes.com/2009/12/19/sports/baseball/19yankees.html|title=In Signing Nick Johnson, Yankees Turn Johnny Damon Away|first=Tyler|last=Kepner|work=New York Times|date=December 18, 2009|accessdate=December 20, 2009}}</ref> The Yankees then signed outfielder [[Randy Winn]] to a one-year/2MM {{Clarify|date=July 2012}} deal which essentially closed the door on Damon's return to the Bronx.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/28/sports/baseball/28yankees.html|title=Its Farewell to Damon After Yanks Sign Winn|first=Tyler|last=Kepner|work=New York Times|date=January 28, 2010|accessdate=January 30, 2010}}</ref>Damon realized he made a mistake but it was to late. and after his time with the yankees he never had a steady home again as his stats steadily declined.


===Detroit Tigers===
===Detroit Tigers===

Revision as of 22:19, 6 November 2012

Johnny Damon
Free agent
Outfielder
Born: (1973-11-05) November 5, 1973 (age 50)
Fort Riley, Kansas
Bats: Left
Throws: Left
debut
August 12, 1995, for the Kansas City Royals
Career statistics
(through August 1, 2012)
Batting average.284
Hits2,769
Home runs235
Runs batted in1,139
Runs scored1,668
Stolen bases408
Teams
Career highlights and awards
  • 2× All-Star (2002, 2005)
  • 2× World Series champion (2004, 2009)
  • TYIB Award: Best Postseason Moment (2009)
  • Led AL in Runs Scored (2000)
  • Led AL in Stolen Bases (2000)
  • Led MLB in Triples (2002)

Johnny David Damon (born November 5, 1973) is an American professional baseball outfielder and occasional designated hitter who is currently a free agent. In his Major League Baseball career, Damon has played for the Kansas City Royals (1995–00), Oakland Athletics (2001), Boston Red Sox (2002–05), New York Yankees (2006–09), Detroit Tigers (2010), Tampa Bay Rays (2011) and Cleveland Indians (2012).

He is currently second among active players in career triples (109), third in runs (1,668), and fourth in both hits (2,769) and stolen bases (408).[1]

Early years

Damon was born in Fort Riley, an Army base in Kansas.[2] His mother, Yome, is from Thailand, and his father, Jimmy, is American of Croatian and Irish descent.[citation needed] They met while his father, a Staff Sergeant in the United States Army, was stationed in Thailand. Damon spent much of his early childhood as an "army brat," moving to several bases from Okinawa, Japan, to West Germany before his father left the Army and settled the family in the Orlando area while Damon was still a pre-schooler.[3]

Damon was a quiet child, largely on account of a fluency disorder. "My thoughts just raced ahead of my tongue," says Damon of his problem then.[when?] "I’d sing songs as therapy, and I got better, but I just kept quiet most of the time."[4] He played in South Orange Little League as a child. Damon attended Dr. Phillips High School in Orlando when during his senior year in 1992, he was rated the top high school prospect in the country by Baseball America, was named to USA Today's High School All-America team, and was the Florida Gatorade Player of the Year. Damon also played football in high school, once getting hit by Warren Sapp and sustaining the first concussion in his life.[5]

Playing career

Kansas City Royals

Damon was selected by the Kansas City Royals in the first round (35th overall) of the 1992 amateur draft. He made his Major League debut on August 12, 1995. He played for the Royals from 1995 to 2000. He scored 104 runs in 1998 and 101 runs in 1999. One of his best seasons came in 2000 when he led the American League in runs with 136 and stolen bases with 46, as he was second in hits (214), at bats (655), and plate appearances (741).

Oakland Athletics

Damon spent 2001 with the Oakland Athletics. In a three-way trade involving the A's, Royals, and Tampa Bay Devil Rays, the A's received Damon along with pitcher Cory Lidle from the Devil Rays and second baseman Mark Ellis from the Royals. He was third in the league in at bats (644) and seventh in runs (108).

