Mark Loretta #8

Mark Loretta...he and his wife, Hilary, reside in San Diego, CA with their son Frankie, and daughter, Lucy...the couple volunteers with the ALS Association and Children's Hospital of San Diego...is a 1989 graduate of St. Francis High School in La Ca?ada, CA, where he played baseball and basketball...served as captain of the baseball team during his senior season and was a teammate of felloe nig leaguer Gregg Zaun... attended Northwestern University and earned a business degree (organizational studies) in 1993...named the recipient of the 2007 Hutch Award, given annually by the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center in honor of the late ballplayer who died of cancer at the age of 45... the award is presented to a Major League Baseball player who "best exemplifies Hutch's fighting spirit and competitive desire"...is an avid watch collector, a hobby he acquired with former Brewers teammate Jeromy Burnitz...growing up in Southern California, Loretta's first job was as a child actor in television commercials...at the age of nine, he appeared in a spot for Nature Valley Granola Bars...practices hitting by using machines firing tennis balls at up to 150 miles per hour, learning to read the colored numbers on the ball as they speed by to help his pitch recognition...is part-owner of a clothing company called Muze (muzeclothing.com) that markets, among other things, t-shirts with movie slogans on them...took part in the 2009 Dodgers Caravan that visited Childrens Hospital Los Angeles and attended the "Price is Right."

2008

Hit .280 (73-for-261) with four homers and 38 RBI in 101 games with Houston in 2008...Was tied for second on the club with Carlos Lee with a .330 batting average (32-for-97) against left-handed pitchers...trailed only Ty Wigginton (.340) in that category...recorded 12 of his 15 doubles against left-handed pitching...Ranked fourth in the Majors in pinch-hit batting average, hitting .367 (11-for-30)...led all Major League pinch-hitters in slugging percentage (.633), ranked tied for first in game-winning RBI (3) and ranked seventh in on-base percentage (.429) among pinchhitters...Started two games at first base, 41 at second, 12 at third, and four at shortstop...Hit .308 (57-for-185) from May 12 through the end of the season...prior to that date, had compiled a .211 batting average (16-for-76) through his first 27 games...Hit .357 (10-for-28) with runners in scoring position and two outs...Recorded his 300th career double on Sept. 6 at Colorado...recorded his 600th career RBI on Aug. 18 at Milwaukee...Hit his second career grand slam, a pinch-hit blast, on Aug. 1 vs. the Mets...the home run marked his fourth-career pinch-hit home run and second on the season (June 12 vs. MIL)...the pinch-hit grand slam was the 10th in Astros' history...Had three doubles on July 5 at Atlanta, which tied his career high and marked the fifth time he had hit three doubles in a contest...Belted a pinch-hit home run on June 12 vs. Milwaukee off Guillermo Mota

2007

The 2006 AL All-Star completed his first full season with the Astros and 13th MLB season in 2007...hit .287 (132x460) in 133 games for Houston in 2007 with four home runs and 41 RBI and has hit .280 or better in 11 consecutive seasons since 1997...owns 1,598 career hits, two shy of 1,600 for his career...reached the 70 career home run mark with a walk-off, two-run home run in the ninth inning on June 29...it marked his second career walk-off home run (also April 17, 2006) and the second walk-off homer in as many nights for the Astros...struck out the second-fewest amount of times per plate appearance in the NL (1 per 12.46 PA), trailing only Juan Pierre (19.70)...a single on Sept. 30 extended his hitting streak to 15 games, the second-longest active streak in the NL...the streak was the longest for Houston in 2007 and the second-longest for the club since 2005, trailing only Willy Taveras' franchise-record, 30-game hitting streak in 2006...his 15-game streak was tied for the second-longest of his career (16 from May 20-June 9, 2001; 15 from May 15-31, 2006)...started 111 games this season at five different positions (18-1B, 18-2B, 17-3B, 58-SS)...72 games overall at shortstop were his most at the position since playing 90 games in 2000 with MIL, including 88 starts at shortstop...posted a 1.000 fielding percentage at second base last season, committing no errors and recording 50 assists in 49 games...owned a .975 fielding percentage with only six errors in 72 games as a shortstop...tied for sixth in the NL with four four-hit games this season...has 22 career games with four-or-more hits, including a career-high five hits four times...hit .344 (22x64) with nine RBI in September and hit safely in 22 of his last 25 games...on the road, he hit .286 (66x231)...homered in consecutive games (Sept. 12-13) for the first time since Aug. 18-20, 2004...posted a .317 (77x243) average in the first half of the season, including 16 doubles and 29 RBI...drove in 16 runs in June and finished the month with a .314 (33x105) average...4x5 as starting shortstop on June 18, his fourth four-hit game of the season...recorded his third four-hit game of the year and his 1,500th career hit on May 31...hit safely in 11 consecutive starts from May 5-26 and logged a seven-game hit streak from May 19-26 (.370, 10x27)...started at first base on May 23 at SF, his first start at the position in 2007, giving him four starts at four different infield positions in four consecutive games (SS-5/20, 3B-5/21, 2B-5/22, 1B-23)...according to the Elias Sports Bureau, he was the first player to start four different infield positions in four days since Tony Graffanino for the Royals from June 22-26, 2006. ..hit .333 (22x66) during May...posted a career-best average for April with .375 (15x40)...had five consecutive hits from April 25 (15th)-April 26 (9th) and reached base in six consecutive plate appearances during that span.

