Jorge Orta Núñez (born November 26, 1950) is a Mexican former
professional baseball
Professional baseball is organized baseball in which players are selected for their talents and are paid to play for a specific team or club system. It is played in leagues and associated farm teams throughout the world.
Modern professiona ...
second baseman and
outfielder
An outfielder is a person playing in one of the three defensive positions in baseball or softball, farthest from the batter. These defenders are the left fielder, the center fielder, and the right fielder. As an outfielder, their duty is to cat ...
. He played fifteen seasons in
Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (A ...
(MLB) from 1972 to 1987 for the
Chicago White Sox
The Chicago White Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The White Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. The team is owned by Jerry Reinsdorf, and ...
,
Cleveland Indians
The Cleveland Guardians are an American professional baseball team based in Cleveland. The Guardians compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League Central, Central division. Since , they have ...
,
Los Angeles Dodgers
The Los Angeles Dodgers are an American professional baseball team based in Los Angeles. The Dodgers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) National League West, West division. Established in 1883 i ...
,
Toronto Blue Jays
The Toronto Blue Jays are a Canadian professional baseball team based in Toronto. The Blue Jays compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. Since 1989, the team has played its home games ...
, and
Kansas City Royals
The Kansas City Royals are an American professional baseball team based in Kansas City, Missouri. The Royals compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. The team was founded as an expans ...
. He is best remembered for being at the center of one of the most controversial plays in
World Series
The World Series is the annual championship series of Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada, contested since 1903 between the champion teams of the American League (AL) and the National League (NL). The winner of the Worl ...
history.
Chicago White Sox
Orta signed with the
Chicago White Sox
The Chicago White Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The White Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. The team is owned by Jerry Reinsdorf, and ...
out of the
Mexican Baseball League
The Mexican League (, ) is a professional baseball league based in Mexico and the oldest running professional league in the country.
The league has 18 teams organized in two divisions, North and South. Teams play 114 games each season. Five t ...
, and made the team out of
spring training
Spring training is the preseason in Major League Baseball (MLB), a series of practices and exhibition games preceding the start of the regular season. Spring training allows new players to try out for roster and position spots, and gives estab ...
at
shortstop
Shortstop, abbreviated SS, is the baseball or softball fielding position between second and third base, which is considered to be among the most demanding defensive positions. Historically the position was assigned to defensive specialists wh ...
without first playing in the minor leagues. He batted just .211 through the middle of May, losing his starting job to
Rich Morales. He spent two months as a
utility infielder
In baseball, a utility player is a player who typically does not have the offensive abilities to justify a regular starting role on the team but is capable of playing more than one defensive position. These players are able to give the various s ...
before being optioned to the
Southern League's
Knoxville Sox in mid-July after compiling a .191
batting average, one
home run
In baseball, a home run (abbreviated HR) is scored when the ball is hit in such a way that the batter is able to circle the bases and reach home plate safely in one play without any errors being committed by the defensive team. A home run i ...
and seven
runs batted in
A run batted in (RBI; plural RBIs ) is a statistic in baseball and softball that credits a batter for making a play that allows a run to be scored (except in certain situations such as when an error is made on the play). For example, if the b ...
. After batting .316 with seven home runs at Knoxville, he returned to Chicago when rosters expanded that September. His second major league home run was an extra innings game winner on September 19 against
Gary Waslewski and the
Oakland A's
The Oakland Athletics (often referred to as the A's) are an American professional baseball team based in Oakland, California. The Athletics compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West division. The te ...
.
Orta was shifted to second base for the season after batting over .500 in spring training. Playing through injuries for much of the year, he batted .266 and tied for second in the
American League
The American League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the American League (AL), is one of two leagues that make up Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada. It developed from the Western League, a minor league b ...
(AL) with eighteen
errors
An error (from the Latin ''error'', meaning "wandering") is an action which is inaccurate or incorrect. In some usages, an error is synonymous with a mistake. The etymology derives from the Latin term 'errare', meaning 'to stray'.
In statistics ...
among
second basemen.
Orta began the season batting at the bottom of the White Sox line-up, but was moved up to the number two spot in
manager
Management (or managing) is the administration of an organization, whether it is a business, a nonprofit organization, or a government body. It is the art and science of managing resources of the business.
Management includes the activitie ...
