Major League Career
Greer continued his successful run at Oklahoma when he was called up to Texas, where he batted .314 with ten home runs in 80 games, including one in his second major-league at bat. He's only the second Ranger to accomplish this feat. (Ruben Sierra was the first on June 1, 1986 @ Kansas City) He also played an integral part in baseball history on July 28, 1994, when he made a diving catch to protect a perfect game by Kenny Rogers. Although that was one of the most significant catches he made in his career, he made many others like it, and his all-out style of play made him a fan favorite throughout his major-league career.
Greer cooled off slightly in his second season, batting .271. However, in 1996, he had one of the best seasons of his career, batting .332 (fifth in the American League) and having his first of three 100-RBI seasons.
The 1997 season also proved successful for Greer. He finished seventh in the AL with a .321 batting average, played in a career-high 157 games, and he hit a career-high 26 home runs. In 1998, he had a career-high 108 RBI and a .306 batting average. The Rangers honored him for his contributions by granting him a new contract that paid him $3.3 million in 1999, up from $1,025,000 the previous season. In 1999, he batted an even .300 with 20 home runs, 101 RBI, and a career-high 96 walks (to go with 67 strikeouts). In the 2000 season, he was limited to 105 games due to injuries and posted a batting average of .297, with eight home runs.
In 2001, Greer was limited to only 62 games because of injuries, but he still hit seven home runs. Still a fan favorite, he was honored with a three-year, $21 million contract before the 2002 season. However, due to injuries he would only play 51 games with the Rangers in 2002.
Read more about this topic: Rusty Greer
Famous quotes containing the words major, league and/or career:
“When I see that the nineteenth century has crowned the idolatry of Art with the deification of Love, so that every poet is supposed to have pierced to the holy of holies when he has announced that Love is the Supreme, or the Enough, or the All, I feel that Art was safer in the hands of the most fanatical of Cromwell’s major generals than it will be if ever it gets into mine.”
—George Bernard Shaw (1856–1950)
“I am not impressed by the Ivy League establishments. Of course they graduate the best—it’s all they’ll take, leaving to others the problem of educating the country. They will give you an education the way the banks will give you money—provided you can prove to their satisfaction that you don’t need it.”
—Peter De Vries (b. 1910)
“I’ve been in the twilight of my career longer than most people have had their career.”
—Martina Navratilova (b. 1956)