2006

Played in a career-high 155 games and hit .285 (181x635), marking his 10th consecutive season with a mark of .280 or better...led the Red Sox in games played and was one of only 20 American Leaguers to reach 155 games...set the Red Sox club single-season record for fielding percentage at second base, turning in a mark of .994...surpassed Bobby Doerr's .993 mark in 1948...his fielding percentage ranked second in the American League (Mark Ellis, .997)...committed only four errors in 639 total chances...turned 99 double plays, second to only Kansas City's Mark Grudzielanek (111) among Major League second baseman...posted a pair of errorless streaks: a 63-game run from July 14 through the end of the season (349 total chances combined at first and second base) and a 44-game run from April 17-June 9 (exclusively at second base with 184 chances)...tied for 11th in the AL with 181 hits...scored 75 runs with 33 doubles, five home runs and 59 RBI...was the AL's starting second baseman at the All-Star Game in Pittsburgh on July 11...batted eighth and went 0x2...was his second All-Star appearance, his first as a starter...became the first Boston second baseman to be elected to start since fan voting resumed in 1970, and the first Sox second baseman to start the All-Star Game since Felix Mantilla in 1965...slugged a twoout, two-run walk-off home run in the bottom of the ninth on April 17 vs. Seattle, giving the Red Sox a 7-6 win...was the first walk-off home run of his career at any level, his first home run with Boston and his first home run at Fenway Park...became the 11th player in Red Sox history to collect a walk-off homer as his first Red Sox homer...delivered a walk-off win with a two-out, two-run double in the ninth on Aug. 2 vs. Cleveland, giving the Sox a 6-5 victory...had a 15-game hitting streak from May 15-31, one game short of his career high set in 2001 with Milwaukee...also had a 13-gamer from June 16-30...was the only Boston player with multiple double-digit hitting streaks in 2006...from May 17 until September 25, his average did not drop below .290, peaking at .321 on June 29...batted .386 in 17 Interleague games against the NL...hit .347 with runners in scoring position and two outs and hit .385 with the bases loaded...finished as the runner-up for AL Player of the Month for May after leading the Majors with a .404 average...followed that effort up with a .330 average in June...led the Red Sox and tied for eighth in the AL with 55 multi-hit games...recorded a season-high four hits on May 11 at Yankee Stadium...went 12x20 in a four-game stretch from May 7-11 to raise his average 52 points from .228 to .280...had five multi-hit efforts in a six-game stretch from June 20-27.

2005

Hit .280 with 16 doubles, three homers, 38 RBI in his third and final season with Padres...limited to 105 games after having surgery in May to repair a ligament in his left thumb...the 105 games were his fewest since seeing action in 102 games with Milwaukee in 2001, a season that also featured an injured left thumb...began the season batting .300 (48x160) in 40 games before straining a ligament in his left thumb May 17 vs. Atlanta...underwent surgery to repair the ligament May 24 and was transferred to the 60-day disabled list on June 10...made a brief three-game rehab appearance at Triple A Portland and returned to action with the Padres on July 19 at New York's Shea Stadium...batted .266 in 65 games the rest of the way, slugging all three of his homers and recording 25 of his 38 RBI upon his return...batted .309 (29x94) with a .426 on-base percentage vs. left-handed pitching and hit .271 (84x310) with a .338 on-base percentage vs. righties...hit .304 (28x92) with runners in scoring position...missed the entire month of June due to injury...hit .309 (21x68) in situations deemed "close and late"...San Diego went 28-14 (.667) in games that Mark scored at least one run and 10-1 (.909) in games in which he scored at least twice...batted .305 (57x187) in 50 home games at Petco Park and .258 (56x217) in 55 games on the road...recorded eight stolen bases, the second-highest total of his career and most since nine swipes in 1998 with Milwaukee...reached base safely in eight straight plate appearances from April 9-10...before being sidelined by injury in May, recorded two stolen bases in a game for the first time in his career on two occasions (April 13 at Chicago (NL) and April 20 vs. Los Angeles) and twice matched his single-game career high with five hits (April 29 vs. Arizona and May 11 at Cincinnati)...had a season-high three RBI April 18 vs. San Francisco and scored a season-high three runs August 4 at Pittsburgh...had 11 hits in a six-game span from September 23-28, including five multi-hit efforts.

