Tony Fernández | |||
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Shortstop | |||
Born: San Pedro de Macorís, Dominican Republic |
June 30, 1962 |||
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MLB debut | |||
September 2, 1983, for the Toronto Blue Jays | |||
Last MLB appearance | |||
October 7, 2001, for the Toronto Blue Jays | |||
MLB statistics | |||
Batting average | .288 | ||
Hits | 2,276 | ||
Home runs | 94 | ||
Runs batted in | 844 | ||
Teams | |||
Career highlights and awards | |||
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Octavio Antonio Fernández Castro (born June 30, 1962), better known as Tony Fernández, is a former Major League Baseball player most noted for his defensive skills, setting a nine-year record for shortstops with a .992 fielding percentage in 1989.
Fernandez was born in the Dominican Republic.
Fernández was first scouted by the Toronto Blue Jays' famed Latin America scout Epy Guerrero and was signed as an undrafted free agent in 1979. Promoted to the Blue Jays in 1983, Fernández became the team's full-time shortstop in 1985, and contributed significantly to the team winning its first division title that year. Fernández continued to star for the Jays for several years afterwards. His 213 hits in 1986 were, at the time, a major league single-season record for a shortstop (the record has since been surpassed).
Before the 1991 season, Fernández was traded to the San Diego Padres in a major deal that also sent Jays star Fred McGriff to San Diego in exchange for Roberto Alomar and Joe Carter. Fernández played well for San Diego for two years and then began the 1993 season with the New York Mets. After a disappointing start, he was traded back to the Blue Jays. He played well for the remainder of the season and was instrumental in helping the Blue Jays win the 1993 World Series. In that World Series, Fernández drove in nine runs, a record for a shortstop.
Fernández played for the New York Yankees in 1995. It was because of an injury early in the season to Fernández that Derek Jeter was called up to the major leagues for the first time.