Top 20 Ed Sprague Factoids
Father Ed Sr. was an MLB pitcher from 1986 – 1976
Won a 1988 ‘demonstrative’ gold medal for the US olympic team
Won two College World Series championships with Stanford
Voted into the Stanford Athletic Hall of Fame in 2002
1st round draft pick in 1988
Won two World Series with the Toronto Blue Jays
Played for six major league teams
1996 was Sprague’s career year, as he hit 36 HR with 101 RBI
Made the 1999 all-star team as a member of the Pittsburgh Pirates
One of the few hitters to ever lead both the AL and NL in hit by pitch (1995 with Toronto, 1999 with Pittsburgh)
Sprague is 90th all-time in career hit by pitch, with 91
Has played an MLB game defensilvey at every position except SS
Ed has a career OPS score of 90
Wife Kristen Babb-Sprague won a gold medal in the 1992 Olympics for Solo Synchrnized swimming
He never played a game in AA. He started his career at advanced A Dunedin. His next stop was AAA Syracuse
Career high batting average in a season with over 200 plate appearances is .267
Loved to face – Kenny Rogers, with a 1.172 OPS and 3 HR in 40 PA. Hated to face – Randy Johnson, 17 K in 51 PA
Defining moment of career – His two run HR off of Jeff Reardon in game two of the 1992 World Series
In 2008 admitted to using steroids and a corked bat at certain stages of his career
Heading into his seventh season as the head coach of the Pacific Tigers, a division I college program
Are there any other Ed Sprague Factoids that we missed? Share your Sprague memories in the comments section.
Solo synchronized swimming? That sounds like an oxymoron. Ed Sprague is also a handsome devil but he is no Kelly Gruber.
TRENCHES!!!!1
Trenches! Nice pull. An oldie (and obscure reference) but goody!
How can I possibly add to such a completely thorough list?
Played Winter League Baseball AAA with the “Cardenales de Lara” in Venezuela (South America)- used to be a Blue Jays affiliate.
Had one of the coolest swing windups I can remember. Stood there kinda like Adrian Gonzalez with the bat just resting on his shoulder, then would wind up in sync with the pitcher and tee off beautifully.