2004

Turned in his finest season en route to his first selection to the N.L. All-Star team and his first Silver Slugger Award...was named Padres MVP after setting career highs in nearly every offensive category with a .335 average, 208 hits, 47 doubles, 16 home runs, 76 RBI, 108 runs, a .391 on-base percentage and a .495 slugging percentage...joined Tony Gwynn as just the 2nd Padre to record 200 hits and became the first Padre in club history to crank out 200 hits, score 100 runs and knock in 75 in the same season...established club records by a second baseman in RBI and runs scored...ranked 2nd in the league in hits, 3rd in average, 4th in doubles and 9th in runs scored and at-bats (620)...paced all major league second basemen in batting average, hits, runs scored and on-base percentage...his 47 doubles were 2nd-most in franchise history (Gwynn had 49 in 1997), his 208 hits were fifth-most and his .335 batting average was eighth-best by any Padre all-time...led the majors with 16 sacrifice flies, the 5th-highest total in major league history...led the N.L. with a .368 road average...recorded at least 30 hits in every month of the season, highlighted by a single-month career-high 41 hits in August...began the season with a 9-game hitting streak, batting .361 (13-for-36) en route to a .330 average in April...his April average would end up as his 4th-best mark in a calendar month, as he hit .343 in June, .362 in July and .387 in August (with a .447 on-base percentage and a .642 slugging percentage)...recorded his 1,000th career hit May 5 at Atlanta...posted a season-best 12-game hitting streak June 5-18, batting .400 (20-for-50)...became just the 5th different Padre to record 100 or more hits in the first 81 team games July 2 vs. Kansas City (team game No. 79)...was voted by his fellow players as a reserve on the N.L. All-Star team, becoming just the 2nd Padres second baseman (and first since Roberto Alomar in 1990) to be named to the squad...went 1-for-2 with a single at the Mid-Summer Classic in Houston...hit safely in 23 of 26 games in August, including 15 multi-hit games...went 3-for-4 with a double, 2 homers and a career-high 5 RBI August 6 vs. Pittsburgh...his .387 average in August was third-best in the N.L. behind J.T Snow (.452) and Barry Bonds (.414)...collected his 200th hit September 23 vs. Los Angeles, a first-inning single.

2003

In his first season with San Diego, established then-career highs with 154 games, 589 at-bats, 185 hits, 45 extrabase hits, 13 homers, and 72 RBI, all totals that would be surpassed in 2004...led all NL second basemen with a .990 fielding percentage...batted better than .300 for the third time in his career, his second year in a row (also batted .316 in 1998 with Milwaukee)...among National League second basemen, ranked second in hits and RBI and third in hitting...led the Padres in hitting, at-bats, runs scored (74), total bases (260), RBI, and on-base percentage (.372)...tied with Mark Kotsay for the team lead in doubles...was the only National Leaguer to tally five hitting streaks of 10 games or better, including a seasonhigh 13-game run from August 2-15...batted .417 (20x48) during the 13-game tear...also recorded hitting streaks of 11 games (June 6-21), 10 games, (June 29-July 10), 11 games (August 22-September 3) and 12 games (September 11-22)...hit .346 with runners in scoring position...his .364 average in day games trailed only Milwaukee's Scott Podsednik in the NL... recorded five four-hit games during the season, all in a two-month span: June 8 vs. Minnesota, June 13 at the White Sox, June 29 at Seattle, July 8 vs. Los Angeles, and July 31 at Pittsburgh...recorded a hit in seven straight at bats, one at-bat shy of the club record, June 7-9...stroked a single-game career-high three doubles as part of a 4x6 effort on July 31...hit better than .300 in June (.356), July (.371) and August (.314), a feat he would match in 2004...after beginning the season batting .321 with 25 doubles, four triples, seven homers, and 51 RBI in his first 110 games, was rewarded with a two-year contract extension with an option for the 2006 campaign...with a home run in his final at-bat of the season September 28 vs. Colorado, established a new franchise record for hits (185) by a second baseman, breaking Roberto Alomar's record of 184 set in 1989...was also the first Padre to top 180 hits since Tony Gwynn in 1997 (220).

