Eric Anthony

Eric Anthony
Outfielder
Born:(1967-11-08)November 8, 1967 San Diego, California,U.S.
Batted:Left Threw:Left
MLB debut
July 28, 1989, for the Houston Astros
Last MLB appearance
September 27, 1997, for the Los Angeles Dodgers
MLB statistics
Batting average	.231
Home runs	78
Runs batted in	269
Teams
Houston Astros(1989–1993) Seattle Mariners(1994) Cincinnati Reds(1995–1996) Colorado Rockies(1996) Los Angeles Dodgers(1997) Yakult Swallows(1998)

Eric Todd Anthony(born November 8, 1967) is an American former professionalbaseballoutfielder.

Drafted by theHouston Astrosin the 34th round of the 1986MLBamateur draft, Anthony would make his Major League Baseball debut with the Houston Astros on July 28, 1989, and appear in his final game on September 27, 1997.

High school

In 1986, Anthony was an 18-year-oldSharpstown High Schooldropout working on an assembly line at a Houston plastics company. He talked his way into anAstrostryout in 1986 and impressed scouts with his power, stunning them during batting practice by hitting a series of home runs that landed well beyond 400 feet from home plate.Subsequently, he was drafted by the Astros in the 34th round of the 1986MLBamateur draft.

Professional career

Minor Leagues

In the minor leagues, he tore through Single-A and Double-A pitching, building his reputation for prodigious home runs. His feast or famine plate approach had him averaging 30 home runs per season (along with an alarming 120 strikeouts per year). In 1989, Anthony led all minor-leaguers with 31 home runs and was theSouthern League Most Valuable Playerfor theColumbus Mudcats.In desperate need of power-hitters, with only first basemanGlenn Davishitting more than 13 home runs for the team that season, the Astros took a gamble and called Anthony up to the majors from Double-A in late July 1989.

Major Leagues

Anthony's first major league hit came in his second game as an Astro. The home run, a 414-foot shot off theSan Francisco Giants'Rick Reuschel,easily cleared theAstrodomefences. Later that game, he just missed another home run on an opposite-field shot that caromed off the top of the wall for a double.

The following season, Anthony electrified fans in the Astrodome in a game against theChicago Cubsby launching a home run into the right field upper deck—the first Astro ever to put a home run there and the first player to do so since 1970. The pitch traveled an estimated 440 feet and the seat where the ball landed was commemorated with a star.For his first three seasons in the big leagues, Anthony shuttled between Triple-A Tucson and Houston, dominating minor-league pitching but never managing to hit over.200 at the MLB level.

Anthony's best season in the majors came in 1992, when he became a starter in the Astros outfield and slugged 19 home runs along with 80 RBIs. He followed that with a 15 HR, 66 RBI performance in 1993, and although he improved his batting average 10 points to.249 that season, he was dealt to theSeattle Marinersin the offseason for young lefthanded pitcherMike Hampton.This trade has since been considered to be lopsided in favor of the Astros as Anthony would be released by the Mariners by the end of 1994 while Hampton became one of the Astros best pitchers.

On April 4, 1994, Anthony hit the first home run at Cleveland'sJacobs Field.

Anthony played as a reserve outfielder for the Mariners, Reds, Rockies, and Dodgers, playing his final major league game for Los Angeles in 1997.

Post-MLB

Anthony played the 1998 season for theJapanese LeagueYakult Swallowsin 1998. After his time in Japan, Anthony returned to the Dodgers organization, playing for AAAAlbuquerquein both 1998 and 1999. Although he hit well (over.300 both seasons), injuries prevented him from receiving another major league call-up. Anthony played four games forSomersetin theindependent leaguesin 2000 and seven games forMonterreyin theMexican Leaguein 2001 before retiring.

External links

• Career statistics and player information fromBaseball Reference,orFangraphs,orBaseball Reference (Minors)