Chris Carter (outfielder)

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Chris Carter
Carter with the New York Mets
Outfielder
Born: (1982-09-16) September 16, 1982 (age 41)
Fremont, California, U.S.
Batted: Left
Threw: Left
MLB debut
June 5, 2008, for the Boston Red Sox
Last MLB appearance
October 3, 2010, for the New York Mets
MLB statistics
Batting average.263
Home runs4
Runs batted in28
NPB statistics
Batting average.263
Home runs4
Runs batted in30
Teams

William Christopher Carter (born September 16, 1982), nicknamed "Animal", is an American former Major League Baseball outfielder who played for the Boston Red Sox and New York Mets between 2008 and 2010. He also played for the Saitama Seibu Lions of Nippon Professional Baseball.

Career[edit]

High school[edit]

Carter attended De La Salle High School in Concord, California, and graduated in 2001. He hit for a batting average of .571 and led the league in home runs as a senior, and was named his team's MVP. He also was named a 2001 Preseason First Team All-American by Baseball America and Bay Valley Athletic League MVP in 2001.

He was twice selected as North Coast Section High School Sports Focus Scholar-Athlete of the Year (2000, '01) and earned honorable mention All-American honors from USA Today as a junior in 2000.

His father, Bill Carter, was his high school coach.[1]

College[edit]

Carter attended Stanford University,[2] where he majored in human biology and was Pre-Med, graduating in just three years.[3] He was awarded Stanford's Most Valuable Freshman Award in 2002 and helped the Cardinal to the final eight in the 2002 College World Series and 2003 College World Series. He was mainly a designated hitter for the team, and played some outfield as well.[1][4] In 2002 and 2003, he played collegiate summer baseball in the Cape Cod Baseball League for the Yarmouth-Dennis Red Sox.[5][6][7]

Minor leagues[edit]

Carter was drafted as a first baseman and outfielder by the Arizona Diamondbacks in the 17th round (506th overall) of the 2004 Major League Baseball Draft.

In 2004, Carter played for the Single-A Yakima Bears and South Bend Silver Hawks. In 2005, he played for the Single-A Lancaster JetHawks and Double-A Tennessee Smokies. In 2006 and 2007, Carter played for the Triple-A Tucson Sidewinders.

After expressing a desire to be traded,[8] Carter was traded by the Diamondbacks on August 21, 2007, to the Washington Nationals for Emiliano Fruto. He was subsequently sent to the Red Sox as the player to be named later in the August 17 trade of Wily Mo Peña from the Red Sox to the Nationals.[9][10] After the trade, Carter was assigned to Triple-A Pawtucket.

On November 20, 2007, Carter was placed on the Red Sox 40-man roster.[11]

Boston Red Sox[edit]

Carter made his major league debut on June 5, 2008. He went 2-for-3 with two runs scored after entering the game when Coco Crisp was ejected in the second inning. With the Red Sox facing a possible Crisp suspension and injuries to both Jacoby Ellsbury and Manny Ramírez, Carter was sent back to Pawtucket on June 6 in favor of Brandon Moss.[12]

Carter batting for the Pawtucket Red Sox in 2009

In the 2009 season, Carter made the Red Sox Opening Day roster. He filled the final spot on the bench until Mark Kotsay returned from the disabled list.[citation needed]

New York Mets[edit]

Carter was traded to the New York Mets as a player to be named later in the deal for Billy Wagner, and was then added to the 40-man roster.[13] During spring training, Carter was given the nickname "The Animal" by Mets manager Jerry Manuel for his relentless drive and work ethic.[14]

On May 10, 2010, the Mets promoted Carter from the Buffalo Bisons to fill Frank Catalonotto's roster spot.[15] On May 11, 2010, his first at-bat as a Met, in the bottom of the eighth inning, he hit a double that drove in the winning run against the Washington Nationals.

On June 11, 2010, Carter hit his first major league home run against Baltimore Orioles pitcher Jeremy Guthrie as the designated hitter.[16] Two days later, Carter, again playing DH, hit his second home run against Orioles pitcher Kevin Millwood.

Carter agreed a minor league contract with the Tampa Bay Rays on January 6, 2011.[17] He opted out of his contract on June 16.[18]

Atlanta Braves[edit]

Carter signed a minor league contract with the Atlanta Braves on June 18, 2011.[19]

Saitama Seibu Lions[edit]

On March 3, 2012, Carter signed with the Saitama Seibu Lions of the Pacific League of Nippon Professional Baseball.[20] Carter was waived by the Lions after the 2012 season.

