Robin Ventura

Robin Mark Ventura (born July 14, 1967 in Santa Maria, California) is a former third baseman in Major League Baseball who played primarily for the Chicago White Sox. He batted left-handed and threw right-handed. An outstanding performer on both offense and defense, he became only the fifth third baseman – joining Ken Boyer, Ron Santo, Brooks Robinson and Mike Schmidt – to hit at least 250 home runs and win at least five Gold Glove Awards. He ranks 14th in major league history with 1887 games at third base, and his six career Gold Gloves place him behind only Robinson (16) and Schmidt (10) at his position. Baseball statistician and historian Bill James, in the 2001 revision of his Historical Baseball Abstract, chose Ventura as the greatest third baseman of the 1990s.

Early years

After attending Righetti High School in Santa Maria, California, Ventura?s rise to fame began as a 3-time All-American at Oklahoma State University. After leading the nation in runs (107), RBI (96) and total bases (204) in 69 games as a freshman in 1986, he had an NCAA-record 58-game hitting streak (since surpassed) in 1987, shattering the previous record of 47; he also led Division I in RBIs for the second year in a row. His hitting prowess helped OSU reach the finals of the College World Series that year, although they lost the championship game to a Stanford team that included future teammate Jack McDowell; Ventura didn't go quietly, collecting four hits – including a pair of doubles – in the final game and batting .364 for the Series. In 1988 he earned a spot on the gold medal-winning Olympic baseball team, batting .409 during the tournament, and won both the Golden Spikes Award and the Dick Howser Trophy for outstanding collegiate play, concluding his 3-year OSU career with a .428 batting average, a .792 slugging percentage, and 302 RBIs.

Related Topics:
Santa Maria, California - Oklahoma State University - NCAA - College World Series - Stanford - Jack McDowell - Olympic - Golden Spikes Award - Dick Howser Trophy - Slugging percentage

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After being picked tenth in the 1988 draft by the White Sox, he spent much of 1989 at AA Birmingham before joining the Sox that September. While in Birmingham, he earned a spot in the Southern League All-Star Game and was voted the league's top defensive third baseman. He was named to the Topps Major League Rookie All-Star Team, earned the starting third base role with the White Sox the next spring and essentially never looked back. While his 1990 rookie year was marred by an 0-for-41 slump and 25 errors, Ventura proved to be a quick learner. Despite the slump, his 123 hits were the most by a Sox rookie since Ozzie Guillén in 1985; he also led AL rookies with 150 games played. The next year he won his first Gold Glove Award for fielding excellence, set a team record for RBIs at third base, and led the AL in putouts. 1992 brought another Gold Glove, a spot on the All-Star team – collecting an RBI double and a single on his 25th birthday – and several league-leading marks in both offensive and defensive categories. It is notable that as a major league player, Ventura was turning initial expectations on their head, as he had been projected to be a consistent .300 hitter, but with only limited power and modest defensive ability.

Related Topics:
1989 - AA Birmingham - Southern League - Topps Major League Rookie All-Star Team - 1990 - Ozzie Guillén - Gold Glove Award - 1992 - All-Star

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1993 saw his batting average drop 20 points to .262, though both his slugging and on-base percentages rose slightly. Ventura also collected his 500th hit that May and won his third straight Gold Glove, while becoming the first AL third baseman with three consecutive 90-RBI campaigns since Graig Nettles (1975-78). However, the enduring image many people recall from 1993 is his skirmish with Nolan Ryan, the hardthrowing Texas Rangers legend who plunked him in the ribs during a summer game. When Ventura charged the mound in protest, Ryan seized him in a headlock and began punching him. The result: a two-game suspension and criticism from commentators who sided against the normally calm infielder. Even the Sox? appearance in the ALCS that year, Ventura's only playoff trip while in Chicago, could not diminish the memory of the incident.

Related Topics:
1993 - On-base percentages - Graig Nettles - Nolan Ryan - Texas Rangers - ALCS

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1994 was another fine season for Ventura, only minus the Gold Glove. The strike that year not only prevented him from reaching 90 RBI for the only time between 1991 and 1996, but also wiped out the division-leading Sox? chance of making the postseason; when play resumed in 1995 it seemed rust had set in: Ventura had ten errors in the first ten games. He spent some time at first base that year amid trade rumors, but ended the year with a career-high .295 average, and on September 4 hit two grand slams in one game, the eighth player in history to do so and the first since Frank Robinson in 1970. The next season he won his fourth Gold Glove, reached new highs in fielding percentage, homers and RBIs, and set team records in career homers by a third baseman (142) and grand slams (9).

Related Topics:
1994 - 1995 - First base - Grand slam - Frank Robinson - Fielding percentage

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When spring training began in 1997 the White Sox were picked by many to win their division, thanks in part to Ventura. However, on the night of March 21 in an exhibition game, he slid into home plate and caught his foot in the mud, suffering a seriously broken and dislocated right ankle. The initial prognosis was that he would be lost for the season; the news dashed the Sox? hope of contending. Amazingly, with help from team trainer Herm Schneider, and much pure grit and determination, Ventura returned on July 24, more than a week ahead of the most optimistic predictions. He collected the game-winning hit that night, and homered in his first at-bat the next evening. Had team owner Jerry Reinsdorf not traded three of the Sox? pitchers a week later, they may well have reached the playoffs, but no one will ever know if the object lesson Ventura?s triumphant return provided had any effect, thanks to the ?White Flag Trade?. The trade winds almost blew him out of town, too: after speaking out against the pitchers? leaving, he was placed on Reinsdorf?s ?hit list?. Only his recent injury and some swift work by general manager Ron Schueler kept him in Chicago.

Related Topics:
1997 - Jerry Reinsdorf - Ron Schueler

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1998, Ventura?s final season with the Sox, was mixed: he won his fifth Gold Glove, but only hit .263. His homer and RBI totals weren?t far off his career averages, but the Sox attempted repeatedly to trade him and declined to renew his contract, with Reinsdorf claiming that he was ?deteriorating?. Despite setting career highs in games played and triples, not to mention leading the league in chances yet again, Ventura finally departed on December 2 when the New York Mets signed him to a four-year deal.

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