Scott Podsednik
From BR Bullpen
Scott Eric Podsednik
- Bats Left, Throws Left
- Height 6' 0", Weight 170 lb.
[edit] Biographical Information
Outfielder Scott Podsednik has played a decade in the majors, stealing around 300 bases. He previously played almost a decade in the minors for several different organizations before making it to the majors for good.
Scott was selected by the Texas Rangers in the third round of the 1994 amateur draft. After the 1995 season, he was traded to the Florida Marlins organization and played two years in their farm system. He was reacquired by the Rangers in the 1997 Rule V Draft. Podsednik missed most of 1999 with injuries and was granted his free agency after the 2000 season. He was signed by the Seattle Mariners organization, and he finally made his big league debut in 2001. After several cups of coffee with the Mariners, he was claimed off waivers by the Milwaukee Brewers in late 2002. In 2002, he batted .467 with 11 doubles during the Puerto Rican Winter League.
Podsednik had a breakout season with the Brewers in 2003. The team's regular centerfielder, he hit .314 and stole 43 bases and was named NL Rookie of the Year by The Sporting News and Baseball Digest. He hit his first home run with the Brewers on April 18, 2003. Although his batting average dropped 70 points the following year, he stole 70 bases in 2004 to lead the majors.
After the season, he was traded to the Chicago White Sox. He became the Sox regular leftfielder and hit .290 with 59 steals in 129 games in [[2005 White Sox|2005. He was on track to steal around 100 bases until he was injured and when he came back he cut down on the running. Podsednik did not hit a single home run during the regular season, but in the postseason he hit a pair of dingers, including a 9th inning game-winner in Game 2 of the World Series.
The White Sox released Podsednik on November 28, 2007, and he was signed by the Colorado Rockies later that off-season.
He was hitting over .300 with 30 steals for the Kansas City Royals in 2010 when traded to the Los Angeles Dodgers, who were hoping to stay in contention for the stretch run but were dealing with an injury to regular left fielder Manny Ramirez. He was hitting .310 in 95 games for the Royals, after hitting .307 for the White Sox in 2009.
Podsednik is married to former Playmate Lisa Dergan.
[edit] Notable Achievements
- 2003 Topps All-Star Rookie Team
- AL All-Star (2005)
- NL Stolen Bases Leader (2004)
- 100 Runs Scored Seasons: 1 (2003)
- 50 Stolen Bases Seasons: 2 (2004 & 2005)
- Won a World Series with the Chicago White Sox in 2005
