The career of ex-Chicago White Sox and Detroit Tiger right fielder, will officially conclude Sunday when Magglio Ordonez announces his retirement. After a prestiged 15 year career, Magglio will call it quits after being unable to get work from teams in the Majors.
He started off his career in Chicago after the White Sox signed him as an amateur in 1991. It took him six years to make it to the major league level.
In his first full season he played 145 games and hit .282, 14 homeruns and 65 RBI. After this year, he went four straight seasons hitting at least 30 homeruns and 100 RBI.
In 2007, he won a batting title after hitting .363. His career batting average is .309. Magglio could not only hit, but he also had a knack for getting on base. His career OBP is .370. If Moneyball taught us anything it is that on-base percentage is very vaulable.
Magglio's most memorable hit had to be his three-run walkoff homerun that propelled the Tigers over the Oakland Athletics in the 2006 American League Championship Series. With runners on first and second and two outs in the bottom of the 9th, Magglio sent a shot over the left field wall.
The Tigers went on to lose the world series against the St. Louis Cardinals, but it was still a pretty good memory for Magglio.
As good as Magglio was, he was plagued by injuries his whole career. In 2004 he crashed into Willie Harris, really messing up his knee. He only played 52 games that season. Then most recently in 2011, he had to miss the rest of the postseason after injuring his foot in Game 1 of the ALCS against the Texas Rangers. He was coming off a division series against the New York Yankees where he hit .455.
All in all Ordonez will be remembered for his power and of course that game winner that sent the Detroit into a frenzy.
