Dee Gordon

Devaris "Dee" Gordon (born April 22, 1988) is an American professional baseball second baseman, shortstop, and center fielder for the Seattle Mariners of Major League Baseball (MLB). He previously played for the Los Angeles Dodgers and Miami Marlins. With the Dodgers, Gordon was primarily a shortstop and second baseman, and with the Marlins, he was primarily a second baseman. He began playing center field in 2018 with the Mariners. In 2015, in his first season with the Marlins, Gordon hit .333 with a total of 205 hits and stole 58 bases. He led the NL in all three categories and became the first player to lead the National League in both batting average and stolen bases since fellow second baseman Jackie Robinson in 1949.[1] Through the 2010s, Gordon stole 330 bases, the most of any player.

Dee Gordon
Gordon with the Seattle Mariners in 2018
Seattle Mariners – No. 9
Second baseman / Shortstop / Center fielder
Born: (1988-04-22) April 22, 1988
Windermere, Florida
Bats: Left Throws: Right
MLB debut
June 6, 2011, for the Los Angeles Dodgers
MLB statistics
(through August 9, 2020)
Batting average.287
Home runs18
Runs batted in232
Stolen bases330
Teams
Career highlights and awards

On April 29, 2016, Major League Baseball suspended Gordon for 80 games due to performance-enhancing drug use. He tested positive for exogenous testosterone and clostebol.[2]

Early life

Gordon was born in Windermere, Florida, the son of former Major League pitcher Tom Gordon and Devona Denise Strange.[3][4][5] His parents were high-school sweethearts but did not marry; Tom had relationships with three other women as well and had a total of five children, all in Florida.[3] Dee is his second-oldest.[3] When Dee was seven years old in 1995, his mother Devona was shot to death by a subsequent boyfriend, who claimed that she was shot as they played with a loaded gun. Schultz pleaded no contest to manslaughter and was sentenced to five years in prison. [6][5][7] Tom sued for custody of Dee and raised him with the help of his own mother, Dee's grandmother.[3][8]

Dee's half-brother, Nick Gordon, was drafted by the Minnesota Twins in the first round (#5) of the 2014 draft.[9]

Baseball career

Prep and college

Despite being Tom Gordon's son, the younger Gordon did not take up baseball until his high school years, having previously dedicated himself to basketball.[8][10] He received a scholarship offer to play college basketball for the Louisville Cardinals.[11]

Gordon played baseball at Avon Park High School (like his father), Seminole Community College, and Southeastern University, all in central Florida. He was drafted by the Los Angeles Dodgers in the fourth round of the 2008 Major League Baseball Draft.[4]

Minor leagues

In 2008, with the Ogden Raptors of the Pioneer League, he hit .331 in 60 games. With the Great Lakes Loons in 2009, Gordon hit .301 and stole 73 bases. He appeared in the Midwest League All-Star Game,[12] was named the league's most valuable player, selected to its mid-season and post-season All-Star teams, and selected as its "Prospect of the year".[13][14] The Dodgers also selected him as their "Minor League Player of the Year".[15][16]

In 2010, he was with the Chattanooga Lookouts in the Double-A Southern League and was selected to represent the Lookouts in the All-Star game but was unable to play because he was also selected to the All-Star Futures Game. He hit .277 in 133 games in 2010, while stealing 53 bases and committing 37 errors. He played for Gigantes de Carolina in the Puerto Rico Baseball League after the season. He was assigned to the AAA Albuquerque Isotopes at the start of 2011.

Los Angeles Dodgers
Gordon with the Los Angeles Dodgers in 2011

At the start of 2011, Gordon was the Dodgers' best prospect according to Baseball America.[17] After an injury to shortstop Rafael Furcal,[18][19] the Dodgers purchased Gordon's contract on June 6, 2011 and he made his major league debut in the top of the ninth as a pinch runner against the Philadelphia Phillies that night, and scored a run.[20][21] His father was in attendance.[22] The next day, in his first start, he had hits in his first three major league at bats and had a stolen base. In a game against the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim on July 1, Gordon stole second, third, and home in the same inning. He became the first Dodger player since Harvey Hendrick in 1928 and the first Major Leaguer since Jayson Werth on May 12, 2009 to accomplish that feat.[23] Gordon appeared in 56 games for the Dodgers, hitting .304 with 24 stolen bases. He also stole 30 bases for the Isotopes, giving him a total of 54 between the majors and the minors in 2011. In just 56 games for the Dodgers, Gordon's 24 stolen bases were tied for the most by a rookie during the 2011 season.[24] He was selected to the Topps All-Star Rookie team.

