Vernon Christopher Carter (born December 18, 1986) is an American professional

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding t ...

first baseman A first baseman, abbreviated 1B, is the player on a baseball or softball team who fields the area nearest first base, the first of four bases a baserunner must touch in succession to score a run. The first baseman is responsible for the majori ...

and

designated hitter The designated hitter (DH) is a baseball player who bats in place of another position player, most commonly the pitcher. The position is authorized by Major League Baseball Rule 5.11. It was adopted by the American League in 1973 and later by th ...

for the

Acereros de Monclova The Acereros de Monclova (English: Monclova Steelers) are a professional baseball team in the Mexican League based in Monclova, Coahuila, Mexico. Their home ballpark is Estadio de Béisbol Monclova, which has a capacity of 11,000 people. The Ace ...

of the

Mexican League The Mexican League (, ) is a professional baseball league based in Mexico and the oldest running professional league in the country. The league has 18 teams organized in two divisions, North and South. Teams play 114 games each season. Five te ...

. He previously played in

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...

(MLB) for the Oakland Athletics, Houston Astros, Milwaukee Brewers, and

New York Yankees The New York Yankees are an American professional baseball team based in the New York City borough of the Bronx. The Yankees compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. They are one of ...

. In 2016, while playing for the Brewers, Carter led the

National League The National League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the National League (NL), is the older of two leagues constituting Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada, and the world's oldest extant professional team ...

home run In baseball, a home run (abbreviated HR) is scored when the ball is hit in such a way that the batter is able to circle the bases and reach home plate safely in one play without any errors being committed by the defensive team. A home run i ...

s, along with Colorado Rockies

third baseman A third baseman, abbreviated 3B, is the player in baseball or softball whose responsibility is to defend the area nearest to third base — the third of four bases a baserunner must touch in succession to score a run. In the scoring system us ...

Nolan Arenado, with 41.

Early life

Carter was born in

Redwood City, California Redwood City is a city on the San Francisco Peninsula in Northern California's Bay Area, approximately south of San Francisco, and northwest of San Jose. Redwood City's history spans its earliest inhabitation by the Ohlone people to being a ...

. At approximately age 7 or 8, his family moved to

Las Vegas Las Vegas (; Spanish for "The Meadows"), often known simply as Vegas, is the 25th-most populous city in the United States, the most populous city in the state of Nevada, and the county seat of Clark County. The city anchors the Las Vegas ...

. He attended Sierra Vista High School. In 2005, Sierra Vista's baseball team won the Nevada Interscholastic Activities Association Class 4A state championship.

Professional career

Draft and minor leagues

Carter was drafted by the

Chicago White Sox The Chicago White Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The White Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. The team is owned by Jerry Reinsdorf, and ...

in the 15th round of the 2005 Major League Baseball Draft. Carter began his professional career with the Bristol White Sox of the Rookie-level Appalachian League in 2005. He hit 10

s and had 37

runs batted in A run batted in (RBI; plural RBIs ) is a statistic in baseball and softball that credits a batter for making a play that allows a run to be scored (except in certain situations such as when an error is made on the play). For example, if the ba ...

(RBIs). He played for two teams in the 2006 season. The teams included the

Great Falls White Sox Great may refer to: Descriptions or measurements * Great, a relative measurement in physical space, see Size * Greatness, being divine, majestic, superior, majestic, or transcendent People * List of people known as "the Great" *Artel Great (born ...

of the Rookie-level Pioneer League and the

Kannapolis Intimidators Kannapolis () is a city in Cabarrus and Rowan counties, in the U.S. state of North Carolina, northwest of Concord and northeast of Charlotte and is a suburb in the Charlotte metropolitan area. The city of Kannapolis was incorporated in 1984. The ...

of the Class A

South Atlantic League The South Atlantic League, often informally called the Sally League, is a Minor League Baseball league with teams predominantly in states along the Atlantic coast of the United States from New York to Georgia. A Class A league for most of its ...

. He had a combined total of 16 home runs and 63 RBIs. He played for Kannapolis in the 2007 season where he hit 25 home runs and had 93 RBIs. During the 2007 offseason, the White Sox traded Carter to the

Arizona Diamondbacks The Arizona Diamondbacks (colloquially known as the D-backs) are an American professional baseball team based in Phoenix. The Diamondbacks compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. The ...

for

Carlos Quentin Carlos José Quentin (born August 28, 1982) is an American former professional baseball outfielder. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Arizona Diamondbacks, Chicago White Sox and San Diego Padres. In 2008 and 2011, Quentin was sel ...

Oakland Athletics (2010–2012)

Two weeks after he was traded to Arizona, the Diamondbacks traded Carter, Carlos González,

Brett Anderson Brett Lewis Anderson (born 29 September 1967) is an English singer best known as the lead vocalist and primary lyricist of the band Suede. After Suede disbanded in 2003, he fronted The Tears with former Suede guitarist Bernard Butler in 2004- ...

