Benny Distefano
From BR Bullpen
Benito James Distefano
- Bats Left, Throws Left
- Height 6' 1", Weight 195 lb.
- College Alvin Community College
- High School Lafayette High School
- Debut May 18, 1984
- Final Game August 5, 1992
- Born January 23, 1962 in Brooklyn, NY USA
[edit] Biographical Information
Benny Distefano was always the bridesmaid but never the bride. He played in five major league seasons, mostly with the Pittsburgh Pirates, primarily as a first baseman. Always labelled an up-and-coming prospect, he was first stuck behind Jason Thompson at first base and then behind Sid Bream. He finally got a chance to have more at-bats in 1989 when Bream was injured, although Gary Redus had more playing time at first than Distefano did. Meanwhile, through the years, Distefano played regularly in Triple A ball for eight years, and in 1990 he played with Chunichi in Japan. He also played for a couple teams in the Dominican Republic.
Finally, at the age of 30, he appeared with the Houston Astros. He was behind Jeff Bagwell there, but was used mostly as a pinch hitter.
He played catcher for 3 games in 1989. He is one of a select few left-throwing catchers in major league history. In fact, he was the most recent left handed thrower to play catcher.
He was a coach with the GCL Tigers in 2006, and the hitting coach of the West Michigan Whitecaps in 2007 and 2008.
[edit] Significant Achievement
Benny Distefano is one of a very few players who tripled in their first major league at bat; moreover, he did it against someone who went to the same high school he did, Pete Falcone. He accomplished this feat on May 18th, 1984 when he subbed for an injured Amos Otis.
