John Olerud
Born: 8/5/1968 in Seattle, WA, USA
MLB Debut: 1989-09-03 | Final Game: 2005-10-02
Bats: L | Throws: L | Height: 6'5" | Weight: 205 lbs
Full name: John Garrett Olerud
Biography
John Olerud, born in 1968, was a distinguished Major League Baseball player who had a career spanning from 1989 to 2005. Known for his exceptional hitting ability and defensive prowess, Olerud played a primary role as a position player over 2,234 games. He finished his career with an impressive .295 batting average, collecting 2,239 hits, including 255 home runs and driving in 1,230 RBIs. Olerud also showcased his speed on the bases with a total of 11 stolen bases throughout his career. His contributions to the game earned him two All-Star selections, highlighting his status among the elite players of his era.
Olerud's playing style was characterized by his disciplined approach at the plate and a remarkable ability to hit for both average and power. He was particularly known for his unique batting stance and exceptional plate discipline, which allowed him to maintain a high on-base percentage. Throughout his career, he played for several teams, most notably the Toronto Blue Jays, with whom he won two World Series titles in 1992 and 1993. Olerud's impact on the game was felt not only through his statistics but also through his professionalism and sportsmanship, making him a respected figure in baseball history.
Career Batting Statistics
| G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | SB | BB | SO | AVG | OBP | SLG | OPS | PIV |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2234 | 7592 | 1139 | 2239 | 500 | 13 | 255 | 1230 | 11 | 1275 | 1016 | 0.295 | 0.398 | 0.465 | 0.863 | 28253.6 |
Season-by-Season Batting
| Year | Team | Lg | G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | SB | BB | SO | AVG | PIV |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1989 | TOR | AL | 6 | 8 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0.375 | 0.0 |
| 1990 | TOR | AL | 111 | 358 | 43 | 95 | 15 | 1 | 14 | 48 | 0 | 57 | 75 | 0.265 | 938.9 |
| 1991 | TOR | AL | 139 | 454 | 64 | 116 | 30 | 1 | 17 | 68 | 0 | 68 | 84 | 0.256 | 1124.9 |
| 1992 | TOR | AL | 138 | 458 | 68 | 130 | 28 | 0 | 16 | 66 | 1 | 70 | 61 | 0.284 | 1741.5 |
| 1993 | TOR | AL | 158 | 551 | 109 | 200 | 54 | 2 | 24 | 107 | 0 | 114 | 65 | 0.363 | 5863.6 |
| 1994 | TOR | AL | 108 | 384 | 47 | 114 | 29 | 2 | 12 | 67 | 1 | 61 | 53 | 0.297 | 1207.9 |
| 1995 | TOR | AL | 135 | 492 | 72 | 143 | 32 | 0 | 8 | 54 | 0 | 84 | 54 | 0.291 | 1007.5 |
| 1996 | TOR | AL | 125 | 398 | 59 | 109 | 25 | 0 | 18 | 61 | 1 | 60 | 37 | 0.274 | 1123.6 |
| 1997 | NYN | NL | 154 | 524 | 90 | 154 | 34 | 1 | 22 | 102 | 0 | 85 | 67 | 0.294 | 2246.3 |
| 1998 | NYN | NL | 160 | 557 | 91 | 197 | 36 | 4 | 22 | 93 | 2 | 96 | 73 | 0.354 | 4261.3 |
| 1999 | NYN | NL | 162 | 581 | 107 | 173 | 39 | 0 | 19 | 96 | 3 | 125 | 66 | 0.298 | 2473.3 |
| 2000 | SEA | AL | 159 | 565 | 84 | 161 | 45 | 0 | 14 | 103 | 0 | 102 | 96 | 0.285 | 1041.1 |
| 2001 | SEA | AL | 159 | 572 | 91 | 173 | 32 | 1 | 21 | 95 | 3 | 94 | 70 | 0.302 | 2208.0 |
| 2002 | SEA | AL | 154 | 553 | 85 | 166 | 39 | 0 | 22 | 102 | 0 | 98 | 66 | 0.300 | 2551.4 |
| 2003 | SEA | AL | 152 | 539 | 64 | 145 | 35 | 0 | 10 | 83 | 0 | 84 | 67 | 0.269 | 421.1 |
| 2004 | NYY | AL | 49 | 164 | 16 | 46 | 7 | 0 | 4 | 26 | 0 | 21 | 20 | 0.280 | 68.7 |
| 2004 | SEA | AL | 78 | 261 | 29 | 64 | 13 | 1 | 5 | 22 | 0 | 40 | 41 | 0.245 | 68.7 |
| 2005 | BOS | AL | 87 | 173 | 18 | 50 | 7 | 0 | 7 | 37 | 0 | 16 | 20 | 0.289 | 188.5 |
Postseason Statistics
Playoff Career Batting
| G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | BB | SO | AVG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 66 | 237 | 35 | 66 | 10 | 0 | 9 | 34 | 31 | 32 | 0.278 |
Playoff Batting by Year
| Year | Round | Team | G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | BB | SO | AVG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2005 | ALDS1 | BOS | 3 | 7 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0.286 |
| 2004 | ALCS | NYA | 4 | 12 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0.167 |
| 2004 | ALDS2 | NYA | 4 | 14 | 2 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 0.214 |
