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Gary Joseph Gaetti (, ; born August 19, 1958), is an American former professional
baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball sport played between two team sport, teams of nine players each, taking turns batting (baseball), batting and Fielding (baseball), fielding. The game occurs over the course of several Pitch ...
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 ...
. He played in
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) for the
Minnesota Twins The Minnesota Twins are an American professional baseball team based in Minneapolis. The Twins compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League Central, Central Division. The team is named afte ...
(1981–1990),
California Angels The Los Angeles Angels are an American professional baseball team based in the Greater Los Angeles area. The Angels compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West Division. Since 1966, the team has pl ...
(1991–1993),
Kansas City Royals The Kansas City Royals are an American professional baseball team based in Kansas City, Missouri. The Royals compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League Central, Central Division. The team ...
(1993–1995), St. Louis Cardinals (1996–1998),
Chicago Cubs The Chicago Cubs are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The Cubs compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League Central, Central Division. Th ...
(1998–1999) and
Boston Red Sox The Boston Red Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Boston. The Red Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League East, East Division. Founded in as one of the Ameri ...
(2000). Gaetti won a
World Series The World Series is the annual championship series of Major League Baseball (MLB). It has been contested since between the champion teams of the American League (AL) and the National League (NL). The winning team, determined through a best- ...
with Minnesota in
1987 Events January * January 1 – Bolivia reintroduces the Boliviano currency. * January 2 – Chadian–Libyan conflict – Battle of Fada: The Military of Chad, Chadian army destroys a Libyan armoured brigade. * January 3 – Afghan leader ...
and was the MVP of that year's
American League Championship Series The American League Championship Series (ALCS) is a best-of-seven playoff and one of two League Championship Series comprising the penultimate round of Major League Baseball's (MLB) postseason. The winner of the ALCS wins the AL pennant and ...
against the
Detroit Tigers The Detroit Tigers are an American professional baseball team based in Detroit. The Tigers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League Central, Central Division. One of the AL's eight chart ...
. In 1987, Gaetti became the first player ever to hit home runs in his first two postseason plate appearances. Gaetti also managed the independent league
Sugar Land Skeeters The Sugar Land Space Cowboys are a Minor League Baseball team of the Pacific Coast League (PCL) and the Triple-A (baseball), Triple-A affiliate of the Houston Astros Major League Baseball club. They are located in Sugar Land, Texas, part of the G ...
from 2012 to 2017.


Playing career

Gaetti played collegiate baseball for Lake Land College in Mattoon, Illinois, and
Northwest Missouri State University Northwest Missouri State University (NW Missouri) is a public university in Maryville, Missouri, United States. It has an enrollment of 9,152 students. Founded in 1905 as a teachers college, its campus is based on the design for Forest Park (St. ...
. Gaetti was drafted three times before finally signing with the Twins — first by the St. Louis Cardinals in the fourth round of the 1978 Major League Baseball draft (then held annually in January) and again in 1978 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) American League Central, Central Division. The club plays its ...
in the third round of the June secondary draft before he was drafted by the Twins in the first round of the June secondary portion of the 1979 draft. Gaetti signed on June 21, 1979. Gaetti then spent the next three years in the Twins' minor league system, playing for the rookie level Elizabethton Twins in the
Appalachian League The Appalachian League is a Collegiate summer baseball, collegiate summer baseball league that operates in the Appalachian regions of Tennessee, Virginia, West Virginia, and North Carolina. Designed for rising freshmen and sophomores using wooden ...
in 1979, the A-level Wisconsin Rapids Twins in the Midwest League in 1980, and the AA-level Orlando Twins in the Southern League in 1981. Gaetti then made his major league debut in nine September games and he hit a home run off of Charlie Hough in his first major league at-bat. In 1982, Gaetti would become a permanent fixture at third base for the Twins and would man third base in Minnesota for the next nine seasons. In 1986, Gaetti batted .287 with 34 home runs and 108 runs batted in. Gaetti won four consecutive Gold Glove Awards for fielding excellence from 1986 through 1989. Gaetti helped propel the Twins to the post-season and their first World Series championship, hitting .257 with 31 home runs and 109 RBI. He also hit himself into the record books, with home runs in his first two career postseason plate appearances in the
American League Championship Series The American League Championship Series (ALCS) is a best-of-seven playoff and one of two League Championship Series comprising the penultimate round of Major League Baseball's (MLB) postseason. The winner of the ALCS wins the AL pennant and ...
to help the Twins upset the
Detroit Tigers The Detroit Tigers are an American professional baseball team based in Detroit. The Tigers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League Central, Central Division. One of the AL's eight chart ...
. Gaetti was selected as an All-Star in 1988 and 1989. Playing against the
Boston Red Sox The Boston Red Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Boston. The Red Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League East, East Division. Founded in as one of the Ameri ...
on July 17, 1990, Gaetti helped the Twins become the only team in baseball history to turn two triple plays in the same game. Despite their defensive heroics, the Twins lost the game 1–0. His production at the plate would decline and after hitting only .229 in , Gaetti left the Twins for the Angels as a
free agent In professional sports, a free agent is a player or manager who is eligible to sign with other clubs or franchises; i.e., not under contract to any specific team. The term is also used in reference to a player who is under a contract at present ...
. His production continued to drop off with the Angels and midway through the third year of his four-year contract, he was released, in June . He was almost immediately signed by the Royals, who had lost their projected regular third baseman, Keith Miller, to injury and had been playing rookie Phil Hiatt at third. Gaetti hit 26 home runs for the Royals in 665 at-bats between 1993 and 1994, splitting time at third with Miller, David Howard, and Terry Shumpert. In , Gaetti played in 137 games and at the age of 36, he hit .261 with 35 home runs and 96 RBI, winning his only Silver Slugger, setting a career high in home runs and missing the Royals' team record for most home runs in a season by one. Following the 1995 season, Gaetti signed as a free agent with the Cardinals, where he enjoyed two more productive seasons before being released again in August after the Cardinals' acquisition of Fernando Tatís. Gaetti immediately signed with the Cubs, where he hit .320/8/27 as the Cubs won the National League wild card. The following season, Gaetti played only semi-regularly and was released at the end of the season after hitting .204 with nine home runs. He wound up his career the following season in Boston, appearing in five games in April at the age of 41.
Bill James George William James (born October 5, 1949) is an American baseball writer, historian, and statistician whose work has been widely influential. Since 1977, James has written more than two dozen books about baseball history and statistics. His a ...
noted Gaetti's baseball-related aging process as being unusual for two reasons. Unlike most other league veterans, his walk rate never improved and his rate of productivity decline was "exceptionally" slow. Gaetti was used as an emergency relief pitcher by both the Cardinals and the Cubs, retiring with an ERA of 7.71 and one strikeout in three appearances. Gaetti finished in the top 25 voting for American League Most Valuable Player four times in his career, three times with the Minnesota Twins (1986–1988), and once with the Kansas City Royals (1995). He finished fifth in American League Rookie of the Year voting (1982). He was a four-time Golden Glove Award winner (1986-1989). His 2,280 total base hits rank him 161st in the history of Major League Baseball.


