Mike Stanley
Encyclopedia
Robert Michael "Mike" Stanley (born June 25, 1963) is a former American college and professional baseball
player who was a catcher
in Major League Baseball
for fifteen years. Stanley played college baseball
for the University of Florida
, and thereafter, he played professionally for the Texas Rangers
(1986–1991), New York Yankees
(1992–1995, 1997), Boston Red Sox
(1996–1997, 1998–2000), Toronto Blue Jays
(1998) and Oakland Athletics
(2000). Stanley was a 1995 American League
All-Star
, won the 1993 Silver Slugger
award at catcher, and was a member of the Yankees' 1995 Wild-card team and the Athletics' 2000 AL Western Division Championship team.
Stanley was born in Fort Lauderdale, Florida
in 1963. He received an athletic scholarship
to attend the University of Florida in Gainesville, Florida
, where he played for coach Jack Rhine and coach Joe Arnold
's Florida Gators baseball
team in National Collegiate Athletic Association
(NCAA) competition from 1982 to 1985. Stanley primarily played catcher for the Gators, but sometimes played first and third base, and also served as the Gators' designated hitter periodically. He received Southeastern Conference (SEC) All-Tournament honors in 1982, and 1984 and 1985, and was a member of the NCAA Regional All-Tournament team in 1985. While Stanley was a Gator, the team won SEC regular season and SEC tournament championships in both 1982 and 1984. He remains the Gators' career record holder for runs scored and runs batted in (RBIs).
Stanley hit more than twenty home run
s in a season three times during his career. His best all-around season at the plate came in 1993 with the Yankees, when he hit .305 with twenty-six homers and eighty-four RBI. He also hit .300 in 1994, and he notched a career-high twenty-nine homers in 1998.
Stanley became a first baseman
/designated hitter
at the end of his career. He finished as a .270 career hitter with 187 homers, 702 RBI and a .370 career on base percentage
. Stanley also hit well in the postseason, recording a .356 batting average and .434 on base percentage in five postseason series.
As a Ranger, Stanley caught the last of Nolan Ryan
's seven career no-hitter
s on May 1, 1991.
Following his retirement as a player, Stanley was hired to serve as bench coach for the Red Sox during the 2002 season. He resigned after the season to spend more time with his family.
Stanley now lives in Maitland, Florida
. He and his wife Erin have four children: Tanner, Ryan, Jenna and Jake. His son Tanner played for the Maitland team in the 2005 Little League World Series
; one of Tanner's teammates, Dante Bichette, Jr., was the son of former major-leaguer (Dante Bichette
).
Stanley currently serves as an assistant baseball coach for the Lake Highland Preparatory School
in Orlando, Florida
.
Stanley recently attended Yankees Old Timers Day. It was the first year Stanley participated in the event.
Baseball
Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each. The aim is to score runs by hitting a thrown ball with a bat and touching a series of four bases arranged at the corners of a ninety-foot diamond...
player who was a catcher
Catcher
Catcher is a position for a baseball or softball player. When a batter takes his turn to hit, the catcher crouches behind home plate, in front of the umpire, and receives the ball from the pitcher. This is a catcher's primary duty, but he is also called upon to master many other skills in order to...
in Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball is the highest level of professional baseball in the United States and Canada, consisting of teams that play in the National League and the American League...
for fifteen years. Stanley played college baseball
College baseball
College baseball is baseball that is played on the intercollegiate level at institutions of higher education. Compared to football and basketball, college competition in the United States plays a less significant contribution to cultivating professional players, as the minor leagues primarily...
for the University of Florida
University of Florida
The University of Florida is an American public land-grant, sea-grant, and space-grant research university located on a campus in Gainesville, Florida. The university traces its historical origins to 1853, and has operated continuously on its present Gainesville campus since September 1906...
, and thereafter, he played professionally for the Texas Rangers
Texas Rangers (baseball)
The Texas Rangers are a professional baseball team in the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex, based in Arlington, Texas. The Rangers are a member of the Western Division of Major League Baseball's American League, and are the reigning A.L. Western Division and A.L. Champions. Since , the Rangers have...
