Andrés Galarraga

Andrés José Padovani Galarraga (Spanish: [anˈdɾes ɣalaˈraɣa]; born June 18, 1961) is a Venezuelan former professional baseball first baseman, who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Montreal Expos (19851991 and 2002), St. Louis Cardinals (1992), Colorado Rockies (19931997), Atlanta Braves (19982000), Texas Rangers (2001), San Francisco Giants (2001 and 2003) and Anaheim Angels (2004). He batted and threw right-handed. During his playing days, Galarraga stood 6 feet 3 inches (1.91 m) tall, weighing 235 pounds (107 kg).

Andrés Galarraga
Galarraga with the Expos in 2002
First baseman
Born: (1961-06-18) June 18, 1961
Caracas, Venezuela
Batted: Right
Threw: Right
MLB debut
August 23, 1985, for the Montreal Expos
Last MLB appearance
October 3, 2004, for the Anaheim Angels
MLB statistics
Batting average.288
Hits2,333
Home runs399
Runs batted in1,425
Teams
Career highlights and awards
  • 5× All-Star (1988, 1993, 1997, 1998, 2000)
  • Gold Glove Award (1989, 1990)
  • 2× Silver Slugger Award (1988, 1996)
  • NL batting champion (1993)
  • NL home run leader (1996)
  • 2× NL RBI leader (1996, 1997)
Member of the Venezuelan
Baseball Hall of Fame
Induction2010

Galarraga began his professional career in Venezuela at the age of 16. He was nicknamed "the Big Cat" (textually translated from English as El Gran Gato, although his nickname in his native Venezuela was El Gato) for his impressively quick reflexes and seamless defensive skills as a first baseman despite his large physical size. Galarraga was a five-time National League (NL) All-Star, won two NL Gold Glove Awards and two NL Silver Slugger Awards, and won two MLB Comeback Player of the Year Awards, the second time after his successful return to baseball following cancer treatment.

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