Retirement

Gaetti was inducted into the NWMSU athletic hall of fame, the "M-Club", in October 2003. He coached in the
Houston Astros The Houston Astros are an American professional baseball team based in Houston. The Astros compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League West, West Division. They are one of two major leag ...
minor league system as a hitting coach with the AAA New Orleans Zephyrs from 2002 to 2004. Gaetti was promoted to hitting coach for the Astros on July 14, 2004, when the team dismissed manager
Jimy Williams James Francis Williams (October 4, 1943 – January 26, 2024) was an American professional baseball infielder, Coach (baseball), coach and Manager (baseball), manager in Major League Baseball (MLB). He played for the St. Louis Cardinals in 1966 ...
, hitting coach Harry Spilman, and pitching coach Burt Hooton. Gaetti remained in this position until July 12, , when he was fired by the Astros. Following the season, he was hired as the hitting coach for Tampa Bay's AAA affiliate, the Durham Bulls — a position he would hold through the 2008 season. After working at Baseball USA in
Houston, Texas Houston ( ) is the List of cities in Texas by population, most populous city in the U.S. state of Texas and in the Southern United States. Located in Southeast Texas near Galveston Bay and the Gulf of Mexico, it is the county seat, seat of ...
, in 2011, Gaetti was named the first manager of the Sugar Land Skeeters. The independent team began play in 2012. During his six seasons as manager, he led them to a 448-391 overall record. In 2013, his team set the ALPB record in games won (95) and winning percentage (.679) in a season. He took them to two championship series (2014 and 2016) winning Sugar Land's first championship in 2016. The Skeeters retired his number on August 21, 2021. On August 19, 2007, Gaetti's 49th birthday, the Minnesota Twins inducted him into the team's Hall of Fame, while the club simultaneously released a commemorative bobblehead in his honor. Gaetti's son Joe played collegiate baseball for North Carolina State and played in the minor leagues in five different farm systems, including two separate stints with the Twins AA-level club, the New Britain Rock Cats. After failing to advance beyond the AAA level in the minor leagues, Joe ended his career in 2010 playing for the Lancaster Barnstormers of the independent Atlantic League.


Personal life

Gaetti became a born-again Christian while recovering from season-ending knee surgery he underwent late in the 1988 season. In 2020, Gaetti opened the Gaetti Sports Academy to support practice and instruction for softball and baseball for area youth.


See also

* List of Major League Baseball career home run leaders *
List of Major League Baseball career hits leaders Listed are all Major League Baseball players who have reached the 2,000 hit (baseball), hit milestone during their career in MLB. Pete Rose holds the Major League record for most career hits, with 4,256. Rose and Ty Cobb, second most, are the only ...
* List of Major League Baseball career doubles leaders *
List of Major League Baseball career runs scored leaders Listed are all Major League Baseball (MLB) players with 1,000 or more career runs scored. Players in boldface are active as of the 2025 Major League Baseball season. Key List *Stats updated as of June 16, 2025. Through June 16, 2025, th ...
*
List of Major League Baseball career runs batted in leaders This is a list of Major League Baseball players who have compiled 1,000 runs batted in (RBIs). RBIs are usually accumulated when a batter in baseball enables a runner on base (including himself, in the case of a home run) to score as a result of m ...
* List of Major League Baseball players with a home run in their first major league at bat


References


External links


GaryGaetti.com
: {{DEFAULTSORT:Gaetti, Gary 1958 births Living people 20th-century evangelicals 21st-century evangelicals American people of Italian descent Baseball coaches from Illinois American League All-Stars American League Championship Series MVPs Baseball players from Clinton County, Illinois Boston Red Sox players California Angels players Chicago Cubs players Elizabethton Twins players Gold Glove Award winners Houston Astros coaches Lake Land Lakers baseball players Kansas City Royals players Major League Baseball hitting coaches Major League Baseball third basemen Minnesota Twins players Minor league baseball managers Northwest Missouri State Bearcats baseball players Orlando Twins players Sportspeople from Centralia, Illinois Silver Slugger Award winners St. Louis Cardinals players Wisconsin Rapids Twins players American evangelicals 20th-century American sportsmen