Chuck Tanner's
batting order, and batted .411 with 23
runs scored
In baseball, a run is scored when a player advances around first, second and third base and returns safely to home plate, touching the bases in that order, before three outs are recorded and all obligations to reach base safely on batted bal ...
in the month of June. More specifically, he batted .516 with four home runs from June 17 to June 23 to earn AL
Player of the Week honors. For the season, his .316 batting average was second only to
Rod Carew
Rodney Cline Carew (born October 1, 1945) is a Panamanian former professional baseball player and coach. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a first baseman, second baseman and designated hitter from 1967 to 1985 for the Minnesota Twins ...
in the AL.
For the season, Orta batted .296 with four home runs and 46 RBIs in the first half to be named to the AL
All-Star team, but did not appear in the game due to a pulled
hamstring
In human anatomy, a hamstring () is any one of the three posterior thigh muscles in between the hip and the knee (from medial to lateral: semimembranosus, semitendinosus and biceps femoris). The hamstrings are susceptible to injury.
In quadrupe ...
in his right leg. He returned healthy on July 17, and batted .314 with seven home runs and 37 RBIs in the second half.
Prior to the start of the season, the White Sox acquired
Jack Brohamer
John Anthony Brohamer (born February 26, 1950) is a former Major League Baseball (MLB) player. A second baseman (though he also played some third base), he played with the Cleveland Indians, Chicago White Sox, and Boston Red Sox from to .
Care ...
from the
Cleveland Indians
The Cleveland Guardians are an American professional baseball team based in Cleveland. The Guardians compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League Central, Central division. Since , they have ...
. New Chicago manager
Paul Richards opted to use Brohamer at second and Orta at third. Orta proved himself a poor
third baseman
A third baseman, abbreviated 3B, is the player in baseball or softball whose responsibility is to defend the area nearest to third base — the third of four bases a baserunner must touch in succession to score a run. In the scoring system u ...
, and was eventually moved into the
outfield
The outfield, in cricket, baseball and softball is the area of the field of play further from the batsman or batter than the infield. In association football, the outfield players are positioned outside the goal area.
In cricket, baseball a ...
while rookie
Kevin Bell took over at third. The Sox narrowly avoided a hundred losses in 1976. For his part, Orta batted .274, while hitting a career-high fourteen home runs and scoring a career high 74
runs.
Orta returned to second base when
Bob Lemon
Robert Granville Lemon (September 22, 1920 – January 11, 2000) was an American right-handed pitcher and manager in Major League Baseball (MLB). Lemon was elected to the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1976.
Lemon was raised in Californi ...
replaced Richards as manager in . The White Sox won ninety games to finish third in the
American League West
The American League West is one of Major League Baseball's six divisions. The division has five teams as of the 2013 season, but had four teams from 1994 to 2012, and had as many as seven teams before the 1994 realignment. Although its teams curr ...
. Orta, now batting third in the line-up, finished second on the team (to
Richie Zisk Richie or Richy is a masculine given name or short form (hypocorism) of Richard. It is also a surname.
First name
*Richie Ashburn (1927–1997), American Major League Baseball player, member of the Hall of Fame
*Richie Benaud (1930–2015), Austra ...
) with a career high 84 RBIs. He remained at second in , but new
player-manager
A player-coach (also playing coach, captain-coach, or player-manager) is a member of a sports team who simultaneously holds both playing and coaching duties. A player-coach may be a head coach or an assistant coach. They may make changes to the s ...
Don Kessinger
Donald Eulon Kessinger (born July 17, 1942) is an American former professional baseball player and manager. He played in Major League Baseball as a shortstop from to , most prominently as a member of the Chicago Cubs where, he was a six-time ...
deployed Orta as the
designated hitter
The designated hitter (DH) is a baseball player who bats in place of another position player, most commonly the pitcher. The position is authorized by Major League Baseball Rule 5.11. It was adopted by the American League in 1973 and later by t ...
in , and Orta struggled in the role, accruing a .212 batting average, three home runs and 21 RBIs through June 27. Meanwhile, second base had become something of a revolving door, with Kessinger,
Alan Bannister,
Joe Gates,
Jim Morrison
James Douglas Morrison (December 8, 1943 – July 3, 1971) was an American singer, poet and songwriter who was the lead vocalist of the rock band the Doors. Due to his wild personality, poetic lyrics, distinctive voice, unpredictable and err ...
and
Greg Pryor all manning the position at one point or another. Orta returned to second base in the middle of July, and batted .313 with seven home runs and 22 RBIs the rest of the way.
Cleveland Indians
Following the 1979 season, Orta signed a five-year deal with the Cleveland Indians. With the Indians, Orta became a full-time
right fielder
A right fielder, abbreviated RF, is the outfielder in baseball or softball who plays defense in right field. Right field is the area of the outfield to the right of a person standing at home plate and facing towards the pitcher's mound. In ...
, and soon emerged as one of the better fielding right fielders in the league. He maintained a .987
fielding percentage
In baseball statistics, fielding percentage, also known as fielding average, is a measure that reflects the percentage of times a defensive player properly handles a batted or thrown ball. It is calculated by the sum of putouts and assists, di ...
in his two seasons in Cleveland, and his eleven assists in tied for second among A.L. outfielders.
On June 15, , he tied an A.L. record for the most
hits
Hits or H.I.T.S. may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media Music
* '' H.I.T.S.'', 1991 album by New Kids on the Block
* ''...Hits'' (Phil Collins album), 1998
* ''Hits'' (compilation series), 1984–2006; 2014 - a British compilation album s ...
in one game with six. The feat raised his season average to .339, and likely played a part in his being named Cleveland's sole representative at the
1980 Major League Baseball All-Star Game
The 1980 Major League Baseball All-Star Game was the 51st midseason exhibition between the all-stars of the American League (AL) and the National League (NL), the two leagues comprising Major League Baseball. The game was played on July 8, 1980 ...
. He did not, however, appear in the game.
With prospect
Von Hayes
Von Francis Hayes (born August 31, 1958) is an American former professional baseball player whose Major League Baseball (MLB) career spanned from 1981 to 1992 for the Cleveland Indians, Philadelphia Phillies, and California Angels. Hayes was acqui ...
ready to assume an everyday major league job in right field, Orta became trade-bait at the
Winter meetings
Representatives of all 30 Major League Baseball teams and their 120 Minor League Baseball affiliates convene for four days each December in the Winter Meetings to discuss league business and conduct off-season trades and transactions. Attendees in ...
. On December 9, he and two minor leaguers (
Jack Fimple and
Larry White) were sent to the
Los Angeles Dodgers
The Los Angeles Dodgers are an American professional baseball team based in Los Angeles. The Dodgers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) National League West, West division. Established in 1883 i ...
for
Jack Perconte and former
Rookie of the Year winning
pitcher
In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throws ("pitches") the baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of retiring a batter, who attempts to either make contact with the pitched ball or dr ...
Rick Sutcliffe
Richard Lee Sutcliffe (born June 21, 1956), nicknamed "The Red Baron", is an American former Major League Baseball pitcher with the Los Angeles Dodgers, Cleveland Indians, Chicago Cubs, Baltimore Orioles, and St. Louis Cardinals between 1976 and ...
.
Los Angeles Dodgers
With the Dodgers, Orta found himself in a reserve role for the first time in his career. As a
pinch hitter
In baseball, a pinch hitter is a substitute batter. Batters can be substituted at any time while the ball is dead (not in active play); the manager may use any player who has not yet entered the game as a substitute. Unlike basketball, America ...
, Orta batted just .150 with one home run and five RBIs. He would occasionally spell
Pedro Guerrero a day off in right field, and batted .291 in that role. After his only season in Los Angeles, he was traded to the
New York Mets
The New York Mets are an American professional baseball team based in the New York City borough of Queens. The Mets compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the National League (NL) East division. They are one of two major lea ...
for pitcher
Pat Zachry
Patrick Paul Zachry (born April 24, 1952) is a former professional baseball pitcher. He pitched in Major League Baseball from to , and is likely best remembered as one of the players the Cincinnati Reds sent to the New York Mets in the infamous " ...
.
Toronto Blue Jays
Shortly after acquiring Orta, the Mets traded him to the
Toronto Blue Jays
The Toronto Blue Jays are a Canadian professional baseball team based in Toronto. The Blue Jays compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. Since 1989, the team has played its home games ...
for pitcher
Steve Senteney
Stephen Leonard Senteney III (August 7, 1955 – June 18, 1989) was a Major League Baseball pitcher who played briefly in with the Toronto Blue Jays. He batted and threw right-handed and had a 0–0 record, with a 4.91 ERA, in 11 games, in his ...
