Morgan Burkhart
Encyclopedia
Morgan Burkhart is a former first baseman
/designated hitter
in Major League Baseball
who played for the Boston Red Sox
(-) and Kansas City Royals
. He was a switch hitter
and threw left handed.
Burkhart graduated from Hazelwood West High School in Hazelwood
, Missouri
.
Listed at 5'11", 225 pounds, Burkhart was never able to fulfill the potential that he showed in the minor leagues
. He started his professional career in as a pitcher
/1B with the Richmond Roosters
of the independent Frontier League
. His numbers were significant, considering that during his time the league only had a 80-game schedule. In four seasons of Frontier ball, Burkhart hit .353 (393-for-1113), averaging 21.5 home run
s and 76.5 RBI
in each season. He won three league MVP awards, was selected to the All-Star Game four times, and won the Triple Crown
in , hitting .404 with 36 home runs and 98 RBIs in 80 games, being honored by Baseball America
as the 1998 Independent Player of the Year. He was dubbed by Peter Gammons
as the "Babe Ruth of the Frontier League."
Burkhart was signed by the Boston Red Sox in 1998, playing for three different minor league levels before joining the Red Sox in June . In his rookie season, he hit .288 with four home runs and 18 RBIs in 25 appearances, playing mostly as a backup for Brian Daubach
. After the season, he made history in the Mexican Pacific League
while playing for the Navojoa Mayos
, when he homered from both sides of the plate in one game against Mazatlán
. In 102 games, he hit .340 with 18 home runs and a .591 slugging percentage, including a 19-game hitting streak to start the season, and led the league with 55 RBIs and a .461 on-base percentage. Baseball America named him the Winter Player of the Year. From 1999-2000, he also was named the league MVP and a two-time All-Star.
Burkhart started with Triple-A Pawtucket
, hitting .269 with 25 home runs and 65 RBIs in 120 games before rejoining the Red Sox late in the season. He spent 2002 with the Fukuoka Daiei Hawks
of the Japan
's Pacific League
, and played for the Kansas City Royals in for his last major league season.
In a 42-game Major League career, Burkhart posted a .248 batting average (30-for-121) with five home runs and 23 RBI, including a solid .366 on-base percentage.
After a brief stint in Triple-A with the Charlotte Knights
, Burkhart went to the Mexican League with the Saraperos team based in Saltillo. He led the league in runs
(100), walks
(95) and OBP (.517), while hitting .365 (7th in the league) with 24 home runs (2nd), 91 RBIs (2nd), and a .658 slugging percentage. In 2005 he finished with a .304 average, 26 home runs, 72 RBI, 91 runs, 84 walks, a .466 OBP and a .583 SPC. The following season, he was sent by Saltillo to the Piratas (Campeche
) in exchange for Tom Evans
.
Burkhart hit over 250 career home runs in total as a professional baseball player.
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...
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...
who played for the 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"...
(-) and Kansas City Royals
Kansas City Royals
The Kansas City Royals are a Major League Baseball team based in Kansas City, Missouri. The Royals are a member of the Central Division of Major League Baseball's American League. From 1973 to the present, the Royals have played in Kauffman Stadium...
. He was a switch hitter
Switch hitter
In baseball, a switch-hitter is a player who bats both right-handed and left-handed.-Baseball:Usually, right-handed batters hit better against left-handed pitchers and vice-versa. Most curveballs break away from batters hitting from the same side as the opposing pitcher. Such pitches are often...
and threw left handed.
Burkhart graduated from Hazelwood West High School in Hazelwood
Hazelwood, Missouri
Hazelwood is a second-ring suburb of St. Louis, located in northwestern St. Louis County, Missouri. The population was 25,703 as of the 2010 census. Hazelwood, a northern suburb of St. Louis, is located north of Lambert-St...
, Missouri
Missouri
Missouri is a US state located in the Midwestern United States, bordered by Iowa, Illinois, Kentucky, Tennessee, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Kansas and Nebraska. With a 2010 population of 5,988,927, Missouri is the 18th most populous state in the nation and the fifth most populous in the Midwest. It...
.
Listed at 5'11", 225 pounds, Burkhart was never able to fulfill the potential that he showed in the minor leagues
Minor league baseball
Minor league baseball is a hierarchy of professional baseball leagues in the Americas that compete at levels below Major League Baseball and provide opportunities for player development. All of the minor leagues are operated as independent businesses...
. He started his professional career in as a pitcher
Pitcher
In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throwsthe baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of retiring a batter, who attempts to either make contact with the pitched ball or draw a walk. In the numbering system used to record defensive plays, the...
/1B with the Richmond Roosters
Traverse City Beach Bums
The Traverse City Beach Bums are a professional baseball team based in the Traverse City, Michigan, suburb of Blair Township, in the United States. The Beach Bums are a member of the East Division of the Frontier League, which is not affiliated with Major League Baseball...
of the independent Frontier League
Frontier League
The Frontier League, based in Sauget, Illinois, is a professional, independent baseball organization located in the Midwestern United States, Western Pennsylvania, and Southern Ontario. It operates mostly in cities not served by Major or Minor League Baseball teams and is not affiliated with either...
