Conor Gillaspie
Gillaspie with the Chicago White Sox in 2013
Third baseman
Born: (1987-07-18) July 18, 1987 (age 36)
Omaha, Nebraska, U.S.
Batted: Left
Threw: Right
MLB debut
September 9, 2008, for the San Francisco Giants
Last MLB appearance
August 2, 2017, for the San Francisco Giants
MLB statistics
Batting average.251
Home runs33
Runs batted in158
Teams

Conor Michael Gillaspie (born July 18, 1987) is an American former Major League Baseball (MLB) third baseman who played for the San Francisco Giants, Chicago White Sox and Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim between 2008 and 2017.

Early life

Gillaspie attended Millard North High School in Omaha, Nebraska, where he played baseball, football, and basketball.[1] On the strength of a recommendation from umpire and fellow Nebraskan Bill McGuire, Gillaspie was recruited to play baseball at Wichita State.[2] Gillaspie attended Wichita State University, majoring in geology, from 2006–08.[1] He hit .362 with 58 doubles and 24 home runs over three seasons and was a three-time All-Missouri Valley Conference selection.[3]

Gillaspie played in the Cape Cod Baseball League (CCBL) during the summer of 2007, leading the league in hitting with a .345 batting average. He led the Falmouth Commodores to the championship series against the Yarmouth-Dennis Red Sox, but could not play in the series as he had to return to school. He was named league MVP, and is a member of the CCBL Hall of Fame class of 2019.[1][4][5]

Professional career

San Francisco Giants

Gillaspie was drafted by the San Francisco Giants 37th overall in the 2008 Major League Baseball Draft. He played only 24 games in the minors before being called up to the majors on September 6, 2008. He got his first major league hit off Dan Haren on September 16, 2008.[6]

He was the first player in his draft class to make his MLB debut.[7]

Gillaspie spent 2009 at Single-A San Jose and 2010 in Double-A Richmond. He started the 2011 season with Triple-A Fresno. On June 5, 2011, Gillaspie was recalled to the major leagues when Brandon Belt was placed on the 15-day disabled list.[8] On September 27, 2011, Gillaspie hit an inside-the-park home run against Colorado Rockies pitcher Esmil Rogers for his first Major League home run.[9]

Gillaspie began 2012 with Triple-A Fresno, hitting .362 with 3 HR and 13 RBI in 23 games before being recalled to San Francisco when Pablo Sandoval was placed on the 15-day DL.[10] He got his first hit (a single) of the 2012 season on June 10 against the Texas Rangers.

Chicago White Sox

On February 22, 2013, the San Francisco Giants traded Gillaspie to the Chicago White Sox for minor-league pitcher Jeff Soptic.[11] He became the White Sox primary third baseman in 2013 and 2014. He hit .245 with 13 home runs in 134 games in 2013 and .282 with 7 home runs and 57 RBIs in 130 games in 2014. He was hitting .325 as of July 26, but hit only .209 for the rest of the season.[12] He struggled in 2015 and was designated for assignment on July 19, 2015.[13]

Los Angeles Angels

The White Sox traded Gillaspie to the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim for cash considerations on July 24, 2015.[14] He was designated for assignment on August 18.[15]

Second stint with the Giants

In February 2016, the San Francisco Giants signed Gillaspie to a minor league deal with an invitation to spring training.[16] He started the season with the Giants' Triple-A affiliate, the Sacramento River Cats of the Pacific Coast League. He was called up on April 22,[17] and spent the season mainly as a bench player for the Giants, but played a big role in the final week of the season, hitting .500 (7 for 14) while replacing an injured Eduardo Nunez. [18]

On October 5, Gillaspie hit a three-run homer in the top of the ninth inning of the 2016 National League Wild Card Game off Jeurys Familia to break a 0–0 tie, helping the Giants defeat the New York Mets 3–0, although the Giants would end up losing the next series to the Chicago Cubs.[19]

Gillaspie was designated for assignment on August 3, 2017. On August 6, he cleared waivers and returned to the organization to play for the Giants' Triple-A affiliate Sacramento River Cats.[20][21][22] He elected free agency on October 2.