. Orta was used primarily at DH by the Jays, though he did occasionally sub for
Jesse Barfield in right. After the season, he was traded to the
Kansas City Royals
The Kansas City Royals are an American professional baseball team based in Kansas City, Missouri. The Royals compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. The team was founded as an expans ...
for
Willie Aikens
Willie Mays Aikens (born October 14, 1954) is an American professional baseball first baseman who played in Major League Baseball for the California Angels, Kansas City Royals, and Toronto Blue Jays between 1977 and 1985. He had established ...
.
Kansas City Royals
Orta made 438
plate appearances in , his most since 1980. He and
Hal McRae
Harold Abraham McRae (; born July 10, 1945) is a former left fielder in Major League Baseball who played for the Cincinnati Reds (1968, 1970–72) and Kansas City Royals (1973–87). Utilized as a designated hitter for most of his career, Mc ...
formed a very successful lefty/righty
platoon
A platoon is a military unit typically composed of two or more squads, sections, or patrols. Platoon organization varies depending on the country and the branch, but a platoon can be composed of 50 people, although specific platoons may rang ...
at DH with the Royals, as the Royals got a .305 batting average, ten home runs and 81 RBIs out of their DH position for the season. Orta also played some outfield, batting .310 with three home runs and fifteen RBIs in that role. His ninth inning
sacrifice fly
In baseball, a sacrifice fly (sometimes abbreviated to sac fly) is defined by Rule 9.08(d):
"Score a sacrifice fly when, before two are out, the batter hits a ball in flight handled by an outfielder or an infielder running in the outfield in fair o ...
on September 12 defeated the
Minnesota Twins
The Minnesota Twins are an American professional baseball team based in Minneapolis. The Twins compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central Division. The team is named after the Twin Cities area w ...
to move the Royals into a first place tie in the A.L. West. The race came down to the wire between the Royals, Twins and
California Angels
The Los Angeles Angels are an American professional baseball team based in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. The Angels compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West division. Since 1966, the team ...
with the Royals eventually winning the division by three games over each team. Orta may have been on the receiving end of some gamesmanship on September 20 when Angels
catcher
Catcher is a position in baseball and softball. When a batter takes their turn to hit, the catcher crouches behind home plate, in front of the ( home) umpire, and receives the ball from the pitcher. In addition to this primary duty, the cat ...
Bob Boone accused Orta of using a
corked bat after his first
at-bat
In baseball, an at bat (AB) or time at bat is a batter's turn batting against a pitcher. An at bat is different from a plate appearance. A batter is credited with a plate appearance regardless of what happens during their turn at bat, but a batt ...
of the game. His bat was confiscated by umpire
Jim McKean
James Gilbert McKean (May 26, 1945 – January 24, 2019) was a Canadian umpire in Major League Baseball (MLB) who worked in the American League (AL) from 1974 to 1999, and in both major leagues in 2000 and 2001. He umpired in the World Series i ...
, and the accusation turned out to be fruitless. Orta led off the fifth with a
single with a different bat.
Orta's first trip to the post-season did not go as well as he may have hoped. The Royals were swept by the
Detroit Tigers
The Detroit Tigers are an American professional baseball team based in Detroit. The Tigers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the American League (AL) Central division. One of the AL's eight charter franchises, the club was f ...
in the
1984 American League Championship Series
The 1984 American League Championship Series matched the East Division champion Detroit Tigers against the West Division champion Kansas City Royals. The Tigers took the series in a three-game sweep to advance to the 1984 World Series against th ...
. Orta went one-for-ten with a triple and an RBI.
The Royals stuck with the platoon of McRae and Orta at DH in . Though the DH position's batting average dropped to .256, they hit nineteen home runs while driving in 114
runs. The 1985 season once again came down to the wire between the Royals and Angels. The Royals went on an eight-game winning streak at the start of September to jump into first place in the A.L. West for the first time on September 6. They took first place for good when they took three of four games with the Angels in Kansas City toward the end of the season to head to the post-season for the second year in a row.
1985 World Series
Orta was held hitless in five at-bats in the
1985 American League Championship Series against the Toronto Blue Jays. At-bats were hard to come by in the World Series against the
St. Louis Cardinals
The St. Louis Cardinals are an American professional baseball team based in St. Louis. The Cardinals compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) Central division. Since the 2006 season, the Cardinals ha ...
