View source for Jeromy Burnitz

{{short description|American baseball player (born 1969)}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=July 2024}}
{{Infobox baseball biography
|name=Jeromy Burnitz
|image=Jeromy Burnitz 2004.jpg
|caption=Burnitz with the Colorado Rockies in 2004
|position=[[Right fielder]]
|bats=Left
|throws=Right
|birth_date={{birth date and age|1969|4|15}}
|birth_place=[[Westminster, California]], U.S.
|debutleague = MLB
|debutdate=June 21
|debutyear=1993
|debutteam=New York Mets
|finalleague = MLB
|finaldate=September 27
|finalyear=2006
|finalteam=Pittsburgh Pirates
|statleague = MLB
|stat1label=[[Batting average (baseball)|Batting average]]
|stat1value=.253
|stat2label=[[Home run]]s
|stat2value=315
|stat3label=[[Runs batted in]]
|stat3value=981
|teams=
* [[New York Mets]] ({{mlby|1993}}–{{mlby|1994}})
* [[Cleveland Indians]] ({{mlby|1995}}–{{mlby|1996}})
* [[Milwaukee Brewers]] ({{mlby|1996}}–{{mlby|2001}})
* [[New York Mets]] ({{mlby|2002}}–{{mlby|2003}})
* [[Los Angeles Dodgers]] ({{mlby|2003}})
* [[Colorado Rockies]] ({{mlby|2004}})
* [[Chicago Cubs]] ({{mlby|2005}})
* [[Pittsburgh Pirates]] ({{mlby|2006}})
|highlights=
* [[Major League Baseball All-Star Game|All-Star]] ([[1999 Major League Baseball All-Star Game|1999]])
* [[Milwaukee Brewers Wall of Honor]]
}}
'''Jeromy Neal Burnitz''' (born April 15, 1969) is an American former professional [[baseball]] player. Burnitz was a [[right fielder]] in [[Major League Baseball]] who played with the [[New York Mets]] (1993–94, 2002–03), [[Cleveland Indians]] (1995–96), [[Milwaukee Brewers]] (1996–2001), [[Los Angeles Dodgers]] (2003), [[Colorado Rockies]] (2004), [[Chicago Cubs]] (2005), and [[Pittsburgh Pirates]] (2006).

==Early days==
Burnitz played his collegiate ball at [[Oklahoma State University]], and in 1988, played [[collegiate summer baseball]] in the [[Cape Cod Baseball League]] for the [[Hyannis Mets]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://capecodbaseball.org.ismmedia.com/ISM3/std-content/repos/Top/2012website/archives/Current%20Year/All_Time_MLB_CCBL_Alumni.pdf |title=Major League Baseball Players From the Cape Cod League |publisher=capecodbaseball.org |access-date=September 25, 2019}}</ref> He played minor league ball with the Welsh Waves, the Pittsfield Mets and the [[Buffalo Bisons]].

==Career==
[[File:Jeromy Burnitz 2006.jpg|thumb|left|260px|Burnitz bats for the Pirates, 2006]]
Burnitz was drafted in the first round of the [[1990 Major League Baseball draft|1990 draft]] by the New York Mets with the 17th overall selection. He made his major league debut in 1993. He exhibited both power and speed, but was traded by them to the Cleveland Indians. Burnitz never cracked the Cleveland lineup and it was only after his trade to Milwaukee in 1996 that he emerged as an everyday player.

The Milwaukee Brewers' last home run in 1997 was hit by Jeromy Burnitz, and it marked their last year in the AL.<ref>https://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/MIL/MIL199709280.shtml</ref>
Burnitz was a fan favorite in Milwaukee, providing many of the only thrills during an otherwise low point in Brewers' history, their first years in the National League. He clubbed a career-high 38 home runs and 125 RBIs in {{by|1998}}, and he played in the [[Major League Baseball All-Star Game]] in {{mlby|1999}}. In 1999 he started the game, replacing the injured [[Tony Gwynn]] and became the first Brewer since [[Paul Molitor]] to start in the All-Star Game.  After signing a contract extension with the Brewers in 2000, he was briefly the franchise's all-time highest paid player. On September 25, 2001, Burnitz and teammate [[Richie Sexson]] each hit three home runs in a 9–4 win against the [[Arizona Diamondbacks]]. It was the first, and, through the end of the 2024 season, only time that two players hit three home runs in the same game, let alone two teammates. In 2002, he returned to the Mets, but did not perform as well with his original team as both he and Mets fans hoped: his .215 batting average was the lowest among qualified batters. He was traded to Los Angeles in the Mets' 2003 purge of high-salaried players, and signed the following year with the Colorado Rockies.

