Player Profile: Marlon Byrd
Most Cubs' fans know Marlon Byrd as the All-Star center fielder who has been one of the very few positives in a so far in a very forgettable 2010 season. Many White Sox fans probably know him from his days with the Texas Rangers, but lets take a deeper look into the career of Marlon Byrd in today's Player Profile. Born on September 30, 1977 in Boynton Beach, Florida he attended Sprayberry High School after his family moved to Marietta, Georgia. Baseball wasn't the only sport he excelled at in while Sprayberry, the All-State baseball player was also an All-State football player. Although he clearly picked baseball as his focus when he accepted a scholarship to the college baseball powerhouse Georgia Tech. Unfortunately, his time at Georgia Tech wasn't smooth sailing. While there he suffered a serious muscular injury that basically cut off circulation to his right leg. [photogallerylink id=23813 align=left]After undergoing three operations to correct the problem he transferred to Georgia Perimeter College, the junior college where he would play until being drafted by the Phillies in 10th round in 1999.
While in the Phillies organization he was twice named the organization's Minor League Player of the year (2000 and 2001) and made his Major League debut on September 8th 2002 and played in 35 games that year. In 2005 he was traded to the Washington Nationals and became a member of the Texas Rangers in 2007 before signing a three-year $15 million dollar contract with the Cubs this past off-season. He is a career .283 hitter with 69 HR, 375 RBI, 45 SB and a .771 OPS in 872 games played. His 2010 All-Star appearance was the first of his career.
Source: mlb.com
