William James "B. J." Surhoff (born August 4, 1964) is an American former

catcher Catcher is a position in baseball and softball. When a batter takes their turn to hit, the catcher crouches behind home plate, in front of the (home) umpire, and receives the ball from the pitcher. In addition to this primary duty, the catc ...

outfielder An outfielder is a person playing in one of the three defensive positions in baseball or softball, farthest from the batter. These defenders are the left fielder, the center fielder, and the right fielder. As an outfielder, their duty is to catch ...

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 ...

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 Baseball scorekeep ...

, and

designated hitter The designated hitter (DH) is a baseball player who bats in place of another position player, most commonly the pitcher. Unlike other players in a team's lineup, they generally only play as an offensive player and usually do not play defense as ...

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball league composed of 30 teams, divided equally between the National League (baseball), National League (NL) and the American League (AL), with 29 in the United States and 1 in Canada. MLB i ...

(MLB). Over his 18-year MLB career, he played every position except

pitcher In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throws ("Pitch (baseball), pitches") the Baseball (ball), baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of out (baseball), retiring a batter (baseball), batter, ...

. After playing for the Orioles from 1996 to 2000, he rejoined the team in 2003 and played through the 2005 season. He started his career with the

Milwaukee Brewers The Milwaukee Brewers are an American professional baseball team based in Milwaukee. The Brewers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League Central, Central Di ...

(1987–1995) and also played for the

Atlanta Braves The Atlanta Braves are an American professional baseball team based in the Atlanta metropolitan area. The Braves compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League Eas ...

(2000–2002). Surhoff began his career as a catcher, and after playing third base in the mid-1990s, shifted to become primarily a

left fielder In baseball, a left fielder, abbreviated LF, is an outfielder who plays defense in left field. Left field is the area of the outfield to the left of a person standing at home plate and facing towards the pitcher's mound. In the numbering system ...

. Surhoff was the first-overall pick in the 1985 MLB Draft.

Baseball career

Born in

the Bronx The Bronx ( ) is the northernmost of the five Boroughs of New York City, boroughs of New York City, coextensive with Bronx County, in the U.S. state of New York (state), New York. It shares a land border with Westchester County, New York, West ...

, Surhoff attended Rye High School in Westchester, New York. After high school he attended the

University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (UNC, UNC–Chapel Hill, or simply Carolina) is a public university, public research university in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, United States. Chartered in 1789, the university first began enrolli ...

. In 1983, he played

collegiate summer baseball Collegiate summer baseball leagues are amateur baseball leagues in the United States and Canada featuring players who have attended at least one year of college and have at least one year of athletic eligibility remaining. Generally, they operat ...

with the

Wareham Gatemen The Wareham Gatemen are a collegiate summer baseball team based in Wareham, Massachusetts. The team is a member of the Cape Cod Baseball League (CCBL) and plays in the league's West Division. The Gatemen play their home games at Clem Spillane Fie ...

of the

Cape Cod Baseball League The Cape Cod Baseball League (CCBL or Cape League) is a collegiate summer baseball wooden bat league located on Cape Cod in the U.S. state of Massachusetts. One of the nation's premier collegiate summer leagues, the league boasts over 1,000 forme ...

. Surhoff was honored as the 1985 ACC Male Athlete of the Year, and played on the first (1984) U.S. Olympic baseball team. He was a two-time first team

All-American The All-America designation is an annual honor bestowed on outstanding athletes in the United States who are considered to be among the best athletes in their respective sport. Individuals receiving this distinction are typically added to an Al ...

at UNC and his career batting average of .392 was a school record until Dustin Ackley set the mark at .412 in 2009. Surhoff was selected by the Brewers with the first overall pick of the 1985 Major League Baseball draft. He was a versatile player, having appeared at every position except pitcher over the course of his career. He had 2,326 hits, 188

home runs 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 ...

and 1,153

runs batted in A run batted in or runs batted in (RBI) 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 th ...

during his career. Although always a consistent hitter, having hit over .280 in 12 of his 19 seasons, Surhoff's finest season was his 1999 campaign with the Orioles, in which he led the

American League The American League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the American League (AL), is the younger of two sports leagues, leagues constituting Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada. It developed from the Western L ...

at-bat In baseball, an at bat (AB) or time at bat is a batter's turn batting against a pitcher. An at bat is different from a plate appearance. A batter is credited with a plate appearance regardless of what happens upon completion of his turn at bat, b ...

s (673), ranked second in hits (207), was selected to the American League All-Star team, and ultimately won Most Valuable Oriole honors for the season, becoming one of five players to get 200 or more hits in a season for the team. He also participated in the

Home Run Derby The Home Run Derby is an annual home run hitting competition in Major League Baseball (MLB) customarily held the day before the Major League Baseball All-Star Game, MLB All-Star Game, which places the contest on a Monday in July. In the context ...