. His numbers were significant, considering that during his time the league only had a 80-game schedule. In four seasons of Frontier ball, Burkhart hit .353 (393-for-1113), averaging 21.5 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 and 76.5 RBI
Run batted in
Runs batted in or RBIs is a statistic used in baseball and softball to credit a batter when the outcome of his at-bat results in a run being scored, except in certain situations such as when an error is made on the play. The first team to track RBI was the Buffalo Bisons.Common nicknames for an RBI...
in each season. He won three league MVP awards, was selected to the All-Star Game four times, and won the Triple Crown
Triple crown (baseball)
In Major League Baseball, a player earns the Triple Crown when he leads a league in three specific statistical categories. For batters, a player must lead the league in home runs, run batted in , and batting average; pitchers must lead the league in wins, strikeouts, and earned run average...
in , hitting .404 with 36 home runs and 98 RBIs in 80 games, being honored by Baseball America
Baseball America
Baseball America is a magazine which covers baseball at every level, with a particular focus on up-and-coming players in high school, college, Japan, and the minor leagues. It is currently published in the form of a bi-weekly newspaper, five annual reference book titles, a weekly podcast, and a...
as the 1998 Independent Player of the Year. He was dubbed by Peter Gammons
Peter Gammons
Peter Gammons is an American sportswriter, media personality, and a recipient of the J. G. Taylor Spink Award for outstanding baseball writing, given by the BBWAA.-Education:...
as the "Babe Ruth of the Frontier League."
Burkhart was signed by the Boston Red Sox in 1998, playing for three different minor league levels before joining the Red Sox in June . In his rookie season, he hit .288 with four home runs and 18 RBIs in 25 appearances, playing mostly as a backup for Brian Daubach
Brian Daubach
Brian Michael Daubach is a retired Major League Baseball player and current minor league baseball manager. During his playing career Daubach served as a first baseman, outfielder, and designated hitter...
. After the season, he made history in the Mexican Pacific League
Liga Mexicana del Pacífico
The Mexican Pacific League is a winter minor baseball league in Mexico. The eight-team league's regular season runs from October to December and is followed by a playoff series in January to determine the league champion...
while playing for the Navojoa Mayos
Mayos de Navojoa
The Mayos de Navojoa is a Mexican baseball team in the Liga Mexicana del Pacífico .They have been champions of the league twice. The first time was at the 1978–79 season, with Chuck Goggin as coach...
, when he homered from both sides of the plate in one game against Mazatlán
Venados de Mazatlán
Venados de Mazatlán are a baseball team in the Mexican Pacific League. In 2005, the team won the Mexican Pacific League Championship and went on to win their first Caribbean Series, which was played in Mazatlán.-2004-2005 Season:...
. In 102 games, he hit .340 with 18 home runs and a .591 slugging percentage, including a 19-game hitting streak to start the season, and led the league with 55 RBIs and a .461 on-base percentage. Baseball America named him the Winter Player of the Year. From 1999-2000, he also was named the league MVP and a two-time All-Star.
Burkhart started with Triple-A Pawtucket
Pawtucket Red Sox
The Pawtucket Red Sox are the minor league baseball Triple-A affiliates of the Boston Red Sox and belong to the International League...
, hitting .269 with 25 home runs and 65 RBIs in 120 games before rejoining the Red Sox late in the season. He spent 2002 with the Fukuoka Daiei Hawks
Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks
The are a Japanese baseball team based in Fukuoka, Fukuoka Prefecture. The team was bought on January 28, 2005 by the SoftBank Corporation.The team was formerly known as the Fukuoka Daiei Hawks. In 1988, Daiei bought the team from Osaka's Nankai Electric Railway Co., and its headquarters were...
of the Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
's Pacific League
Pacific League
The or is one of the two professional baseball leagues constituting Nippon Professional Baseball in Japan. The winner of the league championship competes against the winner in the Central League for the annual Japan Series...
, and played for the Kansas City Royals in for his last major league season.
In a 42-game Major League career, Burkhart posted a .248 batting average (30-for-121) with five home runs and 23 RBI, including a solid .366 on-base percentage.
After a brief stint in Triple-A with the Charlotte Knights
Charlotte Knights
The Charlotte Knights are a minor league baseball team representing Charlotte, North Carolina. The team, which plays in the International League, is the Triple-A affiliate of the Chicago White Sox of the American League...
, Burkhart went to the Mexican League with the Saraperos team based in Saltillo. He led the league in runs
Run (baseball)
In baseball, a run is scored when a player advances around first, second and third base and returns safely to home plate, touching the bases in that order, before three outs are recorded and all obligations to reach base safely on batted balls are met or assured...
(100), walks
Base on balls
A base on balls is credited to a batter and against a pitcher in baseball statistics when a batter receives four pitches that the umpire calls balls. It is better known as a walk. The base on balls is defined in Section 2.00 of baseball's Official Rules, and further detail is given in 6.08...
(95) and OBP (.517), while hitting .365 (7th in the league) with 24 home runs (2nd), 91 RBIs (2nd), and a .658 slugging percentage. In 2005 he finished with a .304 average, 26 home runs, 72 RBI, 91 runs, 84 walks, a .466 OBP and a .583 SPC. The following season, he was sent by Saltillo to the Piratas (Campeche
Piratas de Campeche
The Piratas de Campeche are a AAA-level baseball team playing in the Mexican League LMB based in Campeche, Campeche, Mexico.-History:...
) in exchange for Tom Evans
Tom Evans (baseball)
Thomas John Evans is a former third baseman in Major League Baseball. Between 1997 and 2000, Evans played for the Toronto Blue Jays and Texas Rangers . He batted and threw right-handed....
.
Burkhart hit over 250 career home runs in total as a professional baseball player.