Boston Red Sox

Damon at bat for the Red Sox in spring training 2005

Damon signed a four-year, $31 million contract with the Boston Red Sox on December 21, 2001.[6] Damon was worth every penny as he helped the red sox win the world series while he was there.

In 2002 Damon led the league in triples (11), and was 3rd in infield hits (25). He became the first player selected by the fans in the inaugural American League All-Star Final Vote.[7]

On June 27, 2003, Damon became only the second major leaguer since 1900 to record three base hits in an inning, when he did so against the Florida Marlins.[8] Also, Damon suffered a head on collision with Damian Jackson. He had a concussion, while Jackson walked off the field fine.

In 2004, he was 2nd in the league in runs (123). Damon began to re-establish himself among the premier leadoff hitters and center fielders in the game. In arguably his best season in the Major Leagues, Damon batted .304 with 20 home runs and 94 RBIs, and showed improved patience at the plate. According to Damon's autobiography, he was only the 4th leadoff batter in the history of Major League Baseball to drive in more than 90 runs in a season. He was also a key player in helping the Boston Red Sox erase their eighty-six year Curse of the Bambino. In Game 7 of the 2004 ALCS, Johnny Damon hit two home runs, one of them was a grand slam, to lead the Red Sox to victory over the Yankees. In the 2004 World Series he also hit a home run as the Boston Red Sox won the series against the St. Louis Cardinals within just 4 games.

Through his 4-year career with the Red Sox (2002–2005), Damon appeared in 597 games (590 in center field and seven as a designated hitter)[9] and hit 56 home runs.[10] Of his 2476 at bats, 2259 were as leadoff hitter. Damon batted 2nd in the lineup for 156 at bats in 2002, accounting for nearly all of the rest except for occasional pinch hit. He started two games as the #3 hitter in 2004. In 2005, he had 624 at bats, and all but three leading off. He also earned his 2nd All-Star selection, starting as the American League's center fielder.[11] He led the AL with 35 infield hits,[12] and matched the 35 doubles he'd hit in 2004.[10]

New York Yankees

Damon (center) with the Yankees

On December 20, 2005, Damon signed a four-year, $52 million contract with the New York Yankees.[6] The Red Sox stood firm on a three-year contract and chose not to negotiate against a five-year deal proposed by agent Scott Boras. With the Yankees limited time offer and Boston general manager Theo Epstein's sudden resignation, Boras urgently attempted to contact team president Larry Luchino after failing to hear from the new co-general managers, but the Red Sox stood firm on their three-year offer.

Damon's signing with the Yankees led to his being subsequently vilified by many Red Sox fans because of his previously professed loyalty to the city and Red Sox organization, including his now infamous statement in May, 2005, where he claimed, "There's no way I can go play for the Yankees, but I know they're going to come after me hard. It's definitely not the most important thing to go out there for the top dollar, which the Yankees are going to offer me. It's not what I need."[13]

As the Yankees have a strict dress code for players forbidding both long hair and facial hair beyond neat mustaches, Damon had his shoulder-length "cave man" hair cut and beard shaved on December 22. Damon, who had a clean-cut appearance until his third season with the Red Sox, had been planning on cutting his hair and shaving his beard off even if he didn't sign with the Yankees, but waited until after he signed with them in order to prevent speculation.[14][15][16]

Damon with the Yankees

In a pivotal 5-game series between the Yankees and Red Sox at Fenway Park, Damon went 3-for-6 in each of the first three games, including a doubleheader on Friday August 18, and a game on Saturday August 19. Damon hit two home runs, drove in eight runs, and scored eight runs in the first three games as the Yankees won by a combined score of 39–20 and dealt a severe blow to the Red Sox 2006 play-off aspirations.

In 2006 Damon finished 3rd in runs (115) and 9th in stolen bases (25) in the AL, while hitting 24 home runs, his career high. He also tied his mark of 35 doubles from the previous two seasons.[10] He was only one of 4 players in the major leagues to hit at least 24 home runs and steal at least 24 bases.

On June 7, 2008, Damon went 6 for 6 in the Yankees 12–11 win over the Kansas City Royals, including a walk-off ground-rule double, which had bounced over the wall. He is the first Yankee to have six hits in a 9 inning game since Myril Hoag accomplished the feat in 1934.[17] Damon said in a post-game on-field interview that this was his first walk-off as a Yankee.

The Yankees placed Damon on the 15-day disabled list for the first time in his MLB career on July 6, 2008 with a bruised AC joint in his left shoulder. The injury occurred a day earlier when Damon collided with the outfield wall in an attempt to catch a triple. At that time, Damon was one of only three active major league ballplayers who had played at least 10 years in the majors without going on the disabled list. He returned to active duty, and hit 27 doubles for the season.[10] Damon hit 53 home runs in his three complete seasons with the Yankees.[10]

On July 27, 2009, Damon hit his 200th career home run against the Tampa Bay Rays' Brian Shouse. For the 2009 season, he batted .282, and led AL left fielders in errors (with 5), while he was 4th in the league in runs scored (107).[1]

Johnny Damon hit a home run in Games 3 and 4 of the 2009 ALCS, defeating the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim in 6 games. When the Yankees went on to play the Philadelphia Phillies in the 2009 World Series, Damon got credit for stealing two bases in one play when the Phillies defense was shifted against batter Mark Teixeira. Damon got his second championship ring as the Yankees would eventually defeat the Phillies in 6 games.

Damon, after winning his second World Series, entered free agency after the 2009 season despite expressing his desire to return to the Yankees.[18] He insisted that the Yankees not even make him an offer, however, unless they pay him at least the $13 million he earned for the past four years.[18] As a result of his contract demands, the Yankees signed 1B/DH Nick Johnson to a one-year/5.5MM deal, despite Damon lowering his salary demands at the last minute.[19] The Yankees then signed outfielder Randy Winn to a one-year/2MM [clarification needed] deal which essentially closed the door on Damon's return to the Bronx.[20]Damon realized he made a mistake but it was to late. and after his time with the yankees he never had a steady home again as his stats steadily declined.

Detroit Tigers

On February 22, 2010, Damon agreed to a one-year, $8 million deal with the Detroit Tigers.

On April 14, 2010, Damon recorded his 1,000th career RBI against the Kansas City Royals. On May 1, he hit a walk-off home run against Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim pitcher Scot Shields at Comerica Park to win the game 3–2. On July 6, Damon recorded his 2,500th career hit off Jake Arrieta of the Baltimore Orioles, and hit a walk-off home run off David Hernandez, giving the Tigers a 7–5 win. For the season, he batted .271.[21]

Damon became a free agent at the end of the season.

Tampa Bay Rays

Damon during his tenure with the Rays in 2011

On January 21, 2011, Damon agreed to a one-year, $5.25 million deal with the Tampa Bay Rays. The Rays also signed his former Boston Red Sox teammate Manny Ramirez in a package deal suggested by agent Scott Boras.[22][23]

Manager Joe Maddon said he expected the 37-year-old Damon to often be replaced by Sam Fuld during the season late in games that the Rays are leading.[24] After Ramirez's abrupt retirement, this would be moot as Damon primarily would play as the designated hitter.

On April 16, 2011, Damon had the game-winning hit for the fifth consecutive game for the Rays, two of which were walk-off hits. On June 29, 2011 Damon tied Ted Williams for 71st on the all-time hit list with 2,654 hits. The hit came at Tropicana Field in the bottom of the 6th inning. On July 2, 2011, Damon went 4-for-4 and his first inning single moved him past Ted Williams on the all-time hit list. He would finish the season 57th all-time with 2,723 career hits.

