‘The 40/40 Club’ – 1980’s – Card #11

‘The 40/40 Club’ – 1980’s – Card #11

Craig Biggio – 1989 Donruss

It could be argued that there was no more versatile player in the big leagues that debuted during the 1980’s than Craig Biggio.  Debuting as a catcher and spending 4 seasons in that role Biggio was than transitioned to second base for the next 11 years.  In those 11 years, Biggio excelled and captured 4 Gold Glove awards for his defensive excellence at second base.  Then at the age of 37 and in his 16th season in the majors Biggio was made into an outfielder, a position he would fill for 2 years before returning to second base for 3 more seasons before his retirement in 2007.

Equally as impressive as his defense was Biggio’s offense.  Extremely versatile at the plate, Biggio offered the combination of speed and power that is rarely found in a second baseman.  Biggio has 291 career home runs and 414 stolen bases.  While never leading the league in either category during his 20-season career, Biggio’s consistency in both aspects of the game made him a constant offensive threat.  Biggio’s career batting average is .281.  And with 3,060 career hits, his well-rounded offensive game gave opposing teams nightmares during each at-bat.  Biggio has also scored 1,844 runs and is responsible for driving in 1,175.

In addition to his 4 Gold Glove awards, Craig Biggio is a 7-time All-star and a 5-time winner of the Silver Slugger award. 

Biggio only made it to 1 World Series championship.  In 2005, his Astros were swept by the Chicago White Sox.  In those 4 games, Biggio batted .222 while collecting just 4 hits, scoring 3 runs, and driving in 1 run.