2002

Combined to hit .304 with 18 doubles, 4 homers and 27 RBI in 107 games between Milwaukee and Houston, including a whopping .424 batting average (28-for-66) with 2 homers and 8 RBI in 21 games upon his trade to Houston on August 31 for a pair of players to be named (lefthander Wayne Franklin and infielder Keith Ginter)...joined the Astros after batting .267 with 2 homers and 19 RBI in 86 games for the Brewers and went on to raise his batting average 37 points in the month of September...hit safely in 14 of his 21 games with the Astros, recording multi-hit efforts in 10 contests...went 4-for-5 September 7 vs. Los Angeles and, 2 days later, drove home the game-winner in the bottom of the 10th inning vs. Colorado on September 9...wrapped up his campaign by batting .480 (24-for-50) in his final 16 games...homered in his final 2 games of the season September 22 at St. Louis and 23 vs. Milwaukee before re-aggravating a left hamstring strain on the 23rd...overall, batted .322 (59-for-183) in 60 games after the All-Star break compared to a .270 (27-for-100) mark in 47 games before the break...hit .309 (29-for-94) vs. lefties and .302 (57-for-189) vs. righties...batted .373 (38-for-102) with runners on base, including a .382 mark (21-for-55) with runners in scoring position...spent the beginning of the campaign as a role player for the Brewers before seeing more playing time starting in June, as he batted .311 from June 12 through the duration of his time in Milwaukee...batted .345 in June and .333 in July...raised his batting average 112 points to .286 from June 12 to July 12, batting .500 (18-for-36) in 12 games during that tear...the stretch included a pair of games with 2 doubles: June 23 vs. Anaheim and July 2 at Pittsburgh...slugged his first career grand slam off Colorado's Denny Stark on July 26.

2001

Batted .289 with 14 doubles, 2 homers and 29 RBI in 102 games, his final full season with the Brewers...campaign was again plagued by injuries, as he tore a ligament in his left thumb in a Spring Training game March 12 vs. Anaheim...underwent surgery on March 15 and began a rehab assignment with Triple-A Indianapolis on May 9...returned to the Brewers May 19 and promptly recorded the longest hitting streak of his career, a 16-game tear from May 20-June 9 with a .359 average (23-for-64)...later posted a 10-game hitting streak from July 18-29 (.410, 16-for-29) and a 12-gamer from August 22-September 3 (.375, 18-for-48)...saw time at second base, shortstop and third base...endured a season-ending left knee injury on September 29 when Colorado's Juan Uribe slid into him at second base, fracturing his left fibula and partially tearing his MCL.

2000

Was Milwaukee's Opening Day shortstop but saw action in just 91 games due to a broken bone in his left foot in early June that sidelined him until mid-August...led all N.L. shortstops with a .995 fielding percentage, committing only 2 errors in 378 chances...did not make an error after May 10, covering his final 59 games of the season...overall, batted .281 with 22 doubles, 7 homers and 40 RBI...the 7 homers at the time were his most in any season...collected his 500th hit April 22 at Montreal...collected 5 hits May 11 at Wrigley Field, the middle game of a 3-day span in which he went 10-for-14 (.714) from May 10-12...the span included a stretch in which he hit safely in 8 straight at-bats...had a season-best 11-game hitting streak from May 16-27, batting .378 (17-for-45)...suffered a fractured big toe on his left foot June 2 vs. Colorado and went on the disabled list the next day...injury required surgery to insert a plate into the toe...went on a rehab assignment with Triple-A Indianapolis and hit .240 (6-for-25) in 10 games before returning to the Padres on August 18...returned and immediately posted a 7-game hitting streak, during which he hit .407 (11-for-27)...recorded extra-base hits in 5 straight games from September 14-18 with 6 doubles and a triple.

