Bob Aspromonte
Bob Aspromonte | ||
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Runs batted in | 457 | |
Teams | ||
Career highlights and awards | ||
Robert Thomas Aspromonte (born June 19, 1938) is an American former professional baseball player and business entrepreneur. He played as a third baseman in Major League Baseball in 1956 and then from 1960 to 1971, most prominently as a member of the newly formed Houston Colt .45s expansion team where, he became the regular third baseman for the first seven seasons of the young franchise (which would later change the name to Astros). As well as being the first-ever batter for Houston, he was also the last Brooklyn Dodger to appear in a major league game.[1][2] He also played for the Atlanta Braves and New York Mets.
After his athletic career, he went on to become a successful businessman in
Playing career
Early career
Aspromonte was born in
The following year,
Houston Astros (1962–1968)
The Dodgers exposed him to the 1961 Major League Baseball expansion draft, and he was selected by the Houston Colt .45s with their second selection, the third player taken overall. In the small amount of games played with the Dodgers, he had been used as a shortstop, but he was moved to third base when with the Astros (with token work at shortstop and the outfield). Aspromonte was the starting third baseman for the Houston franchise (renamed the Astros in 1965) for its first six seasons. On April 10, 1962, Aspromonte, playing third base and inserted into the leadoff position, became the first batter in Houston's MLB history. He singled to left field off Don Cardwell of the Chicago Cubs for the club's first hit, then scored its first-ever MLB run when the next batter, Al Spangler, tripled. Aspromonte would score two more runs that day, as the Colt .45s beat the Cubs, 11–2.[6] [7] For the season, he played in 149 games, batting .266/.332/.376 (batting average/OBP/SLG), having 142 hits and 11 home runs with 59 RBIs on 54 strikeouts and 46 walks. He was 2nd in fielding percentage with .967, which was the first of six seasons in a row where he would finish in the top five for all fielders in the National League (which naturally led to him also finishing in top five with putouts and assists).
The following year, he played in 136 games while batting .214/.276/.306 with 100 hits and 49 RBIs on 57 strikeouts and 40 walks as he finished 4th in fielding percentage with .938. He played his most games in a season with 1964, playing 157 while batting .280/.329/.721 while having a career high 155 hits and 69 RBIs while striking out 54 times and walking 35 with a career best and league high .973 fielding percentage. He regressed slightly for the following year, batting .263/.310/.322 while playing in 152 games with 152 hits and 52 RBIs while striking out 54 times and walking 38 times and finishing 2nd in fielding percentage with .962. He played 152 games with the 1966 season, batting .252/.297/.334 with 141 hits and 52 RBIs while striking out 63 times (a career high) and walking 35 times and leading the NL in fielding percentage with .962. For 1967, he would play less games with 137 played, but he batted career highs with .294/.354/.401 with 143 hits and 58 RBIs while walking 45 times with 44 strikeouts and a .963 fielding percentage for 3rd in the NL.
In 1968, he lost his starting third base job to Doug Rader. For 1968, he still played in 124 games (with various positions played dominated by 75 appearances at 3B) while batting .225/.285/.264, having 92 hits and 46 RBIs with 57 strikeouts and 35 walks (he also stole his last base in his career on August 5[8]). On June 9, he, along with teammate Rusty Staub and Maury Wills of the Pittsburgh Pirates, decided not to play in a game between the two teams in light of the assassination of Robert F. Kennedy three days earlier, with Aspromonte stating that “If we didn’t put a day aside, it would hurt me. ... I’ve never had to take this firm a stand on anything before. It’s got to boil down to one thing: how you feel personally. It’s how I felt. My conscience is clear."[9]
Latter years (1968–1971)
He was traded to the
After baseball
Aspromonte collected 1,103 hits in his major league career, with 135
References
- ^ a b "Bob Aspromonte at the Houston Astros Hall of Fame". mlb.com. Retrieved August 25, 2021.
- ^ "The National Pastime.com". Archived from the original on September 15, 2016. Retrieved July 8, 2016.
- ^ a b Wernick, Mark. "The Baseball Biography Project: Bob Aspromonte". Society for American Baseball Research. Retrieved August 25, 2021.
- ^ Retrosheet box score: 1956-09-19
- ^ Retrosheet box score: 1960-05-05
- ^ Retrosheetbox score: 1962-04-10
- ^ "Chicago Cubs at Houston Colt .45s Box Score, April 10, 1962".
- ^ "New York Mets at Houston Astros Box Score, August 5, 1968".
- ^ "MSN". MSN.
- ^ "Cincinnati Reds at Atlanta Braves Box Score, April 21, 1970".
- ^ "Bob Aspromonte Joins New York," The New York Times, Wednesday, December 2, 1970. Retrieved March 5, 2020
- ^ Retrosheet box score: 1971-09-28
- ^ "The Official Site of The Houston Astros: History: Astros Season Records". Archived from the original on May 6, 2007.
External links
- Career statistics and player information from Baseball Reference, or Fangraphs, or Baseball Reference (Minors)
- Baseball Almanac
- Bob Aspromonte Biography
- Slate article on possible Astros Curses
- KTRH interview with Aspromonte (2012)