William Paul Bloomquist (; born November 27, 1977) is an American former professional baseball utility player. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Seattle Mariners, Kansas City Royals, Cincinnati Reds, and Arizona Diamondbacks. Primarily an outfielder and shortstop, he played every position, aside from catcher and pitcher, during his baseball career.
Video Willie Bloomquist
Early baseball career
High School
Bloomquist was All-State and all-league MVP in baseball at South Kitsap High School in Port Orchard, Washington and was an eighth round pick in 1996 MLB draft. He was a high school teammate with former Major Leaguer Jason Ellison.
College
He chose to accept a scholarship to Arizona State University. In 1998, Bloomquist tied a College World Series single-game record with five hits in a game with Long Beach State. He was honored as Pac-10 Player of the Year in 1999 and was named first-team All-American by Baseball America. He finished his college career with a .394 (256/649) average over three seasons and was named ASU On Deck Circle Most Valuable Player.
Maps Willie Bloomquist
Professional career
Seattle Mariners
Bloomquist was drafted out of South Kitsap High School in Port Orchard, Washington by the Seattle Mariners in the eighth round (237th overall) of the 1996 amateur draft, but was not signed. He was drafted again by the Mariners out of Arizona State University in the third round (95th overall) of the 1999 Major League Baseball draft and signed.
The Mariners signed Bloomquist to a contract extension through the 2008 season worth $1,875,000, in 2006. On June 15, 2007, he hit an inside-the-park home run in Minute Maid Park. On June 26, 2007, Bloomquist hit a lead-off home run in the second inning--on what was his 1,000th career at-bat.
Kansas City Royals
On January 9, 2009, Bloomquist signed a two-year deal with the Kansas City Royals. He played in 197 games with the Royals over parts of 2 seasons, hitting .265.
Cincinnati Reds
On September 13, 2010, Bloomquist was traded to the Cincinnati Reds for a player to be named later, or cash. In 11 games with the Reds, he hit .333.
Arizona Diamondbacks
On January 18, 2011, Bloomquist signed a one-year contract with the Arizona Diamondbacks. He hit .266 in 97 games with the Diamondbacks in 2011 and re-signed with the team after the season.
Second stint with Mariners
On December 5, 2013, Bloomquist signed a two-year deal to return to the Seattle Mariners. On July 2, 2015, Bloomquist was designated for assignment, and shortstop Chris Taylor called up from the Triple-A Tacoma Rainiers to take his roster spot.
On March 11, 2016, Bloomquist announced his retirement on Twitter.
Personal life
Bloomquist is married and has four daughters, Natalie, Ava, Layla and Sydney. He is Roman Catholic.
References
External links
- Career statistics and player information from MLB, or ESPN, or Baseball-Reference, or Fangraphs, or The Baseball Cube, or Baseball-Reference (Minors)
- Baseball Prospectus (statistics)
- Willie Bloomquist on Twitter
Source of the article : Wikipedia
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