Michael Joseph Piazza (born September 4, 1968 in Norristown, Pennsylvania) is
an American Major League Baseball player who is currently a free agent. He
began his career with the Los Angeles Dodgers and played for the Florida
Marlins, New York Mets, San Diego Padres and then joined the Oakland
Athletics. He is a 12-time All-Star. Piazza is often regarded as the
best-slugging catcher of all time, and holds the career record for home runs
hit by a catcher. He had at least one RBI (run batted in) in 15 consecutive
games for the New York Mets in 2000, the second longest RBI streak ever (Ray
Grimes of the Chicago Cubs had 17 in 1922).
Michael Joseph Piazza (1968年10月4日出生於賓州諾裡斯鎮)，他是前大聯盟選手，目
前是自由球員。他的職業生涯從洛杉磯道奇隊展開，並且曾經效力過佛羅里達馬林魚，紐
約大都會隊，聖地牙哥教士隊，最後加入奧克蘭運動家隊。他曾經12度入選明星球員。
Piazza被認為是有史以來最具有長打能力的捕手，並且保有捕手生涯最多全壘打的紀錄。
2000年效力於大都會隊時，他曾經創下大聯盟史上第2長，連15場有打點的紀錄(1922年芝
加哥小熊隊的Ray Grimes曾連續17場有打點)。
Mike grew up in Phoenixville, Pennsylvania with his parents, Vince and
Veronica, and his brothers Vince Jr., Danny, Tony and Tommy. When Piazza was
12, he received personal instruction from the late Hall of Famer Ted Williams
in his backyard batting cage.
Mike Piazza生長於賓州鳳凰城，他與父母Vince和Veronica還有兄弟Vince Jr.，Danny
，Tony，Tommy同住。當Piazza 12歲時，在家中後院獲得了名人堂球員Ted Williams的個
人指導。
Vince Piazza was a childhood friend of former Dodgers manager, Tommy Lasorda.
When the Dodgers came to Philadelphia, Mike had the opportunity to spend time
in the Dodger clubhouse and dugout.
Piazza的父親Vince Piazza是前道奇隊經理Tommy Lasorda兒時朋友。當道奇隊來到費城
比賽時，Piazza總是有機會到道奇隊的球員休息室逛逛。
Piazza was the last player the Dodgers drafted in the 1988 draft. He was
their selection in the 62nd round. It is believed that the pick was partly a
favor on the part of Los Angeles Dodgers manager Tommy Lasorda, who is
godfather to one of Piazza's brothers[citation needed] and, like Piazza, grew
up in Norristown. Piazza swore he'd learn to catch if he was
drafted.[citation needed] Piazza's Major League debut came with the Dodgers
in 1992, when he appeared in 28 games. He then won the National League MLB
Rookie of the Year Award in 1993.
Piazza是1988年最後一位被道奇選進的球員。他在第62輪才被選中。一般認為他被挑選的
部分原因是由於道奇隊總經理Tommy Lasorda是Piazza其中一位兄弟的教父。Piazza發誓
如果他被選中，那麼他會好好學習蹲補。Piazza的大聯盟初登場是1992年在道奇隊時，當
年他出賽了28場。隔年1993年隨即獲得年度新人的獎項。
Piazza's best season was 1997, a year when he finished second in MVP voting.
He hit .362, with 40 home runs and 124 runs batted in, an on base percentage
of .431 and a slugging percentage of .638.
1997年是Piazza表現最佳的球季，當年他在MVP的票選排名第二。他擁有打擊率.362，40
支全壘打，124分打點，上壘率.431，長打率.638的成績。
He played six full seasons for the Dodgers until he was traded to the Florida
Marlins on May 15, 1998. Piazza and Todd Zeile went to the Marlins in return
for Gary Sheffield, Charles Johnson, Bobby Bonilla, Manuel Barrios, and Jim
Eisenreich. The trade, precipitated by a contract dispute, is regarded by
many as one of the worst moves in Dodgers history. One week later, on May 22,
Piazza was traded from the Marlins to the New York Mets for Preston Wilson,
Ed Yarnall, and Geoff Goetz.
在1998年5月15日被交易至佛羅里達馬林魚隊前，他為道奇隊效力了六個完整的球季。
Piazza與Todd Zeile被送到馬林魚隊以換來Gary Sheffield，Charles Johnson，Bobby
Bonilla，Manuel Barrios與Jim Eisenreich。這個交易被認為是道奇史上最糟糕的一次
交易。一個禮拜後，5月22日Piazza又被馬林魚交易至紐約大都會隊，馬林魚隊得到了
Preston Wilson，Ed Yarnall與Geoff Goetz。
Upon his arrival in New York, Piazza was routinely booed at first for his
early struggles before fans warmed up to him. Despite stellar numbers from
Piazza, the Mets missed the 1998 postseason by one game. Piazza helped the
Mets to two consecutive playoff appearances for the only time in Mets history
in 1999 and 2000. The latter of the two resulted in a National League Pennant
and World Series appearance, where the Mets lost in five games to a Yankee
team winning their fourth World Series in five years. Of note, all five games
were decided by two runs or less, something that had not occurred in a World
Series in almost 70 years. He became known as The Monster after coach John
Stearns was caught on tape during the 2000 NLCS after a Piazza hit saying
"The Monster is out of the Cage!"
當他來到紐約時，在他獲得球迷的加油前，由於起初表現不佳而時常被噓。不管Piazza成
績的數字多亮眼，大都會仍然以一場之差沒能打進1998年季後賽。Piazza幫助大都會隊
1999年與2000年首度連續兩個球季進入季後賽。2000年還一路打進了國聯冠軍賽與世界大
賽。激戰了五場比賽後，最終洋基贏得了近五年內的第四次世界大賽冠軍。五場比賽比分
差距都在2分之內，這種情形將近70年沒有在世界大賽發生過了。Piazza被稱做野獸，因
為 2000年國聯冠軍賽，教練John Streams在Piazza打出安打時被錄到他說:"野獸出閘了"
。
Piazza was involved in a bizarre incident in Game 2 of the 2000 World Series.
In the first inning, Piazza was facing Yankees pitcher Roger Clemens and
broke his bat fouling off a pitch. The barrel of his bat flew towards
Clemens's feet at the pitcher's mound. Clemens picked up the broken barrel
and heaved it in the direction of Piazza running up the first base line
sparking both benches to clear, but with no ejections. The reason this
incident sparked this reaction was because earlier in the season, during
Interleague play when the Mets played the Yankees, Mike Piazza was drilled in
the head by a Roger Clemens pitch. Mike Piazza suffered a concussion and was
forced to miss the 2000 MLB All-Star Game as a result.
Piazza於2000年世界大賽第二場比賽捲入了一件不尋常的事件。第一局Piazza面對洋基投
手Roger Clemens，他將Clemens的球擊成界外球，並且將球棒打斷了。斷棒沿著投手丘朝
著Clemens的腳滾去。Clemens撿起斷棒，往正跑向一壘的Piazza的方向丟去，這個舉動使
得兩隊的球員都衝進了場內，但是並沒有造成衝突。引起這個事件的原因是該球季洋基與
大都會進行跨聯盟比賽時，Mike Piazza被Clemens的觸身球擊中頭部。觸身球造成Piazza
腦震盪，並且迫使他錯過了2000年的明星賽。
Piazza would later catch for Roger Clemens in the 2004 All-Star Game. Clemens
gave up 6 runs in the 1st inning, and rumors later spread about Piazza
telling American League batters what pitch Clemens was throwing.
