Vital Statistics:
Born: June 3, 1977
Hometown: Jamestown, North Dakota
Height: 6-3
Weight: 240
Bats: Left
Throws: Right
Family: Wife, Amy
Primary position: First baseman/designated hitter
Before The Bigs:
- Was a junior college All-American and MVP of the JUCO World Series in 1997 while playing at Cowley County Community College in Kansas.
- Drafted by the Texas Rangers in the 31st round (923rd overall) in 1996.
- Hit 44 home runs in two seasons at Single-A Savannah, then hit .346 with 22 home runs and 109 RBI at Single-A Charlotte in the Florida State League in 2000. Hit 20 homers at Double-A Tulsa in 2001 and .342 with 21 homers at Triple-A Oklahoma City in 2002.
- Hit his first big-league homer with the Rangers in 2002, and was traded that winter to Cleveland with Aaron Myette for pitcher Ryan Drese and catcher Einar Diaz.
- hit for the cycle on Aug. 14, 2003, and finished his first season in Cleveland with 14 home runs in 291 at-bats.
- Broke through in 2004, when he hit .311 with 28 home runs and 109 RBI.
- Hit .305 with 33 home runs in 2005 and .308 with 42 homers in 2006 despite missing the last three weeks with a broken hand. He led the AL in slugging percentage.
- Has driven in more than 100 runs in four consecutive seasons (2004-07).
- Nickname is “Pronk,” which was derived from “half project, half donkey” by former teammate Bill Selby in Cleveland.
