Frank Catalanotto
| Frank Catalanotto | |||
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Catalanotto with the Milwaukee Brewers
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| Left fielder / Infielder | |||
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Born: April 27, 1974 Smithtown, New York |
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| MLB debut | |||
| September 3, 1997, for the Detroit Tigers | |||
| Last MLB appearance | |||
| May 10, 2010, for the New York Mets | |||
| MLB statistics | |||
| Batting average | .291 | ||
| Home runs | 84 | ||
| Runs batted in | 457 | ||
| Teams | |||
Frank John Catalanotto (pronounced Ca-ta-la-not-toe) (born April 27, 1974) is a former professional baseball player. The Long Island native batted left-handed and threw right-handed. In his career, Catalanotto has played all infield and outfield positions except shortstop and center field.
Catalanotto began his professional baseball career in 1992 when the Detroit Tigers—who first noticed him while scouting higher-profile players at a Smithtown East baseball game in 1991—drafted him in the tenth round of the 1992 Major League Baseball draft. Primarily a second baseman in the minors, he made his major league debut at second base on September 3, 1997. While in Detroit, Catalanotto battled injuries and a lack of playing time, and never recorded a season of 300 at bats for the Tigers. Detroit general manager Randy Smith chose not to protect Catalanotto in the 1996 Rule 5 draft, and he was selected by the Oakland Athletics, spending spring training with them. Catalanotto did not make the Athletics squad and was returned to the Tigers for the 1997 season.
As a reserve, Catalanotto logged significant time not only at second base, but at first base and third base as well. Over his three-year span in Detroit, he was the most often used pinch hitter for the Tigers, leading the American League (AL) in pinch-hit at bats in the 1998 season.
On November 2, 1999, Catalanotto was part of an eight player trade between the Tigers and the Texas Rangers. In the deal, he was dealt to Texas along with pitchers Francisco Cordero and Justin Thompson, catcher Bill Hasselman, and a minor leaguer for slugging outfield star Juan González, catcher Gregg Zaun, and pitcher Danny Patterson.
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