In Game 1 of the ALDS, Damon hit a 2-run home run in the 2nd inning off Texas Rangers starting pitcher C.J. Wilson to give his team an early 2–0 lead. The Rays won the game 9–0, however they eventually lost the best-of-five divisional series 3–1.[25]

Cleveland Indians

On April 12, 2012, Damon signed a one-year minor league contract with the Cleveland Indians for $1.25 million (and an additional $1.4 million in incentives) .[26] On May 1, Damon was called up to Cleveland.[27] He made his debut on May 2, batting leadoff against the Chicago White Sox.[28] He finished the game 0-3 with a walk.[29] Indians manager Manny Acta dropped Damon to seventh in the batting lineup after going 4-29 in the leadoff position, including 2 hits in his last 18 at-bats.[30] On June 26 in a game against his former team, New York, Damon became the 52nd player in MLB history to amass 2,750 career hits. Heading into the All-Star break, Damon had 35 hits in 163 official at-bats and was hitting .215 in 50 games.[31] On July 20, Damon tied a season-high with three hits versus the Baltimore Orioles, and thus passed Hall of Famer Jake Beckley for 50th on the all-time career hits list.[32]

Damon was designated for assignment on August 3, 2012.[33] He was released by the Indians on August 9.[34]

Awards

  • 1993 – Midwest League All-Star OF
  • 1994 – Carolina League All-Star Royals Minor League Player of the Year
  • 1995 – Baseball America 1st team Minor League All-Star, KC Royals Minor League Player of the Year, Texas League All-Star & Most Valuable Player, AA All-Star, and AA Player of the Year
  • 2000 – KC Royals Player of the Year
  • 2002 – All-Star (Inaugural AL All-Star Final Vote winner)
  • 2005 – Baseball America 2nd-Team All-Star, AL All-Star
  • 2009 – TYIB Award: Best Postseason Moment

Other appearances

In 2005, Damon wrote Idiot: Beating "The Curse" and Enjoying the Game of Life with Peter Golenbock.

Personal

Damon (right) with Alex Rodriguez

Damon married his high school sweetheart, Angela Vannice, in 1992 when he was 19. They had twins together in 1999[35] before divorcing in 2002. In 2004, Damon married Michelle Mangan, who gave birth to their first daughter, Devon Rose, in 2007.[36] Johnny and Michelle welcomed their second daughter, Danica Rayne, in 2008.[37]

Damon and his family reside in Windermere, Florida. While with the Yankees, Damon and his wife lived in Cresskill, New Jersey.[38]

He is active with the Wounded Warrior Project, which works to raise awareness and enlist the public's aid for the needs of severely injured service men and women. Damon has appeared on MTV Cribs where he gave a tour of his home near Orlando, Florida.

Damon was one of the victims of the $8 billion dollar fraud perpetrated by convicted wealth manager Allen Stanford.[39]

Damon hosted WWE Raw on December 21, 2009.[40]