In the first part of 2013 he played for the semi-professional Ishikawa Million Stars in the independent Baseball Challenge League.[21] On June 16, 2013, it was announced that Carter would be returning to the Saitama Seibu Lions.[22]

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b "Chris Carter profile". Stanford University. September 30, 2004. Archived from the original on January 29, 2008. Retrieved March 11, 2008.
  2. ^ Renwick, James (November 14, 2005). "Chris Carter Plays 'Smart' Ball". Scout.com. Archived from the original on April 23, 2010. Retrieved May 20, 2009.
  3. ^ McDonald, Joe (August 30, 2007). "Carter mighty glad he was named to go to Sox". The Providence Journal. Archived from the original on June 22, 2011. Retrieved June 22, 2011.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  4. ^ Kwietkauski, Janelle (May 11, 2004). "Chris Carter: Strong Character Shines Through". Stanford University. Archived from the original on December 19, 2007. Retrieved March 11, 2008.
  5. ^ "Major League Baseball Players From the Cape Cod League" (PDF). Cape Cod Baseball. Archived (PDF) from the original on December 7, 2012. Retrieved September 25, 2019.
  6. ^ "2002 Yarmouth-Dennis Red Sox". thebaseballcube.com. Retrieved September 23, 2021.
  7. ^ "2003 Yarmouth-Dennis Red Sox". thebaseballcube.com. Retrieved September 23, 2021.
  8. ^ Brazzle, Ken (August 22, 2007). "'Winder's Carter traded to Nationals, then to Red Sox". Tucson Citizen. Archived from the original on May 14, 2008. Retrieved March 11, 2008.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  9. ^ McPhillips, Alex (August 17, 2007). "Sox trade Pena to Nationals: Club sends outfielder and cash for player to be named". Boston Red Sox. Archived from the original on June 17, 2013. Retrieved March 11, 2008.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  10. ^ Lefort, David (August 21, 2007). "Red Sox get Carter". The Boston Globe. Retrieved March 11, 2008.
  11. ^ "#31 Chris Carter". Sox Prospects. March 1, 2008. Archived from the original on October 11, 2007. Retrieved March 11, 2008.
  12. ^ Cafardo, Nick (June 6, 2008). "Losing left, right, and center". The Boston Globe. Retrieved June 7, 2008.
  13. ^ Olney, Buster (August 28, 2009). "Yankees-Red Sox rivalry reaches waiver wire". ESPN. Archived from the original on March 8, 2021. Retrieved May 29, 2021.
  14. ^ Lapointe, Joe (May 11, 2010). "Mets Ask for Offense, and a Newcomer Answers". The New York Times. Retrieved May 11, 2010.
  15. ^ Obernauer, Michael; Gagne, Matt; Martino, Andy (May 11, 2010). "Frank Catalanotto designated for assignment, Chris Carter called up; Oliver Perez stays in rotation". New York Daily News. New York. Retrieved May 11, 2010.
  16. ^ Waldstein, David (June 13, 2010). "First Sweep on Road for Mets Since 2008". The New York Times. Retrieved June 14, 2010.
  17. ^ Rubin, Adam (January 6, 2011). "'Animal' Carter to Tampa Bay". ESPN. Archived from the original on February 2, 2017. Retrieved May 29, 2021.
  18. ^ Dierkes, Tim (June 16, 2011). "Minor Moves: Carter, Ramirez, Dopirak, Redding". MLB Trade Rumors. Archived from the original on June 18, 2011. Retrieved May 29, 2021.
  19. ^ Links, Zach (June 19, 2011). "Minor Deals: Castillo, Vazquez, Gotay, Carter". MLB Trade Rumors. Archived from the original on June 20, 2011. Retrieved June 19, 2011.
  20. ^ Short, D.J. (March 3, 2012). "Chris Carter signs with the Seibu Lions of Japan's Pacific League". NBC Sports. Archived from the original on March 4, 2012. Retrieved March 3, 2012.
  21. ^ Jakahi, Kevin (June 3, 2013). "Stars' bats suffer burnout in loss". Hawaii Tribune-Herald. Archived from the original on October 19, 2017. Retrieved October 19, 2017.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  22. ^ "Seibu Lions to bring Chris Carter back". Yakyubaka.com. June 17, 2013. Archived from the original on August 9, 2013. Retrieved August 9, 2013.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)

External links[edit]