DETROIT – The Detroit Tigers today announced the club has agreed to terms on a one-year contract with catcher Gerald Laird.Laird saw action in 37 games with the St. Louis Cardinals during the 2011 season, hitting .232 (22x95) with seven doubles, a triple, home run and 12 RBI.
“Gerald is a veteran catcher that is familiar with both our pitching staff and organization,” Tigers President, Chief Executive Officer and General Manager David Dombrowski said. “As a righthanded hitter, he is the solid complement to Alex Avila as our back-up catcher for the 2012 season.”
In nine seasons at the major league level with the Texas Rangers (2003-08), Tigers (2009-10) and Cardinals (2011), Laird is hitting .241 (483x2003)with 113 doubles, eight triples, 35 home runs and 204 RBI in 635 games.
Laird has compiled a .988 fielding percentage behind the plate during his major league career, and he has thrown out 35.3 percent of base runners attempting to steal (163x462). He threw out 36.0 percent of base runners attempting to steal (157x436) beginning with the 2004 season through the 2010 season, second-best among all American League catchers during that stretch.
Wasn't he also the Secretary of Defense in the Nixon Administration?
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