Mark James Grudzielanek (; born June 30, 1970) is a former

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), ...

second baseman and

shortstop Shortstop, abbreviated SS, is the baseball or softball fielding position between second and third base, which is considered to be among the most demanding defensive positions. Historically the position was assigned to defensive specialists wh ...

. Grudzielanek played for six different teams during his 15-season career. He batted and threw

right-handed In human biology, handedness is an individual's preferential use of one hand, known as the dominant hand, due to it being stronger, faster or more dextrous. The other hand, comparatively often the weaker, less dextrous or simply less subjecti ...

. He was most recently the manager of the

Charlotte Knights The Charlotte Knights are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League and the Triple-A affiliate of the Chicago White Sox. They are located in Charlotte, North Carolina, and play their home games at Truist Field, which opened in 20 ...

, the Triple-A affiliate of 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 ...

Early years

Grudzielanek attended J. M. Hanks High School in

El Paso, Texas El Paso (; "the pass") is a city in and the county seat, seat of El Paso County, Texas, El Paso County in the western corner of the U.S. state of Texas. The 2020 population of the city from the United States Census Bureau, U.S. Census Bureau w ...

, and was a letterman and an All-State selection in

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular court, compete with the primary objective of shooting a basketball (approximately in diameter) through the defender's h ...

and

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 ...

. His mother is of Galician descent and his father is of Polish descent.

Professional career

Montreal Expos

Grudzielanek was originally drafted by the

New York Mets The New York Mets are an American professional baseball team based in the New York City borough of Queens. The Mets compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the National League (NL) East division. They are one of two major league ...

in the 17th round of the

1989 MLB Draft First-round selections The following are the first round picks in the 1989 Major League Baseball draft on June 5. Supplemental first round selections Other notable players * Brian Hunter, 2nd round, 35th overall by the Houston Astros * Ti ...

but did not sign. He was then drafted in the 11th round of the

1991 MLB draft First round selections The following are the first round picks in the 1991 Major League Baseball draft. Supplemental first round selections Compensation picks Other notable players *Kevin Stocker, 2nd round, 54th overall by the Philade ...

by the

Montreal Expos The Montreal Expos (french: link=no, Les Expos de Montréal) were a Canadian professional baseball team based in Montreal, Quebec. The Expos were the first Major League Baseball (MLB) franchise located outside the United States. They played in t ...

and signed on June 11, 1991. In 1994, with the Double-A

Harrisburg Senators The Harrisburg Senators are a Minor League Baseball team of the Eastern League, and the Double-A affiliate of the Washington Nationals, in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, who play their home games at FNB Field on City Island, which opened in 1987 a ...

he hit .322 in 122 games and was rewarded by being selected as a Double-A All-Star, Eastern League Most Valuable Player, and Expos Minor league player of the year. He made his Major League debut on April 28, 1995, with the Expos against the Chicago Cubs, striking out as a pinch hitter against Mike Walker. He made his first start (at second base) the following day but did not record his first major league hit (a double) until May 4 against

relief pitcher Mike Remlinger. His first career home run came on May 16, 1995, against

Kevin Jarvis Kevin Thomas Jarvis (born August 1, 1969) is a former Major League Baseball pitcher. He played professionally for many teams including the Cincinnati Reds, Minnesota Twins, Detroit Tigers, Oakland Athletics, Colorado Rockies, San Diego Padr ...

of the Cincinnati Reds. He appeared in 78 games that season, hitting .245. In 1996, Grudzielanek hit .306 in 153 games and was selected to appear in the

1996 Major League Baseball All-Star Game The 1996 Major League Baseball All-Star Game was the 67th playing of the midsummer classic between the all-stars of the American League (AL) and National League (NL), the two leagues comprising Major League Baseball. The game was held on July 9 ...

for his only appearance in the Mid-Summer Classic. In the All-Star game, he ground out in his lone at-bat against Roberto Hernandez. In 1997, he led the majors with 54 doubles. He hit .281 in 492 games for the Expos over four seasons.

Los Angeles Dodgers

Grudzielanek was traded by the Expos to the

Los Angeles Dodgers The Los Angeles Dodgers are an American professional baseball team based in Los Angeles. The Dodgers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Established in 1883 in the city of Brooklyn ...

(along with

Hiram Bocachica Hiram Gabriel Bocachica Colón (born March 4, 1976) is a Puerto Rican former professional baseball outfielder. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Los Angeles Dodgers, Detroit Tigers, Seattle Mariners, Oakland Athletics, and San D ...

and Carlos Perez) for Jonathan Tucker, Peter Bergeron,

Wilton Guerrero Wilton Álvaro Guerrero (born October 24, 1974Ben LindberghBP Unfiltered: Guerrero Brothers and Birthdates Baseball Prospectus (February 5, 2013).) is a former second baseman in Major League Baseball. He played for the Los Angeles Dodgers (1996� ...