, as it was played under
National League
The National League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the National League (NL), is the older of two leagues constituting Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada, and the world's oldest extant professional team s ...
rules without the DH in . Orta appeared in games one and two as a pinch hitter, flying
out
Out may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media
Films
* ''Out'' (1957 film), a documentary short about the Hungarian Revolution of 1956
* ''Out'' (1982 film), an American film directed by Eli Hollander
* ''Out'' (2002 film), a Japanese film ba ...
to center each time. The Royals lost both of the first two games held in
Kansas City
The Kansas City metropolitan area is a bi-state metropolitan area anchored by Kansas City, Missouri. Its 14 counties straddle the border between the U.S. states of Missouri (9 counties) and Kansas (5 counties). With and a population of more th ...
, but surprisingly, took two out of three in
St. Louis to return home in a two games to three hole.
Game six was a pitchers' duel between the Royals'
Charlie Leibrandt
Charles Louis Leibrandt, Jr. (; born October 4, 1956) is a former Major League Baseball pitcher who played from 1979 to 1993 for the Cincinnati Reds, Kansas City Royals, Atlanta Braves, and Texas Rangers. Leibrandt was a productive pitcher throu ...
and St. Louis'
Danny Cox. Each held the opposing team scoreless through seven innings before the Cards finally broke through for a run in the eighth. Orta was called upon to pinch hit for
Pat Sheridan
Patrick Arthur Sheridan (born December 4, 1957) is an American former professional baseball player who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for four different teams, primarily as an outfielder, between 1981 and 1991.
Biography
Sheridan grew up i ...
leading off the ninth inning with the Royals down 1-0. He hit a slow roller Cardinal
first baseman
A first baseman, abbreviated 1B, is the player on a baseball or softball team who fields the area nearest first base, the first of four bases a baserunner must touch in succession to score a run. The first baseman is responsible for the majori ...
Jack Clark fielded, and flipped to pitcher
Todd Worrell covering first. First base umpire
Don Denkinger
Donald Anton Denkinger (; born August 28, 1936) is a former Major League Baseball umpire who worked in the American League from 1969 to 1998. Denkinger wore uniform number 11, when the AL adopted uniform numbers in 1980. He is best remembered ...
called Orta safe, but television replays showed that Worrell beat him to the bag.
The following batter,
Steve Balboni, hit a pop foul that ended up falling between Clark and
catcher
Catcher is a position in baseball and softball. When a batter takes their turn to hit, the catcher crouches behind home plate, in front of the ( home) umpire, and receives the ball from the pitcher. In addition to this primary duty, the cat ...
Darrell Porter
Darrell Ray Porter (January 17, 1952 – August 5, 2002) was an American professional baseball catcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) from 1971 to 1987 for the Milwaukee Brewers, Kansas City Royals, St. Louis Cardinals, and Texas Range ...
. Given new life, Balboni hit a single to left on the very next pitch, moving Orta to second base. With
Onix Concepción pinch running for Balboni,
Jim Sundberg
James Howard Sundberg (born May 18, 1951) is an American former professional baseball player, television sports analyst and executive. He played in Major League Baseball as a catcher from 1974 to 1989. A three-time All-Star player, Sundberg esta ...
followed with an unsuccessful
sacrifice bunt
In baseball, a sacrifice bunt (also called a sacrifice hit) is a batter's act of deliberately bunting the ball, before there are two outs, in a manner that allows a baserunner to advance to another base. The batter is almost always put out, and ...
in which Orta was thrown out at third. The next batter was Hal McRae, pinch hitting for
Buddy Biancalana. After Porter allowed a passed ball that allowed both runners to move up a base, McRae was intentionally walked to load the bases.
Dane Iorg
Dane Charles Iorg ( ; born May 11, 1950) is an American former professional baseball first baseman and outfielder, who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) from (–) for four teams, including eight seasons spent with the St. Louis Cardinals ...
, pinch hitting for
Dan Quisenberry
Daniel Raymond "Quiz" Quisenberry (; February 7, 1953 – September 30, 1998) was an American right-handed relief pitcher in Major League Baseball who played primarily for the Kansas City Royals. Notable for his submarine-style pitching delivery ...
, singled to right field driving in two runs, and giving Kansas City a 2–1 win. The only out recorded by the Cardinals in the inning was Orta at third.
The win shifted momentum of the Series to the Royals, who won the Series the next night on
Bret Saberhagen
Bret William Saberhagen (; born April 11, 1964) is an American former professional baseball right-handed starting pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Kansas City Royals, New York Mets, Colorado Rockies, and Boston Red Sox fro ...