See also

References

  1. ^ "Active Leaders & Records for Hits [[Baseball-Reference]]". Baseball-reference.com. Retrieved July 17, 2011. {{cite web}}: URL–wikilink conflict (help)
  2. ^ Johnny Damon Bio JockBio.com
  3. ^ Johnny Damon – Biography Internet Movie Database
  4. ^ "Johnny (Idiot) Damon Is the Yankees' Most Likable Savior In Years – New York Magazine". Nymag.com. April 3, 2006. Retrieved August 23, 2010.
  5. ^ http://www.jockbio.com/Bios/Damon/Damon_numbers.html
  6. ^ a b "Johnny Damon from the Chronology". BaseballLibrary.com. Retrieved September 12, 2008.
  7. ^ "Major League Leaderboard". Fan Graphs. Retrieved September 9, 2009.
  8. ^ "Marlins vs. Red Sox Box Score". ESPN. June 27, 2003.
  9. ^ "ESPN – Johnny Damon Stats, News, Photos – New York Yankees – MLB Baseball". Sports.espn.go.com. November 5, 1973. Retrieved August 23, 2010.
  10. ^ a b c d e Chuck, Bill (April 2, 2009). "100 random things about the Red Sox, Rays, and Yankees". The Boston Globe. Retrieved May 2, 2009.
  11. ^ "ESPN – Johnny Damon Stats, News, Photos – New York Yankees – MLB Baseball". Sports.espn.go.com. November 5, 1973. Retrieved August 23, 2010.
  12. ^ "Baseball Leaderboard". Fan Graphs. Retrieved August 23, 2010.
  13. ^ "Boston Might Not Like Johnny Damon Anymore". Blogcritics.org. Retrieved August 23, 2010.
  14. ^ Hack, Damon (December 24, 2005). "Damon Begins the Short-Haired Portion of His Career". The New York Times. p. D1.
  15. ^ Schmidt, Michael S. (December 24, 2005). "Yankee Cut No Big Deal For Clipper". The New York Times. p. D5.
  16. ^ Associated Press (December 23, 2005). "Damon in N.Y. with shave, haircut, more than two bits". ESPN.com. Retrieved June 4, 2011.
  17. ^ "Six Hits in One Game by Baseball Almanac". Baseball-almanac.com. Retrieved August 23, 2010.
  18. ^ a b Kepner, Tyler (August 18, 2009). "Damon Feels Like Staying, and the Yanks Seem Willing". The New York Times. Retrieved August 18, 2009.
  19. ^ Kepner, Tyler (December 18, 2009). "In Signing Nick Johnson, Yankees Turn Johnny Damon Away". New York Times. Retrieved December 20, 2009.
  20. ^ Kepner, Tyler (January 28, 2010). "Its Farewell to Damon After Yanks Sign Winn". New York Times. Retrieved January 30, 2010.
  21. ^ http://www.baseball-reference.com/players/d/damonjo01.shtml
  22. ^ Brown, David. "Red Sox reunion! Manny Ramirez, Johnny Damon sign with Rays". yahoo.com. Retrieved April 3, 2011.
  23. ^ "Manny Ramirez and Johnny Damon excited to join new-look Rays". mlb.com. Retrieved April 3, 2011.
  24. ^ "Tampa Bay Rays' James Shields eager to get on the mound — St. Petersburg Times". Tampabay.com. Retrieved April 3, 2011.
  25. ^ "Shopp talk: Batterymates overpower Rangers — MLB.com". Tampabay.rays.mlb.com. September 30, 2011. Retrieved September 30, 2011.
  26. ^ "Here's Johnny:Indians sign outfielder Johnny Damon". {{cite news}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help) [dead link]
  27. ^ Hoynes, Paul (May 1, 2012). "Damon on Indians roster for White Sox series". Cleveland Plain-Dealer.
  28. ^ "Here's Johnny:Indians sign outfielder Johnny Damon".
  29. ^ "Santana, Hafner homer as Indians beat White Sox". Associated Press. May 3, 2012. Retrieved May 4, 2012.
  30. ^ "Fantasy Player News & Updates". Indians.com. May 15, 2012. Retrieved May 16, 2012.
  31. ^ "Johnny Damon stats". MLB.com. Retrieved July 8, 2012.
  32. ^ "Box Score Orioles at Indians - July 21, 2012". SportsIllustrated.CNN.com. Retrieved July 22, 2012.
  33. ^ "Indians recall OF Ezequiel Carrera from Triple-A Columbus".
  34. ^ Gleeman, Aaron (August 9, 2012). "Indians release Johnny Damon". NBCSports.com. Retrieved August 10, 2012.
  35. ^ "The Official Site of The New York Yankees: Team: Player Information : Biography and Career Highlights". Arod.mlb.com. Retrieved August 23, 2010.
  36. ^ "WHDH-TV – Sports – Damon, wife welcomed baby girl". .whdh.com. Retrieved August 23, 2010.
  37. ^ Johnny Damon awaits fourth child, second with wife Michelle : Celebrity Baby Blog[dead link]
  38. ^ Staff. "The Rumble: Off-the-ball look at your favorite sports celebrities", New York Post, September 27, 2009. Accessed February 21, 2011. "With a downstairs living section in their Cresskill home, Damon and his wife, Michelle, welcomed the Robertsons in."
  39. ^ Torre, Pablo (March 29, 2009). "Why Do Pro Athletes Go Broke?". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved September 9, 2009.
  40. ^ WWE Article On Johnny Damon Hosting RAW WrestleZone.com

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