. In other notable seasons, he finished sixth in the AL in doubles in 1993 with the Brewers and finished fifth in batting average in the AL with the Brewers in 1995 with a .320 average. In 2007, Surhoff was elected to the Orioles Hall of Fame, with the official induction ceremony occurring before the start of the Orioles–

Twins Twins are two offspring produced by the same pregnancy.MedicineNet > Definition of Twin Last Editorial Review: 19 June 2000 Twins can be either ''monozygotic'' ('identical'), meaning that they develop from one zygote, which splits and forms two e ...

game on August 25, 2007, at

Oriole Park at Camden Yards Oriole Park at Camden Yards, commonly known as Camden Yards, is a ballpark in Baltimore, Maryland. It is the home of Major League Baseball (MLB)'s Baltimore Orioles, and the first of the "retro" major league ballparks constructed during the ...

Personal life

Surhoff's father Dick played two years in the

NBA The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada). The NBA is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United States and Ca ...

in 1952–1953 and 1953–1954 and his brother

Rich Rich may refer to: Common uses * Rich, an entity possessing wealth * Rich, an intense taste, flavor, color, sound, texture, or feeling **Rich (wine), a descriptor in wine tasting Places United States * Rich, Mississippi, an unincorporated c ...

appeared in nine games in 1985 as a

relief pitcher In baseball and softball, a relief pitcher or reliever is a pitcher who pitches in the game after the starting pitcher or another relief pitcher has been removed from the game due to fatigue (medical), fatigue, injury, ineffectiveness, ejection ...

for the

Philadelphia Phillies The Philadelphia Phillies are an American professional baseball team based in Philadelphia. The Phillies compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) East Division. Since 2004, the team's home stadium has ...

and the Texas Rangers. He also has a brother named Mark who lives in Rye, New York. His son,

Austin Austin refers to: Common meanings * Austin, Texas, United States, a city * Austin (given name), a list of people and fictional characters * Austin (surname), a list of people and fictional characters * Austin Motor Company, a British car manufac ...

, swam at the

University of Texas The University of Texas at Austin (UT Austin, UT, or Texas) is a public research university in Austin, Texas, United States. Founded in 1883, it is the flagship institution of the University of Texas System. With 53,082 students as of fall 2 ...

and won the 200 individual medley and 200

backstroke Backstroke or back crawl is one of the four Swimming (sport), swimming styles used in competitive events regulated by FINA, and the only one of these styles swum on the back. This swimming style has the advantage of easy breathing, but the disa ...

at the 2010

Big 12 The Big 12 Conference is a collegiate athletic conference in the United States. It consists of 16 full-member universities (3 private universities and 13 public universities) in the states of Arizona, Colorado, Florida, Iowa, Kansas, Ohio, Okla ...

Championships. Then he won the 200 Individual Medley national title a month later. Surhoff lives in

Cockeysville, Maryland Cockeysville is a census-designated place (CDP) in Baltimore County, Maryland, United States. The population was 20,776 at the 2010 United States Census, 2010 census. History Cockeysville was named after the Cockey family who helped establish the ...

, with his wife Polly and their four children. He is the president of Pathfinders for Autism, a Hunt Valley support group for families with autistic children. Surhoff's son, Mason, is autistic. Surhoff is the uncle of former UNC third-team

pitcher Brian Moran, and former Astro third baseman/outfielder

Colin Moran Colin Richard Moran (born October 1, 1992) is an American professional baseball third baseman who is a free agent. He has previously played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Houston Astros, Pittsburgh Pirates and Cincinnati Reds. Moran att ...

. In 2008, 2009 and 2012 Surhoff was a spring training instructor for the Baltimore Orioles.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Surhoff, B.J. 1964 births Living people All-American college baseball players American expatriate baseball players in Canada American League All-Stars Atlanta Braves players Baseball players at the 1983 Pan American Games Baseball players at the 1984 Summer Olympics Baltimore Orioles players Beloit Brewers players National College Baseball Hall of Fame inductees El Paso Diablos players Milwaukee Brewers players Major League Baseball left fielders Major League Baseball catchers Major League Baseball designated hitters Major League Baseball first basemen Major League Baseball third basemen Medalists at the 1984 Summer Olympics New Orleans Zephyrs players North Carolina Tar Heels baseball players Olympic silver medalists for the United States in baseball Baseball players from Atlanta Baseball players from Baltimore Baseball players from Milwaukee Baseball players from the Bronx Baseball players from Westchester County, New York Vancouver Canadians players Wareham Gatemen players Medalists at the 1983 Pan American Games Pan American Games bronze medalists for the United States in baseball 20th-century American sportsmen

Baseball career

Personal life

See also

References

External links