, Aaron Cunningham, Greg Smith, and

Dana Eveland Dana James Eveland (born October 29, 1983) is an American former professional baseball pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Milwaukee Brewers, Arizona Diamondbacks, Oakland Athletics, Toronto Blue Jays, Pittsburgh Pirates, L ...

to the Oakland Athletics for

Dan Haren Daniel John Haren (born September 17, 1980) is an American former professional baseball pitcher. Haren played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the St. Louis Cardinals, Oakland Athletics, Arizona Diamondbacks, Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, Wa ...

and

Connor Robertson James Connor Robertson (born September 10, 1981) is an American former right-handed Major League Baseball relief pitcher. He was drafted out of Birmingham Southern College in the 31st round of the 2004 Major League Baseball draft by the Oakland A ...

. He played for the Stockton Ports of the

Class A-Advanced High-A (officially Class High-A, formerly known as Class A-Advanced, and sometimes abbreviated "A+" in writing) is the third-highest level of play in Minor League Baseball in the United States and Canada, below Triple-A and Double-A, and abov ...

California League in the 2008 season where he hit 39 home runs and had 104 RBIs. Carter was named the California League Rookie of the Year for the 2008 season. In 2009, Carter split time between the

Midland RockHounds The Midland RockHounds are a Minor League Baseball team based in Midland, Texas. The team, which plays in the Texas League, is the Double-A affiliate of the Oakland Athletics major league club. The RockHounds play in Momentum Bank Ballpark, w ...

of the

Class AA Double-A (officially Class AA) is the second-highest level of play in Minor League Baseball in the United States since 1946, below only Triple-A. There are currently 30 teams classified at the Double-A level, one for each team in Major League ...

Texas League The Texas League is a Minor League Baseball league which has operated in the South Central United States since 1902. It is classified as a Double-A league. Despite the league's name, only its five South Division teams are actually based in the ...

and the

Sacramento River Cats The Sacramento River Cats are a Minor League Baseball team of the Pacific Coast League (PCL) and are the Triple-A affiliate of the San Francisco Giants. Prior to 2015, the River Cats were the Triple-A affiliate of the Oakland Athletics for 15 ...

of the

Class AAA Triple-A (officially Class AAA) has been the highest level of play in Minor League Baseball in the United States since 1946. Currently, two leagues operate at the Triple-A level, the International League (IL) and the Pacific Coast League (PCL). ...

Pacific Coast League (PCL), putting a .329 batting average (a 70-point increase from 2008), 28 homers and 115 RBIs combined. In 2008 and 2009, ''Baseball America'' ranked Carter as one of the top 10 prospects in the Athletics' organization. Also in 2008 and 2009, Carter was the Oakland Athletics' Minor League Player of Year. Carter was placed on the A's 40-man roster on November 20, 2009. In 2009, he was named the

This Year in Minor League Baseball Awards The Minor League Baseball Yearly (MiLBY) Awards are given annually to the most outstanding players, teams, single-game performances, plays, moments, homers, and promotions of the year. Initiated by Minor League Baseball in as the "This Year in ...

"Overall Hitter of The Year". On August 9, 2010, Carter was promoted to Oakland and went 0–for–3 in his first game. On August 16, Carter was demoted to Sacramento after starting his career 0–for–19 with 12 strikeouts. After the AAA season ended, Carter was recalled to Oakland. On September 20, he snapped his 0–for–33 streak with a single in the sixth inning. On September 22, 2010 Carter hit his first major league home run against the

. Carter finished the 2010 season with a .186 batting average across 78 plate appearances and 24 games. He played in the

Venezuelan Winter League The Venezuelan Professional Baseball League or Liga Venezolana de Béisbol Profesional (LVBP) is the professional baseball league in Venezuela. The league's champion takes part in the Caribbean Series each year. History Early years Baseball exp ...

upon completion of the 2010 season. He hit .136 in 15 MLB games the next year, spending most of that season in the Athletics' minor league system. He also split the 2012 season between MLB and the minor leagues, hitting .239 with 16 home runs and 39 RBI in 67 games.

Houston Astros (2013–2015)

After the 2012 season, the Athletics traded Carter to the Houston Astros with

Brad Peacock Bradley Joseph Peacock (born February 2, 1988) is an American professional baseball pitcher who is a free agent. He has played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Washington Nationals, Houston Astros, and Boston Red Sox. Listed at and , he th ...

and Max Stassi for

Jed Lowrie Jed Carlson Lowrie (born April 17, 1984) is an American professional baseball infielder who is currently a free agent. He has previously played in MLB for the Boston Red Sox, Houston Astros, Oakland Athletics and New York Mets. Early life Lo ...

and Fernando Rodriguez. During the 2013 season, Carter played 148 games batting .223 with 29 home runs, 82 RBI, and struck out an MLB-leading 212 times. He became only the fourth player to strikeout 200 times in a season, with only Mark Reynolds having more strikeouts as a right-handed hitter. Chris Carter Astros in May 2014

The 2014 season started out even slower for Carter, as he batted only .153 throughout the entire month of April. Carter would turn his fortunes around after the All-Star break though, as finished with a .227 batting average and career highs of 37 home runs and 88 RBI. On January 14, 2015, Carter and the Astros agreed to a one-year contract worth $4.175 million, avoiding arbitration. Carter had a disappointing 2015 season for the Astros. He was the team's starting first baseman, but hit only .199/.307/.427 in 129 games. For the season, he had the highest strikeout percentage among major leaguers against right-handed pitchers (35.6%). However, he still managed to hit 24 home runs, and then hit .294 with a home run against the Kansas City Royals during the

2015 American League Division Series The 2015 American League Division Series were two best-of-five-game series to determine the participating teams in the 2015 American League Championship Series. The three divisional winners (seeded 1-3) and a fourth team—the winner of a one-g ...

. At the conclusion of the 2015 season Carter was non-tendered by the Astros, and became a free agent.

Milwaukee Brewers (2016)

On January 6, 2016, Carter signed a one-year, $2.5 million contract with the Milwaukee Brewers. He posted a .321 on-base percentage and hit 41 home runs, leading the National League in 2016, while also leading the NL in at bats per home run (13.4) and games played (160). However, he had a .222 batting average and led the league with 206 strikeouts, and had the lowest contact percentage on his swings in the major leagues (64.6%). On defense, he led the NL in errors at first base (11). The Brewers did not tender Carter a contract for the 2017, making him a free agent.

New York Yankees (2017)

On February 16, 2017, the

signed Carter to a one-year contract, worth $3.5 million. Carter batted .204 with eight home runs and 70 strikeouts before the Yankees designated him for assignment on June 24. He was called back up by the Yankees on June 29 when his replacement at first base,

Tyler Austin Christopher Tyler Austin (born September 6, 1991) is an American professional baseball first baseman for the Yokohama DeNA BayStars of Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB). He has played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the San Francisco Giants, ...

, landed on the disabled list. On July 4, he was again designated for assignment, this time to make room for Ji-man Choi on the roster. He was released on July 10. In 2017, he batted .201/.284/.370.

Return to the Oakland Athletics

Carter signed a minor league contract with the Oakland Athletics on July 21, 2017, and was assigned to the Nashville Sounds of the PCL. He elected free agency on November 6, 2017.

Los Angeles Angels

On February 18, 2018, Carter signed a minor league deal with the

Los Angeles Angels The Los Angeles Angels are an American professional baseball team based in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. The Angels compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West division. Since 1966, the team h ...

Minnesota Twins

On May 22, 2018, the Angels traded Carter to the Minnesota Twins for cash. The Twins then assigned him to the Rochester Red Wings. He was released on July 7, 2018.

Acereros de Monclova

On February 13, 2019, Carter signed with the

of the

. In his first year with the club he led the league in Home runs (49) & RBIs (119), culminating in a victory in the

Serie del Rey The Serie del Rey () is the annual championship series of the Liga Mexicana de Beisbol to determine a champion at the end of each season since 1970. The champions from each division, Norte and Sur (), compete in a best-of-seven series, with the winn ...

and the Acereros' first ever league championship. Carter did not play in a game in 2020 due to the cancellation of the Mexican League season because of the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identi ...

Personal life

Carter's father, Vernon, played basketball for

Rancho High School Rancho High School is a zoned, and magnet high school in North Las Vegas, Nevada. It is part of the Clark County School District. Opened in 1953, Rancho High School was the third public high school founded in the Las Vegas Valley, after Las Vegas ...

in North Las Vegas. Carter is a car enthusiast. He owns a Shelby Super Snake.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Carter, Chris 1986 births Living people Sportspeople from the Las Vegas Valley People from Redwood City, California Baseball players from Nevada Baseball players from California African-American baseball players Mexican people of African-American descent Major League Baseball first basemen Major League Baseball left fielders Major League Baseball designated hitters National League home run champions Oakland Athletics players Houston Astros players Milwaukee Brewers players New York Yankees players Bristol White Sox players Great Falls White Sox players Kannapolis Intimidators players Stockton Ports players North Shore Honu players Midland RockHounds players Sacramento River Cats players Algodoneros de Guasave players Nashville Sounds players Salt Lake Bees players Rochester Red Wings players Acereros de Monclova players American expatriate baseball players in Mexico 21st-century African-American sportspeople 20th-century African-American people

Early life

Professional career

Draft and minor leagues

Oakland Athletics (2010–2012)

Houston Astros (2013–2015)

Milwaukee Brewers (2016)

New York Yankees (2017)

Return to the Oakland Athletics

Los Angeles Angels

Minnesota Twins

Acereros de Monclova

Personal life

See also

References

External links