Nick Swisher
- Oakland Athletics (2004-2007)
- Chicago White Sox (2008)
- New York Yankees (2009-2012)
- Cleveland Indians (2013 )
- MLB All- Star 2010
- World Series Champion ( 2009)
Nicholas "Nick" Thompson Swisher ( born November 25, 1980 in Columbus, Ohio) is an American baseball player in the major leagues. Since the 2013 season, he played as a outfielder for the Cleveland Indians.
Career
College
Since Swisher was not selected after the completion of high school in the MLB Draft, he opted for college and played baseball for the team of Ohio State University, the Ohio State Buckeyes. In 2000 he achieved a batting average of .299, 10 home runs and 48 RBI and was awarded the title of Big 10 Freshman of the Year. After two more good seasons Swisher was elected in the first round of the MLB Drafts 2002 by the Oakland Athletics.
Minor League
In the Minor League Swisher played in the farm system of the A's for the Visilia Oaks, Vancouver Canadians, Modesto A's, Midland RockHounds, and Sacramento River Cats. In 2004, his batting average .263 with 29 homers and 92 RBI.
Oakland Athletics
On 3 September 2004, Swisher was appointed to the team of the Oakland Athletics. In 20 games of the season remaining he hit .250, two homers and eight RBI. In 2005, he played almost the entire season with the A's and was elected to the ranking MLB Rookie of the Year Award at the sixth place. 2006 Swisher played about half his games in leftfield and the other half on the first base. His batting average was .254 with 35 homers and 95 RBI. In 2007, his batting average improved to .262 again at 22 homers and 78 RBI.
Chicago White Sox
January 3, 2008 Swisher was transferred to the Chicago White Sox. Here he was unable to repeat his good offensive performances and achieved a batting average of only .219, however. In September 2008, he was therefore usually not used by White Sox manager Ozzie Guillen.
New York Yankees
On 13 November 2008, Swisher was transferred from the White Sox to the New York Yankees. The Yankees intended to use as a first baseman Swisher. However, after later first baseman Mark Teixeira was signed up, Yankees manager Joe Girardi decided at the end of Spring Training that Swisher should be used only as a player on the bench to use while Xavier Nady should occupy the position in right field. On 9 April 2009 Swisher played for the first time from the start in right field, as Nady was used in this game as a designated hitter. After Nady on 14 April 2009 suffered an elbow injury that ended his season, Swisher became the regular right fielder the Yankees. He hit 29 homers in 2009, scored 82 RBI and a .249 batting average of.
In the 2010 season, Swisher plays as a regular player in right field. In early July 2010, he was elected as the last player of the fans in the All-Star team in 2010.
Cleveland Indians
On December 23, 2012 Nick Swisher signed a four -year contract with the Cleveland Indians for $ 56,000,000. The change was officially on January 3, 2013.
Private life
Swisher is the son of former major league catcher Steve Swisher, who played in the 1970s and 1980s for various clubs in the National League. Nick Swisher grew up in Parkersburg, West Virginia.
Swisher has been married since December 11, 2010 with the actress Joanna García, among other things, plays in the television series Gossip Girl. In February 2010, he made a guest appearance on the television series How I Met Your Mother.