, and

Ted Lilly Theodore Roosevelt Lilly III (born January 4, 1976) is an American former professional baseball pitcher. Lilly attended Yosemite High School in Oakhurst, California, and Fresno City College. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Mont ...

on July 31, 1998. Primarily a shortstop through this point in his career, the Dodgers moved him to second base in 2000 to make room for Alex Cora to play shortstop. He spent five seasons with the Dodgers, playing in 605 games and hitting .284 with 38 home runs.

Chicago Cubs

On December 4, 2002, the Dodgers traded him (along with

Eric Karros Eric Peter Karros (born November 4, 1967) is an American former professional baseball first baseman. Karros played in Major League Baseball (MLB) from 1991 to 2004 for the Los Angeles Dodgers, Chicago Cubs, and Oakland Athletics. He was the Nati ...

) to the Chicago Cubs for Chad Hermansen and Todd Hundley. He spent the next two seasons in Chicago, hitting .312 in 202 games.

St. Louis Cardinals

After leaving the Cubs as a free agent after the 2004 season, Grudzielanek signed with the

St. Louis Cardinals The St. Louis Cardinals are an American professional baseball team based in St. Louis. The Cardinals compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) Central division. Since the 2006 season, the Cardinals ha ...

on January 6, 2005. He appeared in 137 games with the Cardinals, hitting for a .294 average. From the April 27 game against the Milwaukee Brewers until July 1, 2022, he was the only Cardinals player to have

hit for the cycle In baseball, hitting for the cycle is the accomplishment of one batter who hits a single, a double, a triple, and a home run in the same game. Collecting the hits in that order is known as a "natural cycle". Cycles are rare in Major League B ...

until Nolan Arenado achieved the feat on the latter date.

Kansas City Royals

Grudzielanek signed a contract on December 16, 2005, to be the second baseman for the Kansas City Royals. He won the Gold Glove Award in for second basemen in the

American League The American League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the American League (AL), is one of two leagues that make up Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada. It developed from the Western League, a minor league ...

. He played with the Royals for three seasons, appearing in 336 games, with a .300 batting average.

Minnesota Twins

He became a free agent after the 2008 season but did not sign with a team until the Minnesota Twins offered him a minor league contract on July 19, 2009. After only 11 games (three with the Gulf Coast Twins and eight with the

New Britain Rock Cats The New Britain Rock Cats were a minor league baseball team that competed in the Eastern League. They were the Double-A affiliate of the Boston Red Sox for 12 years, the Minnesota Twins for 20 years and the Colorado Rockies for one. They played ...

), he was released on August 10.

Cleveland Indians

On January 12, 2010, he signed a minor league contract with the

Cleveland Indians The Cleveland Guardians are an American professional baseball team based in Cleveland. The Guardians compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. Since , they have played at Progressive Fi ...

with a spring training invite. He was added to the Major League roster on April 3. He appeared in 30 games for the Indians, hitting .273 but also spending several weeks on the disabled list. His 30 hits were all singles; this was the highest hit total without an

extra-base hit In baseball, an extra-base hit (EB, EBH or XBH), also known as a long hit, is any base hit on which the batter is able to advance past first base without the benefit of a fielder either committing an error or opting to make a throw to retire ano ...

in a single season since 1938. On June 8, Grudzielanek was designated for assignment by the Indians to make room on the roster for Anderson Hernandez, he was released shortly after. Grudzielanek retired from professional baseball on February 23, 2011.

Career statistics

In 1,802 games over 15 seasons, Grudzielanek posted a .289

batting average Batting average is a statistic in cricket, baseball, and softball that measures the performance of batters. The development of the baseball statistic was influenced by the cricket statistic. Cricket In cricket, a player's batting average is ...

(2,040-for-7,052) with 946 runs, 391 doubles, 36 triples, 90 home runs, 640 RBI, 133 stolen bases, 364 bases on balls, .332 on-base percentage and .393 slugging percentage. He finished his career with a .977 fielding percentage playing at second base, shortstop and third base. In 21 postseason games, he hit .188 (16-for-85) with eight runs and five RBI.

Coaching career

Grudzielanek was named the manager of 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 ...

' Class A affiliate Kane County Cougars prior to the 2015 season. Following the 2015 season, where the Cougars won the Midwest League Western division with a 48–22 record (.686 winning percentage), Grudzielanek was promoted to the Diamondbacks Player Development staff, with a title of Assistant Coordinator. He was the manager of the