Andrew James Van Slyke (born December 21, 1960 in Utica, New York) is a retired American Major League Baseball outfielder, and the current first base coach for the Detroit Tigers.
Career
Van Slyke was drafted in the first round (sixth overall pick) of the 1979 Major League Baseball amateur draft by the St. Louis Cardinals. Called up from the AAA Louisville Redbirds, he made his Major League debut with the Cardinals on June 17, 1983.
He began his career the first two years by playing first base, third base, and all three outfield positions. He mostly played right field the next two years, occasionally platooning with Tito Landrum or substituting for Willie McGee in center. During spring training of 1987, he was traded to the Pittsburgh Pirates along with left-handed hitting catcher Mike LaValliere and minor league pitcher Mike Dunne for catcher Tony Pena. In Pittsburgh, he mostly played center field alongside stars Barry Bonds and Bobby Bonilla.
Overall, Van Slyke played for four different teams in his career: the St. Louis Cardinals (1983-1986), Pittsburgh Pirates (1986-1994), Baltimore Orioles (1995), and Philadelphia Phillies (1995). He played his final game on October 1, 1995.
In his 13-year career, Van Slyke appeared in three All-Star games (1988, 1992, 1993), won five Gold Gloves Awards, two Silver Slugger Awards, and ranked in the top 10 in many offensive categories in varying seasons.
Prior to the 2006 season, Van Slyke was named first base coach for the Detroit Tigers by manager Jim Leyland, under whom he had played in Pittsburgh.
Trivia
- In 1985, he was one of five Cardinals to steal at least 30 bases. Template:Source Needed
External links
- Baseball-Reference.com - career statistics and analysis
 | This biographical article relating to a baseball outfielder is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |