Николас Пунто: Карьера американского бейсболиста

American baseball player

Nicholas Paul Punto (born November 8, 1977) is an American former professional baseball infielder. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Philadelphia Phillies, Minnesota Twins, St. Louis Cardinals, Boston Red Sox, Los Angeles Dodgers, and Oakland Athletics. With the Cardinals, he won the 2011 World Series over the Texas Rangers. He has also played for the Italian national baseball team in the World Baseball Classic.

Punto attended Trabuco Hills High School in Mission Viejo, California. He was drafted by the Minnesota Twins in the 33rd round (993rd overall) of the 1997 Major League Baseball draft, but did not sign. He stayed in Mission Viejo to attend Saddleback College before being drafted in the 21st round (614th overall) of the 1998 Major League Baseball draft by the Philadelphia Phillies. Punto played in the Phillies system for the Single A Clearwater Phillies, Single A Batavia Muckdogs, Double A Reading Phillies and Triple A Scranton/Wilkes Barre Red Barons before his promotion to the majors.

Punto made his major league debut with the Philadelphia Phillies on September 9, 2001. He singled to right field off Bob Scanlan of the Montreal Expos as a pinch hitter in the eighth inning. He had two hits in five at bats (.400) in just four games with the Phillies that season. In three years with the Phillies, Punto played in a total of 77 games and hit .223.

After playing in 64 major league games in , Punto was acquired by the Minnesota Twins on December 3, 2003 along with Carlos Silva and Bobby Korecky for Eric Milton. He started the season with the team, but he was injured twice and spent the majority of his time in 2004 on the disabled list. In , he competed for the starting job at second base, which he eventually won, and in became the starting third baseman. Punto was one of four Twins players nicknamed "the Piranhas" by then Chicago White Sox manager, Ozzie Guillén. The other Piranhas were Jason Tyner, Jason Bartlett, and Luis Castillo. In 2005, Punto batted .239 with a career high four home runs and 26 RBI in 112 games. and finished the season batting .284 with two home runs and 28 RBI in 99 games. On December 11, 2008, Punto signed a two year, $8.5 million deal with the Twins that included a club option for 2011 worth $5 million. Punto represented Team Italy in the 2009 World Baseball Classic. After struggling as the Twins regular shortstop in 2009, Punto began losing time in the lineup to fellow Twin Brendan Harris. After returning from the disabled list, Punto was re inserted into the regular lineup at second base, following the struggles of infielders Alexi Casilla and Matt Tolbert. He finished the season batting .228 with a home run and 38 RBI in 125 games. Punto returned to the lineup in May, playing at third base, shortstop, and second base as injuries cropped up among other players. In July, he was essentially replaced as the starter at third base by Danny Valencia, but he continued to play regularly due to injuries to Orlando Hudson and J. J. Hardy. On October 29, the Twins declined Punto's $5 million team option, making him a free agent. In seven years with the Twins, Punto played in 747 games with a .248 batting average. He played in 63 games with the Cardinals as a utility player, and hit .278 with a career high .388 on base percentage, a home run and 20 RBI in 133 at bats.

On December 14, 2011, Punto agreed to a two year contract with the Boston Red Sox worth $3 million. In 65 games with the Red Sox in 2012, he hit .200 with a home run and 10 RBI while starting games at second base, third base and shortstop. He also appeared in five games at first base. He appeared in 22 games with the Dodgers and hit .286. Punto represented Italy in the 2013 World Baseball Classic in March 2013. He hit .421 (8 for 19) in five games. In the 2013 season, Punto saw extensive time at shortstop due to injuries to Hanley Ramírez. He appeared in 116 games, his most since 2009, and hit .255 with two home runs, 21 RBI and 34 runs.

On November 13, 2013, Punto agreed to a one year, $3 million contract with the Oakland Athletics, that included a vesting option for 2015. His numbers dropped off from the year before, as he hit just .207 with two home runs and 14 RBI in 73 games. but the Athletics released him on December 19, 2014.

On January 7, 2015, Punto signed a minor league contract with the Arizona Diamondbacks that included an invitation to spring training. However, on February 20, Punto informed the Diamondbacks that he would not be reporting to spring training and would be taking the year off from baseball, though he was not officially retiring. He officially announced his retirement from baseball on February 18, 2016.

Punto was inducted into the Saddleback College Athletics Hall of Fame, joining notable former Saddleback and MLB players Tim Wallach and Mark Grace.

Punto and his wife, Natalie, have three children.