Franklin Rafael Gutiérrez (born February 21, 1983), nicknamed "Guti", is a Venezuelan former professional baseball outfielder. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Cleveland Indians, Seattle Mariners and Los Angeles Dodgers. While primarily a

center fielder A center fielder, abbreviated CF, is the outfielder in baseball who plays defense in center field – the baseball and softball fielding position between left field and right field. In the numbering system used to record defensive plays, the c ...

throughout his career, Gutiérrez transitioned to

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 ...

for the Mariners in 2016. He is currently a special assignment coach for the Seattle Mariners organization.

Professional career

Cleveland Indians

On November 18, 2000, Gutiérrez was signed by the Los Angeles Dodgers as an amateur free agent.Franklin Gutierrez Stats , Baseball-Reference.com
/ref> On April 3, 2004, Gutiérrez was traded by the Los Angeles Dodgers with a player to be named later ( Andrew Brown) to the Cleveland Indians for Milton Bradley and was assigned to Double-A Akron. He entered the season ranked by ''

Baseball America ''Baseball America'' is a sports enterprise that covers baseball at every level, including MLB, with a particular focus on up-and-coming players in the MiLB, college, high school, and international leagues. It is currently published in the form o ...

'' as the No. 3 prospect in the Los Angeles Dodgers organization and the top

position Position often refers to: * Position (geometry), the spatial location (rather than orientation) of an entity * Position, a job or occupation Position may also refer to: Games and recreation * Position (poker), location relative to the dealer * ...

prospect, possessing five-tool ability. Previously, Los Angeles refused to include Gutiérrez in a deal over the winter that would have landed the Dodgers first baseman Richie Sexson. In 2005, Gutiérrez posted a .261 batting average and 42 RBI for Akron, and hit .254 with seven RBI in 19 games with Triple-A Buffalo (then affiliated with the Indians). Between his two minor league stops, he stole 16 bases in 22 attempts. He was among the players that the Indians called up when major league rosters expanded on August 31. In 2006 after batting .278 in 90 games for Triple-A Buffalo, Gutiérrez played 43 games in the majors after being called up on June 16 and he stayed in the majors the rest of the season. In 2007, he once again began the season in Triple-A Buffalo, but after batting .341, he was called up for good on May 6. On May 27, 2008, Gutiérrez hit his first career grand slam in an 8-2 win over the Chicago White Sox.

Seattle Mariners

On December 10, 2008, Gutiérrez was traded to the Seattle Mariners as part of a three-team trade. Mariners' general manager Jack Zduriencik noted that the trade would not have gone through had Gutiérrez not been included in the trade. In 2008, Gutiérrez ranked 3rd among qualifying big league outfielders in UZR, an all-inclusive fielding statistic. Gutiérrez won a

Fielding Bible Award A Fielding Bible Award recognizes the best defensive player for each fielding position in Major League Baseball (MLB) based on statistical analysis. John Dewan and Baseball Info Solutions conduct the annual selection process, which commenced in 2 ...

as the top fielding right fielder in MLB. Dave Niehaus called Gutiérrez "Death to Flying Things" after a diving catch, a nickname that previously belonged to Bob Ferguson. 001U1253 Franklin Gutiérrez (cropped)

In 2009, Gutiérrez had the most errors by a major league center fielder (7), due in part to the significant number of batted balls that he gets to. He led all of Major League Baseball in UZR and UZR/150, and was 6th in the AL in wins above replacement. Gutiérrez won another

as the top fielding center fielder in MLB. He batted .283/.339/.425, and ranked second in the American League with 13 sacrifice bunts.Franklin Gutierrez Stats, Fantasy & News , MLB.com
/ref> On January 6, 2010, it was reported that Gutiérrez and the Mariners were working on a 4-year contract extension for $20.5 million with a team option for a fifth year. In 2010, Gutiérrez was awarded his first

Gold Glove The Rawlings Gold Glove Award, usually referred to as simply the Gold Glove, is the award given annually to the Major League Baseball (MLB) players judged to have exhibited superior individual fielding performances at each fielding position in bo ...

. He finished the season with a 1.000 fielding average in 146 games as an outfielder. He also came in second place for Defensive Player of the Year on MLB.com awards. He batted .245/.303/.363. In 2011, in 92 games he batted .224/.261/.273 with one home run. In 2012, in 40 games he batted .260/.309/.420 with 4 home runs. Franklin Gutierrez hitting HR

On April 22, 2013, Gutiérrez spent 60 days on the disabled list due to hamstring injuries (trying to catch a ball), and was activated on June 22 against the

Oakland Athletics 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 ...

, but injured his hamstring again after six innings. On February 13, 2014, he informed the team that he would not be able to play during the 2014 season due to ankylosing spondylitis and irritable bowel syndrome. On January 26, 2015, the Mariners re-signed Gutiérrez to a minor-league deal with a spring training invite. On June 24, he was recalled from AAA Tacoma to re-join the Major League club. On July 21, 2015, he hit a pinch-hit grand slam against 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 ...

Los Angeles Dodgers

On February 20, 2017, the Los Angeles Dodgers signed Gutiérrez to a one-year, $2.6 million, contract. He played in 35 games for the Dodgers, primarily as a pinch hitter, and had 13 hits in 56 at-bats (.232 average) with one homer and eight RBI. His season was shut down for good in June because of a recurrence of ankylosing spondylitis, which had caused him to also miss the 2014 season. He elected free agency on November 2.

Coaching career

On January 27, 2021, it was announced that Gutiérrez had joined the Seattle Mariners organization as a special assignment coach.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Gutiérrez, Franklin 1983 births Living people Akron Aeros players Buffalo Bisons (minor league) players Cleveland Indians players Gold Glove Award winners Gulf Coast Dodgers players Jacksonville Suns players Las Vegas 51s players Leones del Caracas players Los Angeles Dodgers players Major League Baseball outfielders Major League Baseball players from Venezuela People from Caracas Rancho Cucamonga Quakes players Seattle Mariners players South Georgia Waves players Tacoma Rainiers players Vero Beach Dodgers players Venezuelan expatriate baseball players in the United States