Todd Eric Benzinger (born February 11, 1963) 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 ...

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

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 ...

who played a nine-year

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) career from 1987 to 1995.

Biography

Benzinger was born in Dayton, Kentucky, and is a graduate of New Richmond High School in New Richmond, Ohio. Benzinger started his MLB career with 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 ...

in 1987. He later played for the

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

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 ...

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 (baseball), National League (NL) National League West, West Div ...

, and the

San Francisco Giants The San Francisco Giants are an American professional baseball team based in San Francisco. The Giants compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League West, West Div ...

. Benzinger ended his professional playing career in 1995 after playing with the

Columbus Clippers The Columbus Clippers are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League (IL) and the Triple-A (baseball), Triple-A affiliate of the Cleveland Guardians. They are located in Columbus, Ohio, and are named for speedy Merchant ship, merch ...

, then a minor league affiliate of the

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

. He played the majority of his career at the

position, although he did occasionally play the

outfield The outfield, in cricket, baseball and softball is the area of the field of play further from the batsman or batter than the infield. In association football, the outfield players are positioned outside the goal area. In bat and ball games ...

. As a member of the Red Sox, Benzinger is legendary for his clutch hitting during the Sox' 1988 "Morgan Magic" run, particularly his 10th inning walk-off HR on July 20, 1988. This has been called "The Benzinger Game" by some Red Sox enthusiasts. Benzinger ended

Orel Hershiser Orel Leonard Hershiser IV (born September 16, 1958) is an American former baseball pitcher who played 18 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) from 1983 to 2000. He later became a pitching coach for the Texas Rangers from 2002 to 2005 and a br ...

's scoreless streak at 59 innings on an RBI hit in the first inning of Hershiser's first start of 1989.Simon, Mark
"Inside Hershiser's Scoreless Streak"
espn.go.com. September 30, 2013. Benzinger joined the Cincinnati Reds in 1989 and led the National League in at bats with 628. Benzinger was a member of the

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- ...

winning Reds which saw Cincinnati sweep the much favored Oakland A's in four games. Benzinger caught the last out in the 9th

inning In baseball, softball, and similar games, an inning is the basic unit of play, consisting of two halves or frames, the "top" (first half) and the "bottom" (second half). In each half, one team bats until three outs are made, with the other tea ...

of Game 4 to clinch the series for the Reds. From 2006 to 2008, Benzinger coached the girls' basketball team at Loveland High School in Loveland, Ohio. He managed the Dayton Dragons for the 2009 and 2010 seasons.

References

External links

Stats
at MLB.com {{DEFAULTSORT:Benzinger, Todd 1963 births Living people Boston Red Sox players Cincinnati Reds players Kansas City Royals players Los Angeles Dodgers players San Francisco Giants players Major League Baseball first basemen People from Dayton, Kentucky Baseball players from Campbell County, Kentucky Elmira Pioneers players Winston-Salem Red Sox players Winter Haven Red Sox players New Britain Red Sox players Pawtucket Red Sox players Columbus Clippers players Sportspeople from Loveland, Ohio Minor league baseball managers Sportspeople from Clermont County, Ohio 20th-century American sportsmen