Kevin Millar
|
|
Kevin Charles Millar (born September 24, 1971 in Los Angeles, California) is a Major League Baseball outfielder/first baseman who plays for the Boston Red Sox (since 2003). He bats and throws right-handed.
In a seven-year career, Millar is a .292 hitter with 102 home runs and 421 RBI in 798 games.
Millar played for the Florida Marlins between 1998-2003, and was later sold to the Japanese Central League Chunichi Dragons. In order for the transaction to be completed, he first had to clear the waivers requested by the Marlins, but the Red Sox broke an unwritten rule and blocked the deal with a waiver claim. In an unprecedented deal brokered by MLB, the Marlins later repaid the money that the Dragons had paid for Millar, and the Sox also paid a similar sum to the Marlins in return for Millar. He became a clubhouse favorite and a sort of cult hero for the Bosox fans after his "Cowboy Up" rally cry.
A long fly-ball hitter, Millar's left-field power played well in Fenway Park, even though the Green Monster turned a few potential homers into two-baggers. Reasonably patient, he makes good contact for a power hitter against righthanders just as well as southpaws, and seems to respond to urgent situations. He doesn't run nearly well enough to be a dangerous factor on the bases. As a fielder he has good hands, but his lack of mobility is notorious and his arm is short.
Highlights
- 1994
- He becomes a replacement player during the 1994 Players' Strike. To this day he, along with all 'scab' players, are banned from the MLBPA.
- 2002
- He joins Ruppert Jones, Ricky Lee Nelson, Dave Kingman, Jose Canseco and Alvaro Espinoza as the only players in MLB history to hit a fair ball that got stuck in a stadium obstruction (2002).
- 2004
- Became the third player to hit three home runs in a Red Sox-Yankees game, joining Lou Gehrig (1927) and Mo Vaughn (1997).
External links
- ESPN (profile and daily updates) (http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/players/profile?statsId=5981)
- Baseball Reference (statistics and analysis) (http://www.baseball-reference.com/m/millake01.shtml)