Minnesota Twins
Leftfielder, Shannon Stewart, was born February 25,
1974 in Cincinnati, Ohio. Shannon was a standout athlete
at Southridge High School in Southridge, Florida where
he was in track, baseball, and football. In 1992, he
was drafted by the Toronto Blue Jays in the 1st round
(19th pick) and made his major league debut on September
2, 1995. Shannon fluctuated between the majors and minors
over the next several seasons, eventually finding a
starting place in the every day line-up by the end of
1997. Shannon was traded in 2003 to the Minnesota Twins
for Bobby Kielty in a move designed to free money from
the Blue Jays' payroll.
Shannon has been criticized for
his poor arm in the outfield and his dwindling aggression
on the bases, largely as the result of continued hamstring
injuries. Shannon is often seen as a liability in the
field; opposing base runners frequently take bases they
might not take if another fielder were playing his position.
Shannon bats a .300 career average with
occasional power and good on-base percentage. He hit
11 homers in just 378 at-bats last year, and had the
best OBP of his big league career. Shannon has adapted
well to playing in the Metrodome. He likes pulling the
ball, but will adjust and go with the pitch if worked
away.
Although blessed with good speed, Shannon’s
history of leg injuries has kept him from being an aggressive
base stealer. He had just six steals in nine attempts
last year. A decent fielder who can put his speed to
good use, he is unable to throw with any strength because
of an old football injury to his right shoulder.
Despite his less than spectacular defensive
reputation, Shannon finished 4th in the American League
MVP voting in 2003, a remarkable accomplishment for
a lead-off hitter. Shannon also led the Twins club in
at-bats, hits and multi-hit games (42), he was second
in runs and doubles, tied for second in total bases
(214) and was fourth in total games.
After signing a three-year, $18 million
contract, Shannon Stewart missed much of the season
with hamstring and foot injuries. He was effective when
healthy, mimicking his career norms by hitting .304
with a .380 on-base percentage.
At this point in his career, Shannon is
a known commodity-what's not known is whether he'll
be able to stay on the field all year. The Twins hope
to keep him healthy since the Twins' winning percentage
when he's in the lineup is much higher than when he's
out.
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