Ryan Theriot

Ryan Theriot
File:Ryan Theriot on June 28, 2011.jpg Theriot with the St. Louis Cardinals
Shortstop / Second baseman
Born: (1979-12-07) December 7, 1979 Baton Rouge, Louisiana
Batted: Right Threw: Right
MLB debut
September 13, 2005, for the Chicago Cubs
Last MLB appearance
October 28, 2012, for the San Francisco Giants
MLB statistics
Batting average	.281
Home runs	17
Runs batted in	257
Teams
Chicago Cubs (2005–2010) Los Angeles Dodgers (2010) St. Louis Cardinals (2011) San Francisco Giants (2012)
Career highlights and awards
2× World Series champion (2011, 2012)

Ryan Stewart Theriot (/ˈtɛri.oʊ/; born December 7, 1979) is a former Major League Baseball shortstop and second baseman.

A shortstop in college, Theriot was converted to second base for his major league debut, but played shortstop throughout the 2007–2009 seasons. Theriot then was switched back to second base to make room for the rookie Starlin Castro, who took his spot at shortstop on May 7, 2010. Theriot also played third base, right field, and left field.

Early years

Theriot graduated from Broadmoor High School in Baton Rouge, La in 1998. While there he played 3 seasons on the basketball team as a point guard and 4 seasons on the baseball team as a shortstop. He was a highly decorated baseball player, so he opted to not play basketball during his senior year of high school to focus on his baseball skills. While at Broadmoor he played alongside childhood friends, Mike Woods and Trae Duncan, and together they set Louisiana High School Athletic Association history by becoming All American infielders from the same high school. They all later became 1st team All State for class 4A at third base, short stop, and second base, becoming the first trio to earn such awards.

College career

Theriot played college baseball at Louisiana State University, and was named to the College World Series all-tournament team in 2000. On June 12, 2000, Theriot broke up a no-hitter that was being thrown by his future teammate, Mark Prior, then pitching for Southern Cal.

Theriot scored the game-winning run in the 2000 national championship game following a Brad Cresse single. The CWS title was the fifth for LSU in nine seasons. Theriot was named The Most Stylish Athlete.

Ryan followed up the 2000 season with a very good 2001 campaign that resulted in a 2nd Team All-SEC selection, the only All-conference honor of his college career. Prior to the 2001 season, Theriot was voted team captain by his teammates.

Theriot began his career as LSU's starting second baseman in 1999. He moved to shortstop in 2000 to make way for future Cubs teammate, and former LSU teammate, Mike Fontenot.

Professional career

Chicago Cubs

File:Ryan Theorit - 2008.JPG

Theriot warms up before a game in 2008.

Theriot made his Major League Baseball debut on September 13, 2005, as a pinch hitter against the Cincinnati Reds, and gained his first hit the following day against Brian Shackelford. In 2006 he split time between the Iowa Cubs and the major league team, hitting .328 in 53 games with the Chicago team.

In 2007, Theriot made the opening day roster as a utility player. However, the early season struggles of César Izturis lead to Theriot getting more starts and quickly became the starter. Izturis was traded in July. Also in 2007, Theriot was reunited with his former collegiate teammate Mike Fontenot. Theriot and Fontenot made up the double play combination for the 2000 National Champion LSU Tigers.

Theriot was very versatile throughout the 2007 season; playing multiple positions defensively, and hitting all over the batting order. Despite impressive numbers from Theriot in the lead-off spot, albeit a small sample size, the return of Alfonso Soriano resulted in Theriot returning to the two hole.

While not expected to hit for power, Theriot was asked to try to drive in more runs early in 2009 as the Cubs succumbed to injuries and poor performance to their big boppers including Aramis Ramírez, Alfonso Soriano, Geovany Soto, and Milton Bradley. He quickly went on a relative tear and smacked 7 home runs, including his first two ever outside Wrigley Field, as the other players regained their health.

On May 1, 2009, Theriot hit his first career grand slam, against the Florida Marlins. The Cubs were down 5–2 when he hit it, and it gave them the lead. The Cubs won, 8–6.

On February 19, 2010, the Cubs went to salary arbitration with Theriot, the first time they had gone to arbitration with a player since 1993. Theriot's figure was one year, $3.4M. The Cubs' figure was also one year, $2.6M. The Cubs won the case. He appeared in 96 games with the Cubs in 2010, hitting .284.

Los Angeles Dodgers

On July 31, 2010, Theriot and Ted Lilly were traded to the Los Angeles Dodgers for Blake DeWitt. He was assigned the number 13. He hit .242 in 54 games with the Dodgers. At 2nd base, Theriot had a .996 fielding percentage.

St. Louis Cardinals

On November 30, 2010, Theriot was traded to the St. Louis Cardinals for RHP Blake Hawksworth. Theriot wore number 3 on his uniform, as his familiar number 2 was unavailable.

On July 17, 2011, Theriot was ejected from the game between the Cardinals and the Reds for arguing and making contact with an umpire with his hat after a call that Theriot's foot was dragged off the bag during a catch at second base. He was suspended for two games and fined, but the suspension was later reduced to only one game. Theriot had a 20-game hitting streak. Also, he drove in 47 runs and hit 26 doubles with only 442 at-bats.

Theriot won the World Series with the St. Louis Cardinals in 2011. Ryan contributed greatly with his bat (especially in the playoff series with the Phillies). Against the Brewers, Theriot at second base robbed Prince Fielder of a seemingly sure hit for the 3rd out of the inning. Prince was so impressed with the play that he waited for Theriot to exit the field and gave him an enthusiastic high five.

San Francisco Giants

On January 27, 2012, Theriot agreed to a one-year, $1.25 million non-guaranteed contract with the San Francisco Giants, providing depth to the team's middle infield. Theriot was briefly reunited with his college teammate and double play partner Mike Fontenot, before Fontenot was released by the Giants at the end of Spring Training. Theriot shared playing time at second base with Emmanuel Burriss at the beginning of the season, but went on the 15-day disabled list in May. When he returned, he became the regular second baseman, replacing the struggling Burriss. He would remain in the lineup virtually every day until August, when he was moved back to the bench and lost his starting job to the newly acquired Marco Scutaro, whom the Giants had acquired in a trade with the Colorado Rockies.

Theriot won the World Series with the San Francisco Giants in 2012. In Game 4 of the Series, Theriot was used as a designated hitter for the first time in his major league career. In the tenth inning, he hit a leadoff single and eventually scored the go-ahead and winning run (coincidentally being driven in by Scutaro, the same man who had taken his spot in the lineup 2 months before), which gave the Giants the clinching victory in a 4-game sweep of the Detroit Tigers.

After sitting out the entire 2013 season, Theriot announced his retirement on January 6, 2014.

Personal

Theriot and his wife, Johnnah Haik, live in Baton Rouge, Louisiana with son, Houston, and daughters Macey Marie and Georgia Grace (who was born on July 14, 2008). Theriot was sometimes referred to by Cubs (and later Giants) fans and broadcasters as "The Riot" as a play on the spelling of his last name. On November 12, 2010, Theriot hosted the Ryan Theriot Golf Classic which benefits the National Wildlife Federation, the Autism Society, and the Fore Kids Foundation.

External links

• Career statistics and player information from MLB, or ESPN, or Baseball Reference, or Fangraphs, or Baseball Reference (Minors)
• Minor League Splits and Situational Stats