| 2001 | ALDS1 | SEA | 5 | 17 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 5 | 0.176 |
| 2001 | ALCS | SEA | 5 | 19 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 2 | 4 | 0.211 |
| 2000 | ALCS | SEA | 6 | 20 | 3 | 7 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 0.350 |
| 2000 | ALDS2 | SEA | 3 | 10 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 0.300 |
| 1999 | NLCS | NYN | 6 | 27 | 4 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 6 | 2 | 3 | 0.296 |
| 1999 | NLDS2 | NYN | 4 | 16 | 3 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 6 | 3 | 2 | 0.438 |
| 1993 | ALCS | TOR | 6 | 23 | 5 | 8 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 4 | 1 | 0.348 |
| 1993 | WS | TOR | 5 | 17 | 5 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 4 | 1 | 0.235 |
| 1992 | WS | TOR | 4 | 13 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0.308 |
| 1992 | ALCS | TOR | 6 | 23 | 4 | 8 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 2 | 5 | 0.348 |
| 1991 | ALCS | TOR | 5 | 19 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 1 | 0.158 |
Fielding Statistics
Career Fielding Totals by Position
| Position | G | GS | PO | A | E | DP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1B | 2053 | 1929 | 16165 | 1418 | 82 | 1581 |
Season-by-Season Fielding
| Year | Team | Pos | G | GS | PO | A | E | DP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1989 | TOR | 1B | 5 | 1 | 19 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| 1990 | TOR | 1B | 18 | 15 | 133 | 10 | 2 | 10 |
| 1991 | TOR | 1B | 135 | 124 | 1120 | 78 | 5 | 77 |
| 1992 | TOR | 1B | 133 | 125 | 1057 | 81 | 7 | 72 |
| 1993 | TOR | 1B | 137 | 137 | 1160 | 97 | 10 | 107 |
| 1994 | TOR | 1B | 104 | 101 | 824 | 68 | 6 | 83 |
| 1995 | TOR | 1B | 133 | 132 | 1099 | 89 | 4 | 103 |
| 1996 | TOR | 1B | 101 | 92 | 781 | 56 | 2 | 107 |
| 1997 | NYN | 1B | 146 | 141 | 1292 | 120 | 7 | 125 |
| 1998 | NYN | 1B | 157 | 149 | 1258 | 116 | 5 | 119 |
| 1999 | NYN | 1B | 160 | 159 | 1344 | 105 | 9 | 127 |
| 2000 | SEA | 1B | 158 | 155 | 1271 | 132 | 5 | 154 |
| 2001 | SEA | 1B | 158 | 149 | 1211 | 121 | 9 | 116 |
| 2002 | SEA | 1B | 152 | 150 | 1169 | 101 | 5 | 122 |
| 2003 | SEA | 1B | 152 | 143 | 1096 | 125 | 3 | 126 |
| 2004 | NYA | 1B | 47 | 47 | 367 | 25 | 1 | 34 |
| 2004 | SEA | 1B | 77 | 71 | 548 | 52 | 1 | 58 |
| 2005 | BOS | 1B | 80 | 38 | 416 | 40 | 1 | 41 |
Career Games by Position
| Position | Games |
|---|---|
| First Base | 2053 |
| Designated Hitter | 133 |
Awards & Honors
| Year | Award | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 2003 | Gold Glove | 1B |
| 2002 | Gold Glove | 1B |
| 2000 | Gold Glove | 1B |
| 1998 | Player of the Week | Week of 1998-09-19 |
| 1998 | Player of the Week | Week of 1998-08-08 |
| 1997 | Player of the Week | Week of 1997-09-27 |
| 1995 | Player of the Week | Week of 1995-07-15 |
| 1993 | Hutch Award | |
| 1993 | Player of the Month | June |
| 1993 | Player of the Month | April |
| 1993 | Player of the Week | Week of 1993-06-05 |
Salary History
| Year | Team | League | Salary |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2004 | SEA | AL | $7,700,000 |
| 2003 | SEA | AL | $7,700,000 |
| 2002 | SEA | AL | $6,950,000 |
| 2001 | SEA | AL | $6,700,000 |
| 2000 | SEA | AL | $6,350,000 |
| 1999 | NYN | NL | $4,250,000 |
| 1998 | NYN | NL | $3,750,000 |
| 1997 | NYN | NL | $6,500,000 |
| 1996 | TOR | AL | $6,500,000 |
| 1995 | TOR | AL | $5,750,000 |
| 1994 | TOR | AL | $3,750,000 |
| 1993 | TOR | AL | $1,562,500 |
| 1992 | TOR | AL | $387,500 |
| 1991 | TOR | AL | $293,667 |
| 1990 | TOR | AL | $100,000 |
| Total Career Earnings | $68,243,667 | ||
College History
| School Name | City | State | Years Attended |
|---|---|---|---|
| Washington State University | Pullman | WA | 1987, 1988, 1989 |
Award Voting History
| Year | Award | League | Finish | Points Won | Points Max | Votes First |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1998 | Most Valuable Player | NL | 12th | 38.0 | 448 | 0 |
| 1993 | Most Valuable Player | AL | 3rd | 198.0 | 392 | 0 |
| 1990 | Rookie of the Year | AL | 4th | 13.0 | 140 | 0 |