Larry Walker (2020)


Date of Birth: 12/1/1966
Birthplace: Maple Ridge, British Columbia, Canada

Larry Walker grew up in Canada, playing street hockey. He also sometimes played baseball in the summer. In high school, he played hockey and volleyball, but not baseball since his school didn't have a baseball team.

When he was 18, Walker played in the British Columbia Premier Baseball League. He also played baseball in the World Youth Championships.

Montreal Expos

Walker signed with the Montreal Expos on November 14, 1984. He played in the minor leagues from 1985 through 1987. He had knee surgery in 1988, and he missed the entire season. In 1989, he played in 20 games with the Expos and in 114 games in the minors.

Walker didn't have a very good first full season in the majors in 1990. He batted just .241 with 101 hits, 18 doubles, 19 home runs, 21 stolen bases, and 51 RBIs in 133 games. He struck out 112 times and walked 49 times. He had a much better season in 1991, when he had 141 hits, 30 doubles, 64 RBIs, and a .290 batting average in 137 games. However, he still had a high strikeout rate (102 strikeouts to 42 walks).

Walker had a strong season in 1992, and he won his first Silver Slugger award. He also won a Gold Glove for his fielding abilities in right field. He finished the season with 159 hits, 31 doubles, 23 home runs, 93 RBIs, 97 strikeouts to 41 walks, and a .301 batting average in 143 games. Defensively, he made 269 putouts and 2 errors in 139 games.

Walker won his second of seven Gold Gloves in 1993. His offense was down slightly from his 1992 season. In 138 games, he had 130 hits, 24 doubles, 22 home runs, 29 stolen bases, 86 RBIs, and a .265 batting average in 138 games. However, his strikeout to walk rate improved significantly (76 strikeouts to 80 walks).

Walker led the NL in doubles in 1994. He had 127 hits, 44 doubles, 19 home runs, 86 RBIs, and a .322 batting average in 103 games.

Colorado Rockies

Walker became a free agent on October 24, 1994. He signed with the Colorado Rockies on April 8, 1995. He had a strong first season in Colorado, batting .306 with 151 hits, 31 doubles, 36 home runs, and 101 RBIs in 131 games. He played in his first postseason that year and he had 3 hits in 14 at-bats in 4 games. He played in only 83 games in 1996. He had 75 hits, 48 RBIs, and a .276 batting average.

Walker had one of his best seasons in 1997. He won the NL MVP award, his second Silver Slugger award, and his third Gold Glove, and he led the NL in home runs, on-base percentage, and OPS. He had career highs in games played, hits, doubles, home runs, stolen bases, RBIs, and OPS. He finished the season with 208 hits, 46 doubles, 49 home runs, 33 stolen bases, 130 RBIs, 90 strikeouts to 78 walks, .366 batting average, .452 on-base percentage, and 1.172 OPS in 153 games.

In 1998, Walker earned the NL batting title with a batting average of .363. He also won another Gold Glove. He finished the season with 165 hits, a career high 46 doubles, 23 home runs, 67 RBIs, and 61 strikeouts to 64 walks in 130 games.

Walker had another outstanding season in 1999, and he won his third Silver Slugger award and his fifth Gold Glove. He led all of major league baseball in batting average with .379, and he led the NL in on-base percentage and OPS. He had career highs in batting average and on-base percentage. He had 166 hits, 26 doubles, 37 home runs, 115 RBIs, 52 strikeouts to 57 walks, .379 batting average, .458 on-base percentage, and an OPS of 1.168.

Walker continued to bat over .300 for the next three seasons. He had a .309 batting average in 87 games in 2000. He earned the NL batting title again in 2001, with a .350 batting average in 142 games. He finished the season with 174 hits, 35 doubles, 38 home runs, and 123 RBIs. He also won his sixth Gold Glove that year. In 2002, he batted .338 with 161 hits, 40 doubles, 26 home runs, and 104 RBIs in 136 games. He won his last Gold Glove that season.

Walker's batting average dropped to .284 in 2003. He had 129 hits, 25 doubles, and 79 RBIs in 143 games. Although he didn't bat as well as in previous seasons, he had good discipline at the plate, with a career high 98 walks to 87 strikeouts.

St. Louis Cardinals

The Rockies traded Walker to the St. Louis Cardinals on August 6, 2004. He finished the season with 77 hits, 47 RBIs, and a .298 batting average in 38 games with the Rockies and 44 games with the Cardinals. In the postseason, he had 17 hits, 6 home runs, and 11 RBIs in 58 at-bats in 15 games.

In 2005, his last season in the majors, Walker played in just 100 games. He batted .289 with 91 hits, 20 doubles, 52 RBIs, and 64 strikeouts to 41 walks. In his last postseason, he had 3 hits in 28 at-bats in 9 games.

Awards and MLB Records

  • NL MVP in 1997
  • NL Batting title - 3 times
  • Silver Slugger award - 3 times
  • Gold Glove - 7 times
  • Led NL in doubles in 1994
  • Led NL in home runs in 1997
  • Led NL in on-base-percentage - 2 times
  • Led NL in OPS - 2 times

Career Statistics

Career batting statistics for Walker include:

  • 1,988 games played
  • 2,160 hits
  • 471 doubles
  • 383 home runs
  • 1,311 RBIs
  • 230 stolen bases
  • 1,231 strikeouts to 913 walks
  • .313 batting average

Career fielding statistics for Walker as an outfielder include:

  • 1,804 games played
  • 3,315 putouts
  • 48 errors
  • .986 fielding percentage

Career postseason statistics for Walker include:

  • 28 games played
  • 100 at-bats
  • 23 hits
  • 5 doubles
  • 7 home runs
  • 15 RBIs
  • 28 strikeouts to 16 walks
  • .230 batting average

Post Playing Career

In 2008, Walker was a spring training instructor for the Cardinals. The following year, he was a coach for the Canadian national baseball team.

Sources for Information
Wikipedia - Larry Walker
Baseball Reference - Larry Walker

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