Mario Mendoza

Mario Mendoza Aizpuru ( born December 26, 1950 in Chihuahua, Mexico ) is a retired Mexican baseball players of the Pittsburgh Pirates, Seattle Mariners and Texas Rangers in Major League Baseball. Mendoza was a strong defensive shortstop Manos de Seda ( German: "Hands of Silk " ) was called. Because of its offensive weakness, he was named godfather of the so-called Mendoza Line.

Career

Mendoza rose in 1970 in a farm team of the Pittsburgh Pirates one. He described the period as a period full of ethnic tensions, because he was cut as Mexicans by the Dominicans and ridiculed by the blacks as "Orange". Mendoza but prevailed and in 1974 only 28 of the Mexican, who made ​​his debut in the MLB. He was mostly reserve players, as he was defensively strong, but weak offensively. When his batting average dropped below .200, the Mendoza Line expression was born. Mendoza but improved in the Mariners and Rangers to a batting average up to .245 before he was retired at the age of 31 years by the Rangers and his MLB career ended. He played a few years in Mexico and then ended his professional career.

Mendoza worked in his follow- career as a coach. He is married to Irma Beatriz and has three children, Irma Maria, Manolo and Mario junior.

Mendoza Line

→ Main article: Mendoza Line

Mendoza was considered a strong defensive shortstop who could handle especially hard ground balls safely. However, his career batting average was .215 at moderate, and in his worst year he fell to .198. Allegedly coined sportscaster Chris Berman the expression Mendoza Line: who suggest worse than Mendoza, have no right to exist in the MLB. Since Mendoza is baseball synonym for " personalized mediocrity ". In an interview with Sports Illustrated Mendoza admitted that he was stigmatized and take this with a slight note of resignation.

Clubs

• Pittsburgh Pirates ( 1974-78 )
• Seattle Mariners ( 1979-80 )
• Texas Rangers ( 1981-82 )