Wladimir Balentien
| Wladimir Balentien | |||
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Balentien with the Tokyo Yakult Swallows
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| Tokyo Yakult Swallows – No. 4 | |||
| Outfielder / Designated hitter | |||
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Born: July 2, 1984 Willemstad, Curaçao |
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| Professional debut | |||
| MLB: September 4, 2007, for the Seattle Mariners | |||
| NPB: April 12, 2011, for the Tokyo Yakult Swallows | |||
| MLB statistics | |||
| Batting average | .221 | ||
| Hits | 113 | ||
| Home runs | 15 | ||
| Runs batted in | 52 | ||
| NPB statistics (through 2016 season) |
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| Batting average | .277 | ||
| Hits | 593 | ||
| Home runs | 185 | ||
| Runs batted in | 459 | ||
| Teams | |||
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| Career highlights and awards | |||
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Wladimir Ramon Balentien (Dutch pronunciation: [ˈvladimir balənˈtin]; born July 2, 1984) is a Curaçaoan-Dutch professional baseball outfielder with the Tokyo Yakult Swallows of Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB). He previously played in Major League Baseball for the Seattle Mariners and Cincinnati Reds.
In 2013, he broke the NPB single-season home run record of 55, previously held by professional baseball's all-time home run leader Sadaharu Oh, American Tuffy Rhodes and Venezuelan Alex Cabrera. Balentien would finish the season with 60 home runs.
Balentien was signed as an undrafted free agent by the Mariners in 2000. He spent his first five professional seasons in the minor leagues, playing for the Arizona League Mariners, Wisconsin Timber Rattlers, Inland Empire 66ers, San Antonio Missions, and Tacoma Rainiers, before being called up in September 2007.
In 2007, Balentien was selected to the All-Star Futures Game in San Francisco, a result of his .328 batting average, 20 home runs, and 66 runs batted in by that point. He was called up to the Mariners on September 4, 2007, and played that very night against the New York Yankees at Yankee Stadium. Balentien pinch-hit for José Guillén in the 8th inning, and hit a two-run double in his first major league at-bat.
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