White Sox agree to terms on one-year contract with Omar Vizquel
The Chicago White Sox have agreed to terms on a one-year, $1.375-million contract with 11-time Gold Glove infielder Omar Vizquel.
Vizquel, 42, batted .266 (47-177) with one home run and 14 RBI in 62 games with Texas in 2009, his 21st season in the major leagues. The 5-foot-9, 175-pounder did not commit an error in 207 total chances while playing 27 games at shortstop, 20 at third base and 16 at second base.
A native of Caracas, Venezuela, the switch-hitting infielder owns a lifetime .273 (2,704-9,922) average with 78 home runs, 906 RBI and 1,378 runs scored in 2,742 games with Seattle (1989-1993), Cleveland (1994-2004), San Francisco (2005-08) and the Rangers (2009). He has added 433 doubles, 74 triples and 389 stolen bases.
Vizquel has posted a .984 (183 E/11,877 TC) career fielding percentage, the highest ever among shortstops with at least 1,000 games played. He has won 11 Rawlings Gold Gloves (1993-2001, 2005-06), second-most for a shortstop behind Ozzie Smith (13), and he is just one of seven players in history to win the award in both leagues.
Vizquel is the all-time leader among shortstops in games played (2,681) and double plays (1,722) and ranks third in assists (7,623). He is the only shortstop in major-league history to play in at least 21 different seasons, and he has played in 238 games at short since turning age 40, the third-highest total ever behind Honus Wagner (356) and Luke Appling (354).
Among players active in 2009, Vizquel is the major-league leader in games played, at-bats and sacrifice bunts (244), ranks second in stolen bases and bunt hits (150), fourth in hits, sixth in triples and ninth in runs scored.
He ranks 25th all-time in games played, 26th in at-bats, 61st in hits and tied for 73rd in stolen bases. His 2,704 hits are the fifth-highest total for a switch-hitter, trailing only Pete Rose (4,256), Eddie Murray (3,255), Frankie Frisch (2,880) and Roberto Alomar (2,724).
Source: Chicago White Sox/ Major League Baseball