Personal

Gillaspie and his wife Amanda have two sons, Mason and Nash.[23] Gillaspie's brother, Casey Gillaspie, was drafted in the first round of the 2014 MLB Draft by the Tampa Bay Rays and currently is a free agent as of April 18, 2023.

References

  1. ^ a b c "Wichita State Athletics - Conor Gillaspie - 2008 Baseball". Wichita State Athletics. Retrieved April 22, 2016.
  2. ^ Suellen, Paul (August 8, 2014). "One umpire's calls have gone the Shockers' way". The Wichita Eagle. Retrieved 9 November 2022.
  3. ^ "Former Wichita State star Conor Gillaspie signs with San Francisco Giants". The Wichita Eagle. February 6, 2016.
  4. ^ "2007 Falmouth Commodores". thebaseballcube.com. Retrieved July 20, 2021.
  5. ^ "2019 CCBL Hall of Fame Class Announced". capecodbaseball.org. Retrieved September 1, 2019.
  6. ^ Schulman, Henry (September 16, 2008). "It's good Haren this time". San Francisco Chronicle.
  7. ^ Werner, Joseph (June 16, 2016). "First Player from the 2015 Draft to Make the Big Leagues". Beyond the Box Score. SB Nation. Retrieved 17 June 2021.
  8. ^ Shea, John (June 4, 2011). "SF Giants fall to Rockies; Brandon Belt to DL". San Francisco Chronicle.
  9. ^ Schulman, Henry (September 28, 2011). "Giants beat Rockies, prepare farewell for Burrell". San Francisco Chronicle.
  10. ^ Schulman, Henry (May 11, 2012). "SF Giants' Conor Gillaspie chasing his dreams". San Francisco Chronicle.
  11. ^ Merkin, Scott (February 22, 2013). "White Sox land Gillaspie in trade with Giants". MLB.com.
  12. ^ Schulman, Henry (February 22, 2016). "Giants give Conor Gillaspie, a 'bad apple,' a 2nd chance". San Francisco Chronicle.
  13. ^ Padilla, Doug (July 19, 2015). "Conor Gillaspie designated for assignment by White Sox". ESPN.com.
  14. ^ Cotillo, Chris (July 24, 2015). "Angels acquire Conor Gillaspie from White Sox". MLB Daily Dish.
  15. ^ Adams, Steve (August 18, 2015). "Angels Designate Conor Gillaspie For Assignment". MLB Trade Rumors.
  16. ^ Brisbee, Grant (February 6, 2016). "Giants sign Conor Gillaspie, surprising exactly no one". McCovey Chronicles.
  17. ^ Baggarly, Andrew (April 22, 2016). "Giants add Conor Gillaspie, option Mac Williamson to address infield deficit". Bay Area News Group.
  18. ^ Schonbrun, Zach (October 6, 2016). "Conor Gillaspie's Winning Homer Culminated a Journey of Soul-Searching". The New York Times.
  19. ^ Pedulla, Tom (October 5, 2016). "Giants' Gillaspie takes roundabout road to playoff hero". Bay Area News Group.
  20. ^ Pavlovic, Alex (August 3, 2017). "Giants make move to rotation, plan change in center field". NBC Sports Bay Area. Retrieved August 3, 2017.
  21. ^ Haft, Chris. "Giants shift roster, bring back Jones, Parker". MLB.com. Retrieved August 3, 2017.
  22. ^ "Giants' Conor Gillaspie: Clears waivers".
  23. ^ Baggarly, Andrew (February 21, 2016). "A second act: Older, wiser and more socially equipped, Conor Gillaspie hopes to be a positive in return to Giants". Bay Area News Group.

External links

2008 Major League Baseball draft first round selections
San Francisco Giants first-round draft picks
Categories