1999

Followed up a stellar 1998 campaign by hitting .290 with 93 runs scored, 34 doubles, five triples, five homers, and 67 RBI in 153 games with the Brewers...his triples total matched his career high from 1997 while his runs scored and doubles remained career highs until his career year in 2004...his 170 hits, 67 RBI, 153 games, and 52 walks were career bests until 2003...played every infield position, primarily at shortstop and first base...played 73 games in the leadoff position, ranking second in the league among leadoff men with a .392 on-base percentage, trailing only New York's Rickey Henderson (.417)...overall, batted .318 with 37 RBI from the top spot in the order...posted a then-career-best 12-game hitting streak from June 21-July 4 (.333 batting average)...recorded the first five-hit and four-RBI game of his career July 17 vs. Kansas City...homered in back-to-back games for the first time in his career July 17-18.

1998

Hit .316 with 29 doubles, six homers and 54 RBI in 140 games, Milwaukee's first season in the NL...was his first year with a batting average better than .300...ranked second on the club in batting average behind Jeff Cirillo (.321)...ranked sixth in the league with a .347 batting average vs. lefties...batted .385 with runners in scoring position and two outs and turned in a .375 mark with the bases loaded...made 70 appearances (32 starts) at first base, 56 appearances (50 starts) at shortstop, 22 outings (15 starts) at third base, and 12 appearances (four starts) at second base...had a combined .991 fielding percentage at the four spots, committing only six errors in 671 total chances...earned the club's Michael Harrison Award for Community Service and the Manager's Award.

1997

Made his first major league Opening Day roster and completed his first full season in the majors with a .287 average, 5 homers and 47 RBI in 132 games with Milwaukee...saw extensive time at shortstop in April while Jose Valentin recovered from injury...upon Valentin's return, saw most of his time at second base...overall, played 63 games at second, 44 at short, 19 at first and 15 at third...had a 40-game errorless streak April 28-June 17...batted .421 with 7 doubles and 14 RBI in 27 games in June...ranked 2nd in the A.L. with a .277 average with 2 strikes...hit .469 (15-for-32) when hitting the first pitch and batted .421 (24-for-57) on 3-2 counts, 3rd-best in the league.

1996

Split the season between Triple A New Orleans and Milwaukee, his final season not spent entirely at the big league level (excluding rehab appearances)...was one of the Brewers final cuts at Spring Training but was quickly recalled on April 11...batted .357 in 13 games for the Brewers before returning to New Orleans on May 10 upon Chuckie Carr's reinstatement from the disabled list...was recalled to Milwaukee May 31 and remained with the club for the rest of the campaign, batting .279 with a homer and 13 RBI in 73 games...appeared in games at second base (28), third base (23) and shortstop (21)...was tough in the clutch, posting a .467 batting average with runners in scoring position and two outs and hit at a .356 clip from the seventh inning on.

1995

Began the season at Triple A New Orleans, earning a spot on the postseason American Association All-Star team, and ended as a September call-up with the Brewers, making his Major League debut September 4 vs. Minnesota...collected his first big league hit September 10 vs. Texas, a pinch-hit single off Kenny Rogers, and connected for his first home run September 12 at Tiger Stadium, a solo shot off Detroit's Jose Lima...overall, saw action in 19 games with the Brewers and batted .260 (13x50) with three doubles, a homer and three RBI...with New Orleans, hit .286 with 22 doubles, seven homers and 79 RBI in 127 games...led American Association shortstops in total chances (591) and putouts (200)...led the league with 28 RBI in July, and led the league in RBI until the final two weeks of the season...batted .381 with runners in scoring position, .403 in those situations and two outs.

1994

Split the season between Double-A El Paso and Triple-A New Orleans...selected to participate in the Texas League All-Star Game, going 2-for-4, and posted a .315 batting average in 77 games at Double-A to earn his first promotion to New Orleans in mid-July...batted .350 in his final 28 games before heading to Triple-A...with the Zephyrs, closed out his campaign by batting .210 with a homer and 14 RBI in 43 games, battling a sore thumb for the season's final month.

1993

Fresh off a spectacular junior season at Northwestern University after earning Big 10 Conference MVP and Division One All-American honors, made his professional debut with Milwaukee's rookie-level Helena club, batting .321 with a homer and 8 RBI in 6 games before a swift promotion to Single-A Stockton...turned in a .363 batting average with 36 runs scored, 4 doubles, 4 homers and 31 RBI in 53 games for Stockton, posting an impressive .427 on-base percentage.