's 11–0 shutout. Years of debate between Cardinals' and Royals' fans have followed over what might have happened if Orta had been put out at first instead of third.
Retirement
Orta shared DH duties with Hal McRae in as well. In , with rookie
Kevin Seitzer
Kevin Lee Seitzer (; born March 26, 1962) is an American former third baseman in Major League Baseball (MLB) with the Kansas City Royals, Milwaukee Brewers, Oakland Athletics, and Cleveland Indians. He is currently the hitting coach for the Atlan ...
ready to assume a starting job at third base,
Hall of Fame
A hall, wall, or walk of fame is a list of individuals, achievements, or other entities, usually chosen by a group of electors, to mark their excellence or fame in their field. In some cases, these halls of fame consist of actual halls or muse ...
r
George Brett
George Howard Brett (born May 15, 1953) is an American former professional baseball player who played all of his 21 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a third baseman for the Kansas City Royals.
Brett's 3,154 career hits are second- ...
was shifted to first base, and Balboni became the Royals' DH. Orta was released June 17, followed by McRae on July 21.
Career statistics
In 1755 games over 16 seasons, Orta posted a .278
batting average (1619-for-5829) with 733
runs, 267
doubles
Men's doubles, Women's doubles or Mixed doubles are sports having two players per side, including;
* Beach volleyball
* Doubles badminton
* Doubles curling
* Footvolley
* Doubles pickleball
* Doubles squash
* Doubles table tennis
* Doubles te ...
, 63
triples, 130
home runs
In baseball, a home run (abbreviated HR) is scored when the ball is hit in such a way that the batter is able to circle the bases and reach home plate safely in one play without any errors being committed by the defensive team. A home run i ...
, 745
RBI, 79
stolen bases
In baseball, a stolen base occurs when a runner advances to a base to which they are not entitled and the official scorer rules that the advance should be credited to the action of the runner. The umpires determine whether the runner is safe or ...
, 500
bases on balls
A base on balls (BB), also known as a walk, occurs in baseball when a batter receives four pitches that the umpire calls '' balls'', and is in turn awarded first base without the possibility of being called out. The base on balls is defined in Sec ...
, .334
on-base percentage
In baseball statistics, on-base percentage (OBP) measures how frequently a batter reaches base. An official Major League Baseball (MLB) statistic since 1984, it is sometimes referred to as on-base average (OBA), as it is rarely presented as a ...
and .412
slugging percentage
In baseball statistics, slugging percentage (SLG) is a measure of the batting productivity of a hitter. It is calculated as total bases divided by at bats, through the following formula, where ''AB'' is the number of at bats for a given player, ...
. He finished his career with a .973
fielding percentage
In baseball statistics, fielding percentage, also known as fielding average, is a measure that reflects the percentage of times a defensive player properly handles a batted or thrown ball. It is calculated by the sum of putouts and assists, di ...
. In 8 postseason games, he hit only .111 (2-for-18) with 1 run, 1 triple and 1 RBI.
Personal life
Orta was born in
Mazatlán
Mazatlán () is a city in the Mexican state of Sinaloa. The city serves as the municipal seat for the surrounding '' municipio'', known as the Mazatlán Municipality. It is located at on the Pacific coast, across from the southernmost tip ...
from
Afro-Cuban parents. His father was Pedro Orta, former baseball player and a legend of Cuban baseball and Mexican League.
See also
*
Afro-Mexicans
Afro-Mexicans ( es, afromexicanos), also known as Black Mexicans ( es, mexicanos negros), are Mexicans who have heritage from sub-Saharan Africa and identify as such. As a single population, Afro-Mexicans include individuals descended from both f ...
*
List of Major League Baseball single-game hits leaders
References
External links
{{DEFAULTSORT:Orta, Jorge
1950 births
Living people
Major League Baseball second basemen
Major League Baseball designated hitters
Chicago White Sox players
Kansas City Royals players
Toronto Blue Jays players
Los Angeles Dodgers players
Cleveland Indians players
American League All-Stars
Major League Baseball players from Mexico
Mexican Baseball Hall of Fame inductees
People from Mazatlán
Baseball players from Sinaloa
Minor league baseball managers
Fresnillo Mineros players
Knoxville Sox players
Mexican people of Cuban descent
Tuneros de San Luis Potosí players
Mexicali Aguilas players
Expatriate baseball players in Italy
Mexican expatriate sportspeople in Italy
Parma Baseball Club players
Mexican expatriate baseball players in the United States