In [[2004 Colorado Rockies season|2004]], Burnitz signed with the Colorado Rockies, and became part of some rare home run displays.  On April 27, he, rookie [[Matt Holliday]], and [[Charles Johnson (catcher)|Charles Johnson]] combined to slug back-to-back-to-back home runs against the [[2004 Florida Marlins season|Florida Marlins]], the sixth such occasion in franchise history.  In a May 18 game against the [[2004 Cincinnati Reds season|Cincinnati]] in which he hit two home runs, both were part of back-to-back home run sets with Holliday, making them the first teammates in franchise history to hit back-to-back home runs twice in the same game, and the first teammate duo to do so since [[Mike Cameron]] and [[Bret Boone]] of [[2002 Seattle Mariners season|Seattle Mariners]] in [[2002 Major League Baseball season|2002]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://mlb.mlb.com/team/player.jsp?player_id=407812#gameType='R'&sectionType=career&statType=1&season=2014&level='ALL' |title=Matt Holliday stats, video highlights, photos, bio (2004 highlights) |work=MLB.com |access-date=September 1, 2014}}</ref>  In 150 games, he led the Rockies with 37 home runs, hit a career high .283, and was second on the team with 110 RBI. On February 2, 2005, the Cubs signed Burnitz to a one-year contract, the same day [[Sammy Sosa]]'s trade to the [[Baltimore Orioles]] was finalized. He continued to hit well at [[Wrigley Field]] with a .258 [[batting average (baseball)|average]], 24 homers and 87 RBI in 160 games with the Cubs.

Burnitz was known as a good clubhouse man and a friendly, laid-back guy. During a slump in May 2006, he held an interview in order to apologize for failing to run out a grounder, then joked about the challenges that his team would face during the rest of the season, saying, "I'm your Highest-Paid Free Agent. That, in and of itself, should tell you the big picture that the team's in."<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.post-gazette.com/sports/pirates/2006/05/13/Pirates-Notebook-Burnitz-apologizes-for-failing-to-run-out-grounder/stories/200605130175|title=Pirates Notebook: Burnitz apologizes for failing to run out grounder|website=Pittsburgh Post-Gazette|date=May 13, 2006|access-date=May 30, 2022}}</ref>

==Personal life==
Burnitz is married to Krissy Burnitz. They have three children together.<ref>{{cite web |title=Jeromy Burnitz |url=https://sabr.org/bioproj/person/jeromy-burnitz/ |access-date=14 December 2020}}</ref>

==See also==
* [[List of Major League Baseball career home run leaders]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==Sources==
*''The ESPN Baseball Encyclopedia'' – Gary Gillette, Peter Gammons, Pete Palmer. Publisher: Sterling Publishing, 2005. Format: Paperback, 1824pp. Language: English. {{ISBN|1-4027-4771-3}}

==External links==
{{Commons}}
{{Baseballstats |mlb=111742 |espn=2903 |br=b/burnije01 |fangraphs=867 |brm=burnit001jer |retro=B/Pburnj001}}

{{s-start}}
{{succession box | before = [[Sammy Sosa]] | title = [[Major League Baseball Player of the Month Award|National League Player of the Month]]| years = June, 1999 | after = [[Mark McGwire]]}}
{{s-end}}

{{1990 MLB Draft}}
{{New York Mets first-round draft picks}}
{{Milwaukee Brewers Wall of Honor}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Burnitz, Jeromy}}
[[Category:1969 births]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:Baseball players from Westminster, California]]
[[Category:Major League Baseball right fielders]]
[[Category:New York Mets players]]
[[Category:Cleveland Indians players]]
[[Category:Milwaukee Brewers players]]
[[Category:Los Angeles Dodgers players]]
[[Category:Colorado Rockies players]]
[[Category:Chicago Cubs players]]
[[Category:Pittsburgh Pirates players]]
[[Category:National League All-Stars]]
[[Category:Oklahoma State Cowboys baseball players]]
[[Category:Hyannis Harbor Hawks players]]
[[Category:St. Lucie Mets players]]
[[Category:Pittsfield Mets players]]
[[Category:Williamsport Bills players]]
[[Category:Tidewater Tides players]]
[[Category:Norfolk Tides players]]
[[Category:Buffalo Bisons (minor league) players]]
[[Category:Binghamton Mets players]]
[[Category:Conroe High School alumni]]