Todd Benzinger

From BR Bullpen

Todd Eric Benzinger (Mercedes)

Bats Both, Throws Right
Height 6' 1", Weight 190 lb.

Debut June 21, 1987
Final Game May 14, 1995
Born February 11, 1963 in Dayton, KY USA

[edit] Biographical Information

Todd Benzinger was a first team All American as a senior in high school. He went through a minor surge after the All-Star break in 1988. Before the break, he hit .238 with 4 home runs and 22 RBI. After the break, he hit .264 with 9 home runs and 48 RBI. He hit .394 with runners on third base that year as the Boston Red Sox won an unexpected division title. He was included in a major trade to the Cincinnati Reds for Nick Esasky after the season. Benzinger was one of the few constants for the Reds in 1989, despite hitting only .245. He played in 161 games, 158 of them at first base, for a team that was plagued with an unending string of injuries that hobbled every other regular. He achieved career-highs with 17 home runs and 76 RBI and led the National League in both at bats and outs.

Benzinger's batting average went up slightly in 1990, to .253, but the rest of his offensive numbers plummetted (his OPS+ was a paltry 71). However, the Reds won the NL West title handily, and Benzinger was used in all but one of their post-season games. He stuck around for a number of years thereafter, in spite of poor hitting statistics that were obscured by somewhat respectable batting averages: he played 121 games for the Los Angeles Dodgers in 1992, and was the regular first baseman for the 1994 San Francisco Giants. His OPS+ was 76 in 1992, and 86 in 1994. In his books published in those years, Bill James criticized the excessive amount of playing time given to such an unproductive hitter.

Nephew of Don Gross