Athletes - Ty Wigginton

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	Athletes - Ty Wigginton

Ty Allen Wigginton (born October 11, 1977 in San Diego, California) is a third baseman in Major League Baseball for the Tampa Bay Devil Rays. He bats and throws right-handed.

The 6-foot-0, 200 pound (91 kg) Wigginton was selected by the New York Mets in the 1998 amateur draft.

Career

Wigginton was brought up to the major league Mets for the first time in 2002 as a third baseman and had a promising partial rookie season with the Mets, batting .302 with a .354 on base percentage (OBP) and .526 slugging percentage (SLG) in 116 at bats. He slumped somewhat in his first full season in 2003, with a batting line of .255/.318/.396 in 573 at bats, but started the 2004 season hot. In his first 312 at-bats, Wigginton hit .285/.334/.487, hitting 12 home runs and 23 doubles with 42 runs batted in (RBIs).

On July 30, 2004, the Mets traded him to the Pittsburgh Pirates in a six-player deal for pitcher Kris Benson. Wigginton slumped badly after he was traded before recovering somewhat in September. He started at third base for the Pirates in 2005, but again struggled and was demoted to the minor leagues on June 4, putting his future with Pittsburgh in serious jeopardy. After winning the International League Batter of the Week for the week of Aug. 15-21, "Wiggy" was called up to the Pirates on August 22, 2005. The infielder caught fire hitting .365 over his last 22 games for Pittsburgh, but the Pirates still wound up releasing him after the season.

On January 10, 2006 Wigginton signed a one year contract with the Devil Rays. He will likely be platooned at third base and first base, while spot starting some games as Tampa Bay's designated hitter.

Scouting Report

Wigginton has shown slightly below-average power for a major league third baseman. He does not hit many home runs, but he has good doubles power. He cut down on his strikeouts in 2004 and increased his walks, but his plate discipline is still no better than average. He hits fastballs well but struggles a little bit with good breaking balls. Wigginton has about average speed; he stole 12 bases in 2003, but has never duplicated that before (even in the minor leagues) or since. On the field, he is well below average at third base and first base. He has played second base in the past, but is limited defensively at that position. However, he is considered to be an extremely aggressive player.

In 403 major league games, Wigginton has hit .262 (350-1338) with a .324 OBP, .429 SLG, 41 home runs, 83 doubles, 180 RBIs, and 21 steals.

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