2004年明星賽，Piazza為Roger Clemens的捕手。Clemens在第一局就失了6分，有傳聞說
Piazza將Clemens要投的球種告訴美聯的打者。
One of the most emotional moments of Piazza's career came when he belted a
dramatic two-run home run in the eighth inning against Steve Karsay on
September 21, 2001 in New York City to lift the Mets to a 3-2 triumph over
the Braves. The game was the first regular season professional sporting event
held in New York City after the September 11, 2001 attacks and has since been
hailed as the defining moment in Piazza's career and one of the single
greatest moments in New York sports history.
2001年9月21日，Piazza在第八局從勇士隊投手Steve Karsay手中揮出戲劇性的兩分全壘
打，使大都會隊以3:2贏得比賽。這是Piazza的職業生涯中最激盪人心的時刻之一。該場
比賽是自2001年9月 11日的恐怖攻擊後，首場在紐約市進行的職業比賽，這不只是Piazza
生涯最難忘的時刻，也使紐約運動史上最偉大的一刻。
To ease the stress on his deteriorating knees, Piazza began to split his time
between catching and playing first base during the 2004 season, an experiment
which was abandoned before the end of the season because of Piazza's
defensive deficiencies. Although recognized as a great hitter, Piazza has
also caught two no hitters thrown by Ramon Martinez and Hideo Nomo. Nomo's
was particularly impressive because it happened at Coors Field.
為了減輕膝蓋的負擔，2004年球季Piazza開始輪流擔任捕手與一壘手，由於Piazza的守備
能力不佳，所以這個嘗試在球季結束前就停止了。雖然Piazza被認為是一位絕佳的打者，
但是他也曾經蹲補過兩場分別由Ramon Martinez與野茂英雄所投出的無安打比賽。其中野
茂英雄所投出的那場無安打比賽特別令人印象深刻，因為比賽是在打者天堂Coors Field
所進行的。
On May 5, 2004, Piazza surpassed Carlton Fisk for most home runs by a catcher
with his 352nd as a catcher.
2004年5月5日，Piazza以捕手的身份擊出了第352號全壘打，超越了Carlton Fisk成為史
上最多全壘打的捕手。
On October 2, 2005, Piazza filed for free agency, effectively ending his
career with the Mets. He signed with the San Diego Padres on January 29, 2006
and was their starting catcher and clean-up hitter. Piazza experienced
somewhat of a rejuvenation in 2006, batting .283 with 22 homers and helping
the Padres to a division title. On July 21, 2006, Mike Piazza collected his
2,000th career hit in the major leagues.
2005年10月2日，Piazza成為自由球員，結束了在大都會隊的生涯。2006年1月26日他被聖
地牙哥教士隊簽下，成為了該隊的先發捕手與第四棒。2006年球季，Piazza重振雄風，揮
出了22支全壘打與.283打擊率，並且幫助教士隊獲得分區冠軍。同年的7月11日，Mike
Piazza達成了大聯盟生涯2000支安打的紀錄。
On August 8, 2006, Piazza played his first game at Shea Stadium since leaving
the Mets. During the three-game series, Piazza drew frequent, repeated
standing ovations indicative of the high level of regard New York's fans
still hold for him. It was on par with that of Tom Seaver in 1978. Even more
telling was an event on August 9 during that series in which he drew a rare
curtain call in an opposing park following a home run off Mets pitcher Pedro
Martinez.
2006年8月8日，Piazza在離開大都會隊後首度重返Shea Stadium。在三場系列賽中，不斷
的獲得球迷的起立鼓掌，這表示紐約的球迷仍然非常尊敬，喜愛Piazza。1978年Tom
Seaver也曾獲得相同的待遇。甚至在8月9日的比賽中，Piazza從對手大都會隊投手Pedro
Martinez手中揮出全壘打後，紐約球迷照樣給予他鼓掌喝采。
On June 23, 2007, he received a standing ovation when he brought out the
lineup card for the Oakland A's at Shea Stadium. He was unable to play in the
series because he was on the disabled list.
