Warren Randall Morris (born January 11, 1974) is an American former

college A college (Latin: ''collegium'') is an educational institution or a constituent part of one. A college may be a degree-awarding tertiary educational institution, a part of a collegiate or federal university, an institution offering ...

and

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 (AL), ...

player. He is most remembered for his two-out, 9th inning

walk-off home run In baseball, a walk-off home run is a home run that ends the game. For a home run to end the game, it must be hit in the bottom of the final inning of the game and generate enough runs to exceed the opponent's score. Because the opponent will not ...

that won the

1996 College World Series The 1996 NCAA Division I baseball tournament was played at the end of the 1996 NCAA Division I baseball season to determine the national champion of college baseball. The tournament concluded with eight teams competing in the College World Series ...

for the

Louisiana State University Louisiana State University (officially Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College, commonly referred to as LSU) is a public land-grant research university in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. The university was founded in 1860 nea ...

Tigers The tiger (''Panthera tigris'') is the largest living cat species and a member of the genus ''Panthera''. It is most recognisable for its dark vertical stripes on orange fur with a white underside. An apex predator, it primarily preys on un ...

Early life

Morris grew up in

Alexandria, Louisiana Alexandria is the ninth-largest city in the state of Louisiana and is the parish seat of Rapides Parish, Louisiana, United States. It lies on the south bank of the Red River in almost the exact geographic center of the state. It is the prin ...

and graduated from Bolton High School. He played baseball, basketball and cross country at Bolton High.

College career

Morris joined the LSU

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding tea ...

team in . He did not receive an athletic

scholarship A scholarship is a form of financial aid awarded to students for further education. Generally, scholarships are awarded based on a set of criteria such as academic merit, diversity and inclusion, athletic skill, and financial need. Scholarsh ...

to play baseball, but made the team while on academic scholarship as a second baseman. He did not play at second base in his first season at LSU, because the Tigers already had All-American

Todd Walker Todd Arthur Walker (born May 25, 1973) is a former professional baseball infielder who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) from 1996 to 2007. Listed at and , he batted left-handed and threw right-handed. Walker played college baseball at Louis ...

at the position. Morris did see action at other positions. Walker went pro after the season, and Morris became the team's starting second baseman from to . His best season at LSU came in 1995. He

hit Hit means to strike someone or something. Hit or HIT may also refer to: Arts, entertainment and media Fictional entities * Hit, a fictional character from '' Dragon Ball Super'' * Homicide International Trust, or HIT, a fictional organization ...

.369 with 8

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 ...

s, 50 RBI, and 18

stolen base 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 ...

s. LSU was expecting big things from Morris in 1996, but a broken hamate bone kept him out of the lineup for 42 games that season. He did rejoin the team in time for the 1996 postseason, which would include the

College World Series The College World Series (CWS), officially the NCAA Men's College World Series (MCWS), is an annual baseball tournament held in June in Omaha, Nebraska. The MCWS is the culmination of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Divisi ...

. However, the wrist injury still lingered. He could not hit for power, and was placed at the bottom of the lineup.

College World Series hero

LSU reached the championship game of the College World Series in 1996, and was trailing

Miami Miami ( ), officially the City of Miami, known as "the 305", "The Magic City", and "Gateway to the Americas", is a East Coast of the United States, coastal metropolis and the County seat, county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade C ...

8–7 in the game with two outs in the bottom of the ninth inning. Morris came up to the plate with one runner on base, and hit Miami

relief pitcher In baseball and softball, a relief pitcher or reliever is a pitcher who enters the game after the starting pitcher is removed because of fatigue (medical), fatigue, ineffectiveness, injury, or ejection (sports), ejection, or for other strategic ...

Robbie Morrison Robbie Morrison is a Scottish comic book writer known for his work in the weekly anthology '' 2000 AD'', where he co-created the long-running serial ''Nikolai Dante'' with artist Simon Fraser. Career Morrison began his career in '' 2000 ADs ...

's first pitch just inches over the

right field 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 the ...

fence. The walk-off home run won the game for the Tigers 9–8. It was his only home run of the season, and is the only walk-off championship-winning home run in College World Series history. In addition, it is the only 2-out, ninth inning, walk-off home run in a championship of any collegiate or professional level. The home run also won Morris the 1997

Showstopper of the Year ESPY Award The Showstopper of the Year ESPY Award was presented annually from 1993 to 1999. List of winners See also * Best Moment ESPY Award *Best Play ESPY Award *GMC Professional Grade Play ESPY Award GMC may refer to: Government India * Gandhinagar ...

Major League Baseball career

Morris was drafted in the fifth round of the 1996 Major League Baseball Draft by the Texas Rangers as a second baseman. He started out in the Rangers' farm system, but was later traded to the

Pittsburgh Pirates The Pittsburgh Pirates are an American professional baseball team based in Pittsburgh. The Pirates compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) Central division. Founded as part of the American Associati ...

along with

Todd Van Poppel Todd Matthew Van Poppel (born December 9, 1971) is a former Major League Baseball pitcher who played for the Oakland Athletics (, –), Detroit Tigers (1996), Texas Rangers (, –), Pittsburgh Pirates (1998), Chicago Cubs (–), and Cincinnati R ...

for

starting pitcher In baseball (hardball or softball), a starting pitcher or starter is the first pitcher in the game for each team. A pitcher is credited with a game started if they throw the first pitch to the opponent's first batter of a game. Starting pit ...

Esteban Loaiza Esteban Antonio Loaiza Veyna o-EYE-sa(born December 31, 1971) is a Mexican retired professional baseball pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball for the Pittsburgh Pirates, Texas Rangers, Toronto Blue Jays, Chicago White Sox, New York Ya ...

. He made his major league debut in , going from non-roster invitee in

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 Schedule (workplace), roster and position spo ...

to starting second baseman early in the season. Morris had a promising rookie season with the Pirates, hitting .288 with 15 home runs and 73 RBI, while placing third in

National League Rookie of the Year In Major League Baseball, the Rookie of the Year Award is given annually to two outstanding rookie players, one each for the American League (AL) and National League (NL), as voted on by the Baseball Writers' Association of America (BBWAA). The aw ...

voting. He also made the 1999 Topps All-Star Rookie Roster at second base. It was his best season as a pro. However, the Pirates released him before the season. Morris was the starting second baseman for 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 ...

, following the release of

Damion Easley Jacinto Damion Easley (born November 11, 1969) is an American former professional baseball player who is currently an assistant hitting coach for the Arizona Diamondbacks of Major League Baseball (MLB). While primarily a second baseman throughou ...

. For the rest of his career, he was a journeyman

infielder An infielder is a baseball player stationed at one of four defensive "infield" positions on the baseball field. Standard arrangement of positions In a game of baseball, two teams of nine players take turns playing offensive and defensive roles. ...

in the minor leagues. He announced his retirement from baseball in .

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Morris, Warren 1974 births Living people Akron Aeros players American expatriate baseball players in Canada Baseball players at the 1996 Summer Olympics Baseball players from Louisiana Edmonton Trappers players Carolina Mudcats players Charlotte Rangers players Detroit Tigers players LSU Tigers baseball players Major League Baseball second basemen Medalists at the 1996 Summer Olympics Memphis Redbirds players Minnesota Twins players Nashville Sounds players Oklahoma City 89ers players Olympic bronze medalists for the United States in baseball Pawtucket Red Sox players Pittsburgh Pirates players Sportspeople from Alexandria, Louisiana Toledo Mud Hens players Tulsa Drillers players