(1986–1991), New York Yankees
New York Yankees
The New York Yankees are a professional baseball team based in the The Bronx, New York. They compete in Major League Baseball in the American League's East Division...
(1992–1995, 1997), Boston Red Sox
Boston Red Sox
The Boston Red Sox are a professional baseball team based in Boston, Massachusetts, and a member of Major League Baseball’s American League Eastern Division. Founded in as one of the American League's eight charter franchises, the Red Sox's home ballpark has been Fenway Park since . The "Red Sox"...
(1996–1997, 1998–2000), Toronto Blue Jays
Toronto Blue Jays
The Toronto Blue Jays are a professional baseball team located in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The Blue Jays are a member of the Eastern Division of Major League Baseball 's American League ....
(1998) and Oakland Athletics
Oakland Athletics
The Oakland Athletics are a Major League Baseball team based in Oakland, California. The Athletics are a member of the Western Division of Major League Baseball's American League. From to the present, the Athletics have played in the O.co Coliseum....
(2000). Stanley was a 1995 American League
American League
The American League of Professional Baseball Clubs, or simply the American League , is one of two leagues that make up Major League Baseball in the United States and Canada. It developed from the Western League, a minor league based in the Great Lakes states, which eventually aspired to major...
All-Star
All-star
All-star is a term designating an individual as having a high level of performance in their field. Originating in sports, it has since drifted into vernacular and been borrowed heavily by the entertainment industry...
, won the 1993 Silver Slugger
Silver Slugger
The Silver Slugger Award is awarded annually to the best offensive player at each position in both the American League and the National League, as determined by the coaches and managers of Major League Baseball...
award at catcher, and was a member of the Yankees' 1995 Wild-card team and the Athletics' 2000 AL Western Division Championship team.
Stanley was born in Fort Lauderdale, Florida
Fort Lauderdale, Florida
Fort Lauderdale is a city in the U.S. state of Florida, on the Atlantic coast. It is the county seat of Broward County. As of the 2010 census, the city had a population of 165,521. It is a principal city of the South Florida metropolitan area, which was home to 5,564,635 people at the 2010...
in 1963. He received an athletic scholarship
Athletic scholarship
An athletic scholarship is a form of scholarship to attend a college or university awarded to an individual based predominantly on his or her ability to play in a sport...
to attend the University of Florida in Gainesville, Florida
Gainesville, Florida
Gainesville is the largest city in, and the county seat of, Alachua County, Florida, United States as well as the principal city of the Gainesville, Florida Metropolitan Statistical Area . The preliminary 2010 Census population count for Gainesville is 124,354. Gainesville is home to the sixth...
, where he played for coach Jack Rhine and coach Joe Arnold
Joe Arnold
Joseph A. "Joe" Arnold is a former American college and professional baseball coach. During his twenty-four seasons as a head coach, Arnold led the college baseball teams at Florida Southern College, the University of Florida, and Polk State College, and also served as the manager of two Class A...
's Florida Gators baseball
Florida Gators baseball
The Florida Gators baseball team represents the University of Florida in the sport of baseball. The Florida Gators compete in Division I of the National Collegiate Athletics Association , and the Eastern Division of the Southeastern Conference . They play their home games in Alfred A...
team in National Collegiate Athletic Association
National Collegiate Athletic Association
The National Collegiate Athletic Association is a semi-voluntary association of 1,281 institutions, conferences, organizations and individuals that organizes the athletic programs of many colleges and universities in the United States...
(NCAA) competition from 1982 to 1985. Stanley primarily played catcher for the Gators, but sometimes played first and third base, and also served as the Gators' designated hitter periodically. He received Southeastern Conference (SEC) All-Tournament honors in 1982, and 1984 and 1985, and was a member of the NCAA Regional All-Tournament team in 1985. While Stanley was a Gator, the team won SEC regular season and SEC tournament championships in both 1982 and 1984. He remains the Gators' career record holder for runs scored and runs batted in (RBIs).
