MLB Player Profile: Andre Ethier
Andre Ethier has been a talented player throughout his baseball career. He is a true gentleman and worthy of being called an All-Star in its factual sense. He started his professional career with the Los Angeles Dodgers in 2006 and has been a Dodger ever
since.
Ethier’s name came to the scene in 2001 when the Oakland Athletics drafted him in the 37th round of the 2001 amateur draft. He opted to attend Arizona State University instead and 2003 saw him being drafted again by the Oakland Athletics, this
time in the second round.
The A’s signed Ethier in 2003 and kept him playing with the Minor League affiliates. The Athletics seemed unhurried to introduce this exciting talent to the Majors and that is where they misread the script. Ethier had an inborn talent to smash the ball and
the Dodgers were quick to observe this.
In 2005, the Athletics traded Ethier to the Dodgers in return for Milton Bradley and Antonio Perez. The Dodgers did not waste any time introducing him to the big stage and Ethier proved his mettle to silence his critics as soon as he set foot.
Ethier made history when he was named the National League’s Player of the Week just two months into his professional career. His first season was as good as he would have ever thought. He saw his batting average rise to .354, near league-best, before ending
the season at .308. Ethier became an instant hero among the fans and promised a fertile career with his strong showing as a rookie.
Andre adjusted well among the stars and was sensible not to let fame take over his game. Ethier remained humble and remained consistent at the plate to pose a constant threat at the opposition pitchers. He started hitting more home-runs in 2007, his second
year in MLB, to end the season with 13 home-runs. Although not huge in number, these home-runs were enough to give him confidence that he has the ability to show aggression to the best names in the game.
Ethier’s career rocketed in 2008 when he finally got hold of his natural position on right field. Ethier got a boost in confidence and went on to score 90 runs in that season at an average of .305. Ethier registered 160 hits in 2008 and was able to score
20 home-runs and 77 RBIs in a season that stamped his authority among the professional baseball players.
Ethier, son of a French Canadian father and a Mexican American mother, finally got his name on the silverware in 2009. He won the Silver Slugger Award for hitting 31 home-runs that season and registering 106 RBIs. He improved his 90 runs from last year to
finish the season with a career-best of 92 runs. The Dodgers were now dependant on Ethier as their key player. He ended the season by winning the MLB Clutch Performer of the Year Award.
After playing 160 games in 2009, Ethier played just 139 games in 2010 citing injury concerns. He did not, however, let this affect his style of play and he continued to hammer the pitchers. His batting average remained consistent just below the .300 mark
and home-runs came in plenty. His four years of unrelenting hard work earned him his first All-Star call up in 2010 and he did not let this opportunity go waste. Although he did not perform well in the game but his presence was enough to give him the required
boost.
This season, Ethier has been at his usual best. He has played 96 games thus far and already has 104 hits to his name. He is just four shy of 50 runs this season and is averaging .299. He made his second consecutive appearance in the All-Star Game this year
when Shane Victorino pulled out due to injury.
He has been a true star and has a promising future in this game. His statistics are extraordinary and at this pace, he can eye many records in the future.
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