Ed Sprague

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Ed Sprague

Born:	Jul 25, 1967
Birthplace:	Castro Valley, California
Hometown:
Height:	6' 2"
Weight:	210 lbs
Bats:	Right
Throws:	Right
Drafted:	1988: 1st Round,25th Pick by the Toronto Blue Jays
College:	Stanford University
High School:	St. Mary's (CA)
Other Teams:	Toronto Blue Jays 1991-1998 Oakland Athletics 1998 Pittsburgh Pirates 1999 San Diego Padres 2000 Seattle Mariners 2001
Years with Boston:	2000

1 Overall Career
2 Awards
3 Moment in the Sun
4 Trivia
5 Transactions
6 External Links

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Overall Career

Edward Nelson "Ed" Sprague Jr. (born July 25, 1967, Castro Valley, CA), was a Major League Baseball player. He played 11 seasons in the major leagues, from 1991 to 2001, with six different teams. He was primarily a third baseman.

Sprague was an NCAA standout where he played third base helping Stanford win championships in 1987 and 1988. He then collected an Olympic Gold Medal in the 1988 Olympics on the men's baseball team.

Ed was drafted in the first round of the 1988 draft by the Toronto Blue Jays.

Sprague made his debut in 1991 for the Toronto Blue Jays and was a part of the 1992 and 1993 World Series championships. He is particularly remembered for hitting the game-winning home run in the ninth inning of Game 2 of the 1992 series against the Atlanta Braves. His best individual year came in 1996 when he hit .247 with 36 home runs and 101 RBI.

Sprague was a regular with Toronto until 1998, when he was traded to the Oakland Athletics. He was granted free agency at the end of 1998, and then played for the Pittsburgh Pirates in 1999, for which he made his only All-Star game appearance. That year he hit .267 with 22 homers, 81 RBI and a .352 on base percentage, the best of his career as a regular player.

In 2000, Sprague played for the San Diego Padres and Boston Red Sox. After obtaining free agency at the end of the year, he signed with the Seattle Mariners for the 2001 season, playing in 45 regular season games. He signed a minor league contract with the Texas Rangers in early 2002, but did not return to the major leagues.

Sprague had something of a knack of getting hit by pitches, leading the league twice in this category and finishing with a career total of 91.

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Awards

1999 National League All-Star - Pittsburgh Pirates

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Moment in the Sun

Sprague hit a game-winning home run in Game 2 of the 1992 World Series, for the Toronto Blue Jays.

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Trivia

Member of the National Championship winning Stanford University Baseball Team in 1987 and 1988.
Member of the Gold-Medal winning United States Baseball Team at the 1988 Olympics in Seoul.
Member of the World Series Champion Toronto Blue Jays in 1992 and 1993.

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Transactions

June 3, 1985: Drafted by the Boston Red Sox in the 26th round of the 1985 amateur draft, but did not sign.
June 1, 1988: Drafted by the Toronto Blue Jays in the 1st round (25th pick) of the 1988 amateur draft. Player signed June 22, 1988.
July 31, 1998: Traded by the Toronto Blue Jays to the Oakland Athletics for Scott Rivette (minors).
October 27, 1998: Granted Free Agency.
December 16, 1998: Signed as a Free Agent with the Pittsburgh Pirates.
October 29, 1999: Granted Free Agency.
February 3, 2000: Signed as a Free Agent with the San Diego Padres.
June 30, 2000: Traded by the San Diego Padres to the Boston Red Sox for Dennis Tankersley and Cesar Saba.
August 23, 2000: Released by the Boston Red Sox.
August 31, 2000: Signed as a Free Agent with the San Diego Padres.
October 31, 2000: Granted Free Agency.
December 7, 2000: Signed as a Free Agent with the San Diego Padres.
March 28, 2001: Released by the San Diego Padres.
May 3, 2001: Signed as a Free Agent with the Seattle Mariners.
November 6, 2001: Granted Free Agency.