2007年6月23日在大都會隊的主場Shea Stadium，雖然Piazza沒有在奧克蘭運動家隊的攻
守名單中，但是仍然獲得球迷的起立喝采。由於進入傷兵名單，所以Piazza在該系列賽中
沒有上場。
On July 25, 2007, in the top of the ninth inning in a game between the Angels
and the A's at Angel Stadium, a fan threw a water bottle that hit Piazza, who
had homered earlier in the game. Piazza then pointed his bat in the stands at
the fan he believed threw the water bottle to get the attention of security.
The fan, who was identified as Roland Flores from La Puente, California, was
arrested by the ballpark security. Piazza is pressing charges against
Flores.Flores was sentenced to 30 days in prison and three years of probation
on March 27, 2008.
2007年7月25日，運動家隊與天使隊在Angel Stadium進行比賽，九局上半，一位球迷丟進
場內的水瓶砸中了在該場比賽中揮出全壘打的Piazza。Piazza將球棒指向他認為丟出水瓶
的球迷，並且引起了保全人員的注意。這名來自加州拉朋地(La Puente, California)名
叫Roland Flores的球迷隨即被球場的保全人員逮捕。Piazza控告這名球迷。2008年3月27
日該球迷被判處30天的刑期並緩刑3年。
He represented Italy in the 2006 World Baseball Classic.
在2006年的世界棒球經典賽中，他代表義大利出賽。
Only 5 other players have ever had over 400 home runs with over a .300 life
time average while never striking out more than 100 times in a season.
只有五位選手能夠揮出超過四百支全壘打，同時生涯打擊率超過3成，並且沒有在任何一
個球季被三振超過一百次。
On April 18th, 2008, it was rumored that he is in talks with the Cincinnati
Reds to sign him and possibly have him play first base against left-handed
pitchers.
有傳聞指出2008年4月18日，他正與辛辛那提紅人隊討論與他簽約，並且在對方派出左投
手時讓他擔任一壘手。
During the 2005 season, Piazza was the ninth highest paid MLB player at
$16,071,429. On January 29, 2006, Mike Piazza accepted a one-year deal with
the San Diego Padres worth up to $2 million. On December 6, 2006, Piazza
signed a 1-year, $8.5 million deal with the Oakland Athletics. He replaced
Frank Thomas as the A's designated hitter.
2005年球季，Piazza的16071429美金的薪水排名大聯盟第九名。2006年1月29日，他接受
了教士隊提出的一年價值200萬美金合約。同年的12月6日他又與奧克蘭運動家隊簽下一年
850萬美金的合約，並且取代Frank Thomas成為運動家隊的指定打擊。
On January 29, 2005, he married Playboy Playmate Alicia Rickter at St. Jude's
Catholic Church in Miami, Florida, before 120 guests, including his best
friend Eric Karros, Brande Roderick, Lisa Dergan, Anjelica Bridges, Al Leiter
and Detroit Tigers catcher Ivan Rodriguez and also Billy Ray Cyrus was their
wedding singer.
2005年1月29日在邁阿密的聖猶達天主教堂，Piazza於120位賓客前迎娶了花花公子玩伴女
郎Alicia Rickter，來賓包括了他最好的朋友Eric Karros，Brande Roderick，Lisa
Dergan，Anjelica Bridges，Al Leiter與底特律老虎隊捕手Ivan Rodriguez。Billy
Ray Cyrus則是該場婚禮的婚禮歌手。
On February 5, 2007, Piazza's wife gave birth to the couple's first child, a
daughter. Nicoletta Veronica Piazza was born at 4:07 a.m. in New York City.
She weighed 5 lbs., 8 oz. and measured 19 inches long.
2007年2月5日，Piazza的妻子為他們生下了第一個女兒。Nicoletta Veronica Piazza在
凌晨4:07出生於紐約市。她重5 磅, 8 盎司，19英吋高。
Piazza is Catholic and is featured in the Catholic film series Champions of
Faith.
Piazza是一明天主教徒，並曾經在天主教電影Champions of Faith中演出。
He is known to be a fan of heavy metal music and is featured on the cd
Stronger Than Death by Black Label Society. He is also godfather to Zakk
Wylde's son, Hendrix.