Gordon hit his first career home run on May 1, 2012, leading off the game against Jhoulys Chacín of the Colorado Rockies. On June 1, 2012, Gordon was part of a Dodgers lineup that featured the sons of five former Major Leaguers (along with Tony Gwynn, Jr., Iván DeJesús, Jr., Jerry Hairston, Jr. and Scott Van Slyke). This was the first time in Major League history that this had occurred. It was also the first time a starting infield of four major league sons had ever occurred: first baseman Van Slyke, second baseman Hairston, third baseman De Jesus and shortstop Gordon.[25] Gordon was leading the league in stolen bases when he tore the UCL in his right thumb on a successful steal of third base on July 4 against the Cincinnati Reds. He did not rejoin the club until September 11, by which time the club had acquired Hanley Ramírez to play shortstop. With his starting spot gone, Gordon was relegated to a pinch running role the remainder of the season. Overall, in 2012, he played in 87 games and hit .228 with 32 steals. After the season, he played for the Tigres del Licey in the Dominican Winter League.

He began 2013 back in AAA with the Isotopes and was called up to the Dodgers on May 4 after an injury to Ramírez. He played in 19 games, during which he hit a poor .175, and was optioned back to AAA. He rejoined the Dodgers late in the season and was used primarily as a pinch runner. He stole 10 bases in 12 attempts for the Dodgers in 2013 while hitting .231 in 38 games. Later in the season, the Isotopes started playing Gordon at second base and he played center field in the Dominican Winter League in an attempt to improve his versatility.[26]

Gordon beat out Alex Guerrero to become the Dodgers starting second baseman for the 2014 season. He hit .301 in the first half of the season, while leading the league in triples (9) and steals (42) and he was selected to the National League squad at the 2014 Major League Baseball All-Star Game.[27] At the All-Star game at Target Field, when Gordon was in the on-deck circle, Derek Jeter told Fox TV commentators how amazing it was to see Dee there, also playing as an All-Star, having first met him at age 15 when his father Tom was then pitching for the Yankees. Gordon had entered the game as a pinch-runner in the fourth inning, and scored the game-tying run. Overall, he went 0–1, but made a strong fielding play at second base, sliding to his right to grab a ground ball to end the sixth inning.[28]

Gordon finished the 2014 season with 64 stolen bases, the most in Major League Baseball.[29] It was the first time a Dodgers player had led the Major League in stolen bases since Davey Lopes stole 77 bases in 1975. He hit .289 in over 600 at-bats and also led the league with 12 triples.[29] He was selected as a Sporting News National League all-star.[30]

Miami Marlins
Gordon batting for the Miami Marlins in 2015

On December 10, 2014, Gordon was traded to the Miami Marlins, along with Dan Haren and Miguel Rojas, in exchange for Andrew Heaney, Chris Hatcher, Austin Barnes, and Enrique Hernández.[31] Gordon recorded his 50th hit of the season in the Marlins' 28th game on May 7, 2015, tying Rogers Hornsby's 1924 Major League record for fewest team games required to reach 50 hits.[32] After 28 games, Gordon led the major leagues with a .437 batting average.[33] On May 22, Gordon stole four bases in a game against the Baltimore Orioles.[34] In a June 30 home game against the San Francisco Giants, Gordon hit his first inside-the-park home run. The home run against pitcher Ryan Vogelsong scored three runs. It was also the first inside-the-park homer at Marlins Park.[35] Gordon batted .333 for the season, winning the National League batting title and leading the majors in infield hits (36) and bunt hits (16), and winning his first Rawlings Gold Glove Award.[36][37]

Gordon playing for the Miami Marlins in 2016

On January 18, 2016, Gordon signed a five-year contract extension with the Marlins worth $50 million.[38] On April 29, Major League Baseball suspended Gordon for 80 games due to performance-enhancing drugs use. He tested positive for exogenous testosterone and clostebol.[2] On September 26, the day after teammate José Fernández died in a boating accident, Gordon led off the game versus the Mets. A left handed hitter, he took the first pitch of his at bat as a right-handed batter, imitating Fernández's batting stance, with Fernández's batting helmet in honor of his late friend. Gordon then switched to bat left handed as he does naturally and hit his first home run of the year.[39] He rounded the bases fighting off tears and hugged teammates upon his arrival back to the dugout. He said after the game that he had never hit a ball that far even in batting practice, adding, "If y'all don't believe in God, y'all might as well start. For that to happen today, we had some help."[40] Gordon's tribute home run to Fernández has been described as a "transcendent MLB moment."[41]

In 2016 he batted .268/.305/.335 with one home run. For the season, he had the highest ground ball percentage (57.6%), and the lowest fly ball percentage (19.6%), of all major league hitters .[42]

In 2017, he batted .308/.341/.375 with two home runs, and led the majors in bunt hits, with 18.[43]

Seattle Mariners

On December 7, 2017, the Marlins traded Gordon and international slot money to the Seattle Mariners for Nick Neidert, Christopher Torres, and Robert Dugger.[44] It was also reported that Gordon would be an outfielder for the Mariners.[45] Gordon played outfield for the Mariners until Robinson Canó was suspended for 80 games, at which point Gordon returned to second base.

