Marquis Grissom

Marquis Deon Grissom (born April 17, 1967) is an American former professional baseball center fielder. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Montreal Expos, Atlanta Braves, Cleveland Indians, Milwaukee Brewers, Los Angeles Dodgers, and San Francisco Giants between 1989 and 2005.

Early life and amateur career

Grissom was born in Atlanta, Georgia, the second-youngest of sixteen children of Marion and Julia Grissom. Grissom was one of fifteen children who survived infancy. He grew up in Red Oak, Georgia, in a house which his father built from scratch while working on the assembly line at the Atlanta Assembly, a Ford plant. Grissom could not afford to play organized baseball in early childhood. When Grissom was 8 or 10 years old, he struck a police officer's Cadillac with a rock thrown from a great distance. The officer, who was impressed by the throw, agreed not to charge Grissom if later he would join his youth baseball team.

Grissom attended Lakeshore High School in College Park, Georgia, just south of Atlanta. He was offered college scholarships in baseball, football and track and field. Grissom was drafted out of high school by the Cincinnati Reds and offered a $17,000 signing bonus but was convinced by his parents and high school coach to instead play college baseball.

Grissom played baseball at Florida A&M University as a pitcher and outfielder. He played two seasons with the Rattlers in 1987 and 1988 during which time he posted a .408 batting average. In 1988, he scored more runs per game and hit more triples per game than any other player in Division I. He was named the Most Outstanding Player of that season's Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference baseball tournament after pitching two complete games and maintaining a .643 batting average. He was inducted into the MEAC Hall of Fame in 2014.

Baseball career

Montreal Expos

In 1988, the Montreal Expos selected Grissom with the 76th overall pick in the amateur draft, as part of that draft's third round. He had been considered a prospect as both a pitcher and an outfielder, but the Expos decided to have him abandon the mound and work solely as a position player. He made his professional debut with the Jamestown Expos of the New York–Penn League that fall and advanced quickly through the system, first appearing in the majors on August 22, 1989. He showed steady improvement for the next few seasons, gradually developing into a star as Montreal's leadoff hitter and center fielder. He led the National League in stolen bases in 1991 and 1992, was a member of the NL All-Star team in 1993 and 1994, and won four consecutive Gold Gloves, the first coming in 1993.

Against the Los Angeles Dodgers on July 28, 1991, Grissom caught Chris Gwynn's fly ball for the final out of Dennis Martínez's perfect game.

Atlanta Braves

The Expos enjoyed success on the field, but a strike ended the 1994 season before the playoffs, and after baseball resumed the team was forced to trade many of their stars for financial reasons. In April 1995, the Expos traded Grissom to the Atlanta Braves, in exchange for pitcher Esteban Yan and outfielders Roberto Kelly and Tony Tarasco. The Braves were just beginning a run of dominance in the NL East, and in his first season in Atlanta, they won the World Series with Marquis (the only player on that Atlanta Braves team who actually was born and raised in Atlanta) securing the final out by catching a fly ball by Carlos Baerga. They returned to the fall classic the next season, but failed to defend their title against the New York Yankees.

Cleveland Indians

Teams' financial motivations continued to affect the course of Grissom's career, and in March 1997, he was involved in a blockbuster trade with the Cleveland Indians. Hoping to save money that had been committed to long-term contracts, Atlanta traded Grissom and two-time All-Star David Justice to the Indians, receiving in return three-time All-Star Kenny Lofton and setup man Alan Embree. The deal worked out well for Cleveland, as the team went all the way to the World Series, ultimately losing to the Florida Marlins in seven games. Grissom performed exceptionally well in that postseason, winning the MVP award in the ALCS, and completing a 15-game World Series consecutive game hitting streak spanning 3 World Series, the 2nd longest of all time next to Hank Bauer of the New York Yankees.

Later career

That offseason, however, the Indians re-signed Lofton as a free agent, subsequently trading Grissom and pitcher Jeff Juden to the Milwaukee Brewers for pitchers Ben McDonald, Ron Villone, and Mike Fetters. Grissom's production declined as he spent three seasons with the struggling club, and a trade in the spring of 2001 made him a Los Angeles Dodger, sending Devon White to the Brewers in return. Grissom continued to struggle that year, but he enjoyed a strong bounce-back season as a part-time player in 2002. On September 16, 2002, the Dodgers had a crucial game against the San Francisco Giants. In the top of the 9th inning, he robbed Rich Aurilia of a potential game-tying home run to protect the 7–6 victory. The Giants went on to make the playoffs and the Dodgers did not. As a free agent he subsequently attracted the attention of the San Francisco Giants, who had just been defeated in the World Series. San Francisco signed Grissom, and he enjoyed two more productive seasons as their starting center fielder. The Giants were successful as well, winning the NL West in 2003 and missing the wild card by one game in 2004. Marquis won the 2003 Willie Mac Award for his spirit and leadership. On April 8, 2004, Grissom hit the first home run ever at San Diego's Petco Park. Grissom's production dipped again in 2005, and in a season of struggles by the Giants, he was released. On January 3, 2006, the Chicago Cubs signed him to a minor league contract and invited him to spring training as a non-roster player.

Retirement

On March 28, 2006, Grissom retired after a 17-year career. He told ''The Atlanta Journal-Constitution'' that knew it was time for him to retire when he began spending more time preparing for games than playing in the games themselves.

In 2011, Grissom received four votes in the Baseball Hall of Fame balloting.

Coaching career

Following his retirement, Grissom became a youth baseball coach. Among other Atlanta-area prospects, Grissom worked with family friend Michael Harris II from his youth through his early professional career. When Harris won the 2022 National League Rookie of the Year Award, he dedicated it to Grissom.

Grissom was hired to become the Washington Nationals first base coach for the 2009 season on October 24, 2008. In November 2009, he was replaced on the coaching staff by Dan Radison.

Personal life

As of 2015, Grissom lived with his wife, Sharron, in Fayetteville and Sandy Springs, Georgia. He has five children, Micah, D'monte, Tiana, Marquis, Jr. and Gabriella. Marquis Jr. is a pitcher in the Washington Nationals organization, having been drafted out of Georgia Tech in the 2022 MLB Draft. During his playing career, Grissom bought houses for his parents and every one of his fourteen siblings.

One year after retiring, Grissom founded the Marquis Grissom Baseball Association, a nonprofit which helps underprivileged youths in the Atlanta area play baseball.

Grissom's younger brother, Antonio, played in the farm systems of the Expos and Philadelphia Phillies.

See also

*List of Major League Baseball career home run leaders
*List of Major League Baseball career hits leaders
*List of Major League Baseball career runs scored leaders
*List of Major League Baseball annual stolen base leaders
*List of Major League Baseball career stolen bases leaders

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Grissom, Marquis
1967 births
Living people
African-American baseball coaches
African-American baseball players
American expatriate baseball players in Canada
American League Championship Series MVPs
Atlanta Braves players
Baseball coaches from Georgia (U.S. state)
Baseball players from Atlanta
Cleveland Indians players
Florida A&M Rattlers baseball players
Fresno Grizzlies players
Gold Glove Award winners
Indianapolis Indians players
Jacksonville Expos players
Jamestown Expos players
Los Angeles Dodgers players
Major League Baseball center fielders
Major League Baseball first base coaches
Milwaukee Brewers players
Montreal Expos players
National League All-Stars
National League stolen base champions
San Francisco Giants players
Sportspeople from College Park, Georgia
Washington Nationals coaches
21st-century African-American people
20th-century African-American sportspeople