Stanley hit more than twenty home run
Home run
In baseball, a home run is scored when the ball is hit in such a way that the batter is able to reach home safely in one play without any errors being committed by the defensive team in the process...
s in a season three times during his career. His best all-around season at the plate came in 1993 with the Yankees, when he hit .305 with twenty-six homers and eighty-four RBI. He also hit .300 in 1994, and he notched a career-high twenty-nine homers in 1998.
Stanley became a first baseman
First baseman
First base, or 1B, is the first of four stations on a baseball diamond which must be touched in succession by a baserunner in order to score a run for that player's team...
/designated hitter
Designated hitter
In baseball, the designated hitter rule is the common name for Major League Baseball Rule 6.10, an official position adopted by the American League in 1973 that allows teams to designate a player, known as the designated hitter , to bat in place of the pitcher each time he would otherwise come to...
at the end of his career. He finished as a .270 career hitter with 187 homers, 702 RBI and a .370 career on base percentage
On base percentage
In baseball statistics, on-base percentage is a measure of how often a batter reaches base for any reason other than a fielding error, fielder's choice, dropped/uncaught third strike, fielder's obstruction, or catcher's interference In baseball statistics, on-base percentage (OBP) (sometimes...
. Stanley also hit well in the postseason, recording a .356 batting average and .434 on base percentage in five postseason series.
As a Ranger, Stanley caught the last of Nolan Ryan
Nolan Ryan
Lynn Nolan Ryan, Jr. , nicknamed "The Ryan Express", is a former Major League Baseball pitcher. He is currently principal owner, president and CEO of the Texas Rangers....
's seven career no-hitter
No-hitter
A no-hitter is a baseball game in which one team has no hits. In Major League Baseball, the team must be without hits during the entire game, and the game must be at least nine innings. A pitcher who prevents the opposing team from achieving a hit is said to have "thrown a no-hitter"...
s on May 1, 1991.
Following his retirement as a player, Stanley was hired to serve as bench coach for the Red Sox during the 2002 season. He resigned after the season to spend more time with his family.
Stanley now lives in Maitland, Florida
Maitland, Florida
Maitland is a suburban city in Orange County, Florida, United States, part of the Greater Metro Orlando area. The population was 12,019 at the 2000 census. As of 2006, the population recorded by the U.S. Census Bureau is 14,172...
. He and his wife Erin have four children: Tanner, Ryan, Jenna and Jake. His son Tanner played for the Maitland team in the 2005 Little League World Series
2005 Little League World Series
-Pool play:The top two teams in each pool moved on to their respective semifinals. The winners of each met on August 28 to play for the Little League world championship.-All times US EDT-International:All times US EDT:Elimination round...
; one of Tanner's teammates, Dante Bichette, Jr., was the son of former major-leaguer (Dante Bichette
Dante Bichette
Alphonse Dante Bichette, Sr. is a former Italian-American Major League Baseball player. Bichette was a four-time All-Star as a member of the Colorado Rockies.-Career:...
).
Stanley currently serves as an assistant baseball coach for the Lake Highland Preparatory School
Lake Highland Preparatory School
Lake Highland Preparatory School is a private school in Orlando, Florida that was founded in 1970. It is the largest private school in Orlando. Lake Highland Preparatory School is a Pre-K through 12, coeducational, private, day school situated on a campus on Lake Highland in the heart of Orlando...
in Orlando, Florida
Orlando, Florida
Orlando is a city in the central region of the U.S. state of Florida. It is the county seat of Orange County, and the center of the Greater Orlando metropolitan area. According to the 2010 US Census, the city had a population of 238,300, making Orlando the 79th largest city in the United States...
.
Stanley recently attended Yankees Old Timers Day. It was the first year Stanley participated in the event.
See also
- Florida GatorsFlorida GatorsThe Florida Gators are the intercollegiate sports teams that represent the University of Florida located in Gainesville, Florida. The "Lady Gators" is an alternative nickname sometimes used by the Gators women's teams...
- List of Florida Gators baseball players