In September 2018, a day after Gordon nonchalantly dropped a fly ball in the outfield, he was criticized by and fought teammate Jean Segura in the team's locker room after asking media to leave the room.[46][47] For the 2018 season Gordon batted .268/.288/.349 with four home runs in 556 at bats. Center fielders set up on average only 302 feet from home plate when he came to bat and left fielders 267 feet from home plate, closer than for any other major league hitter.[48] While he stole 30 bases (fifth in the league), he led the American League with 12 times caught stealing. On defense his 10 errors at second base were third among all AL second basemen, and his .963 fielding percentage in center field was the lowest among all major league center fielders with at least 400 innings played.[49][50] Gordon walked in 1.5% of his at bats, the lowest percentage in the major leagues, and had the lowest walks-per-strikeout ratio in the majors (0.11).[51]

In 2019, Gordon batted .275/.304/.359 and stole 22 bases in 117 games.

Personal life

Gordon is involved with many charities, such as Above .500 Inc. where he hosted Meet & Greets and participated in multiple charity games.[52][53] In addition, Gordon created "Flash of Hope", a charity to help children whose parent died as a result of domestic abuse. Working with the Florida District Attorney's office, he invites one child a month to join him in the clubhouse and during batting practice.[5]

In 2017, Gordon was the Marlins nominee for the Roberto Clemente Award after his work with Athletes Brand and Food for the Hungry in their efforts to end poverty in the Dominican Republic.

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See also

References
  1. Dee Gordon of the Miami Marlins wins NL batting title, accessed October 18, 2015
  2. "Marlins 2B Dee Gordon suspended 80 games after PEDs violation". espn.go.com. April 29, 2016. Retrieved April 29, 2016.
  3. Nightengale, Bob (July 15, 2006). "Gordon ready to lead". USA Today. Retrieved January 7, 2015.
  4. "Dee Gordon". Baseball-Reference.com. 2014. Retrieved January 7, 2015.
  5. Spencer, Clark (September 21, 2015). "Miami Marlins' Dee Gordon honors his mother on field". Miami Herald. Retrieved September 22, 2015.
  7. Dee Gordon's mother Devona Strange and father Tom Gordon - PlayerWives.com
  8. Lauber, Scott (May 30, 2008). "Flash: The Next Generation". Delaware Online. Retrieved January 7, 2015.
  9. "Nick Gordon". Baseball-Reference.com. 2014. Retrieved January 7, 2015.
  10. Jackson, Josh (February 21, 2011). "Ten Questions with Dee Gordon". MILB.com. Retrieved March 28, 2019.
  11. "Marlins celebrate first win of season with a slam dunk!". NY Daily News. Associated Press. April 11, 2015. Retrieved April 21, 2016.
  12. Lindner, Matthew (June 24, 2009). "Notebook: Gordon follows in dad's footsteps". Minor League Baseball. Retrieved August 27, 2013.
  13. Brad Golder / Great Lakes Loons. "Record Seven Loons Named to All-Star Team". MILB.com. Retrieved August 27, 2013.CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  14. "Gordon named MVP, top prospect". MILB.com. August 25, 2009. Archived from the original on August 25, 2009. Retrieved August 27, 2013.
  15. "Dodgers name top Minor Leaguers". Losangeles.dodgers.mlb.com. Retrieved August 27, 2013.
  16. "Dee Gordon Named Dodgers Top Farmhand". Baseballdeworld.com. October 3, 2009. Retrieved August 27, 2013.
  17. Perrotto, John (December 4, 2009). "Los Angeles Dodgers top 10 prospects". Baseballamerica.com. Retrieved August 27, 2013.
  18. Stevens, Matt (July 1, 2011). "Rookie shortstop Dee Gordon's chances of staying with the Dodgers are looking pretty slim". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved March 29, 2019.
  19. Jackson, Tony (June 24, 2011). "Rafael Furcal could play 2B upon return". ESPN.com. Retrieved March 29, 2019.
  20. "Gordon prepares for first year as starter". Fox Sports. March 9, 2012. Retrieved March 29, 2019.
  21. Livingston, Steve (August 8, 2013). "Dodgers Route of Champions Report: Dee Gordon". MILB.com. Retrieved March 28, 2019.
  22. "Los Angeles Dodgers vs. Philadelphia Phillies – Recap – June 06, 2011 – ESPN". Scores.espn.go.com. June 6, 2011. Retrieved August 27, 2013.
  23. "Gordon gets his stolen-base trifecta". Espn.go.com. Retrieved August 27, 2013.
  24. "Dee Gordon of the Los Angeles Dodgers voted winner of the Gillette presents National League Rookie of the Month Award for September | dodgers.com: Official Info". Mlb.mlb.com. Retrieved August 27, 2013.
  25. Hernandez, Dylan (June 3, 2012). "Dodgers again will be limited financially in amateur draft". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on June 6, 2012. Retrieved June 6, 2012.
  26. Hernandez, Dylan (October 29, 2013). "Dodgers' Dee Gordon to play center field in Dominican winter league". LA Times.
  27. Stephen, Eric (July 6, 2014). "Clayton Kershaw, Yasiel Puig lead 4 Dodgers named to All-Star team". truebluela.com. Retrieved July 6, 2014.
  28. Hoornstra, J.P. "Dodgers' quartet sees mixed results in All-Star game". Inside the Dodgers. J.P. Hoornstra/Word Press. Retrieved July 16, 2014.
  29. De Nicola, Christina (February 16, 2015). "New Marlins 2B Dee Gordon motivated by breakout '14, offseason trade". Fox Sports. Retrieved February 16, 2015.
  30. "Sporting News 2014 National League All-Star team". Sporting News. October 22, 2014. Retrieved October 22, 2014.
  31. Gurnick, Ken (December 11, 2014). "Dodgers adding Kendrick, Rollins in trades". MLB.com. Retrieved December 11, 2014.
  32. "Marlins by the numbers: Gordon reaches 50 hits". ESPN. May 8, 2015. Retrieved May 9, 2015.
  33. Spencer, Clark (May 8, 2015). "Dee Gordon, Dan Haren already paying dividends for Miami Marlins". Miami Herald. Retrieved May 9, 2015.
  34. "Video: Gordon's four-steal game". MLB.com. May 22, 2015. Retrieved May 24, 2015.
  35. De Nicola, Christina (June 30, 2015). "Dee Gordon legs out first inside-the-park HR at Marlins Park". Fox Sports. Retrieved July 1, 2015.
  36. Major League Leaderboards » 2015 » Batters » Batted Ball Statistics | FanGraphs Baseball
  37. Miller, Doug (November 10, 2015). "Defensive standouts nab Gold Glove Awards". MLB.com. Retrieved November 10, 2015.
  38. "Marlins make Dee Gordon's 5-year extension official". ESPN. January 18, 2016. Retrieved January 18, 2016.
  39. "Dee Gordon paid tribute to José Fernández by batting from the right side of the plate, then he homered". Major League Baseball. September 27, 2016. Retrieved September 27, 2016.
  40. "After honoring Jose Fernandez, Dee Gordon hits home run". USA Today. September 27, 2016. Retrieved September 27, 2016.
  41. "Dee Gordon, Marlins' Tearful Salute to Jose Fernandez Is Transcendent MLB Moment". Bleacher Report. September 26, 2016. Retrieved September 27, 2016.
  42. Major League Leaderboards » 2017 » Batters » Batted Ball Statistics | FanGraphs Baseball
  43. Major League Leaderboards » 2017 » Batters » Batted Ball Statistics | FanGraphs Baseball
  44. "Mariners Acquire Two-Time All-Star Dee Gordon from Miami". marinersblog.mlblogs.com. December 7, 2017. Retrieved December 7, 2017.
  45. Garro, Adrian (December 7, 2017). "New Mariners outfielder (!) Dee Gordon definitely has the speed required for the position". MLB.com. Retrieved December 7, 2017.
  46. Mariners show some pregame fight with an altercation in the clubhouse | The Seattle Times
  47. Mariners' Dee Gordon And Jean Segura Brawl In Locker Room Before Game
  48. Statcast Search | baseballsavant.com
  49. Dee Gordon Stats | Baseball-Reference.com
  50. Major League Leaderboards » 2018 » Center Fielders » Fielding Statistics | FanGraphs Baseball
  51. Major League Leaderboards » 2018 » Batters » Advanced Statistics | FanGraphs Baseball
  52. "Fox Sports".
  53. "Charity Game".
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