眾所皆知Piazza是重金屬音樂迷，並且曾在Black Label Society所發行的專輯
"Stronger Than Death"中演出。他同時也是主唱Zakk Wylde的兒子Hendrix的教父。
* In 1993, his 35 home runs set the record for most home runs by a rookie
catcher, surpassing Detroit's Matt Nokes with 32 in 1987. Plus, it is the
most home runs by any Dodger rookie.
* 1993年擊出35支全壘打，打破Matt Nokes於1987年的32支全壘打紀錄，締造了新人
捕手單季全壘打紀錄。此外，這也是道奇隊新人單季最多全壘打紀錄。
* He was named the All-Star Game's MVP, in 1996, after he went 2-3 with a
double, home run and two RBI at Veterans Stadium in Philadelphia, near his
home town of Norristown.
* Piazza為1996年於費城Veterans Stadium舉行的明星賽的MVP，他在3個打數中擊出
了一支二壘安打與一支全壘打，並且打下兩分打點。
* His 40 homers in 1997 and 1999 is the third most by a catcher. Todd
Hundley is second, with 41 homers in 1996, and Javy Lopez set the record with
43 in 2003.
* Piazza在1997年與1999年皆擊出40支全壘打，排名大聯盟史上單季第三多。1996年
Todd Hundly的41支為史上第二多。Javy Lopez在2003年打出的43支則為最多紀錄。
* His .362 average in 1997 was the highest ever by a catcher (110 games)
in the National League, tying the Major League record Bill Dickey who also
batted .362 for the New York Yankees in 1936.
* 1997年所創下的.362打擊率為國家聯盟史上捕手最佳紀錄(110場比賽)，並且追平
1936年Bill Dickey在洋基隊所創下的.362大聯盟紀錄。
* He won the Ted Williams Award, presented by CNN/SI and Total Baseball
in 1997.
* Piazza於1997年贏得由CNN/SI與Total Baseball所贊助的Ted Williams獎。
* His 201 hits in 1997 were the most in major league history by a player
used as a catcher in 130 or more games
* 1997年擊出了201支安打，締造了大聯盟史上單季擔任超過130場捕手的最多安打紀
錄。
* On Sept. 21, 1997 Mike Piazza became just the third player and the only
Dodger ever to hit a ball out of Dodger Stadium with a blast over the
left-field pavilion.
* 1997年9月21日，Mike Piazza打出了一支從左外野飛出道奇球場的全壘打，成為大
聯盟第三位與道奇隊第一位將球轟出道奇球場的選手。
* He hit the longest home run in Astrodome history, an estimated
480-foot, two-run blast off Jose Lima in the first inning of a game on
September 14, 1998.
* 1998年12月14日，Piazza在第一局從Jose Lima手中擊出一支兩分全壘打，這支全
壘打是太空人主場Astrodome史上最大號的全壘打，推斷距離為480英呎。
* Led the majors with four grand slams in 1998. His fourth slam and first
as a Met came against the Diamondbacks' Andy Benes in the second inning of
the August 22 game at Shea Stadium.
* 1998年Piazza打出大聯盟該年最多的4支滿貫全壘打。他的球季第四支與穿上大都
會隊球衣的第一支滿貫砲是在8月22日於Shea Stadium，從響尾蛇的Andy Benes手中擊出
的。
* Hit his 200th home run on September 16, 1998, at Houston. The home run,
a three-run shot with two outs in the ninth inning against Billy Wagner, gave
the Mets a 3-2 lead in a game they would win, 4-3, in 11 innings.
*1998年9月16日在休士頓，第9局兩人出局，Piazza從Billy Wagner手中打出生涯第
200號全壘打，這支全壘打幫助大都會隊取得3:2的領先，最後大都會隊在11局以4:3贏得
比賽。
* Tied a Mets club record on July 18 when he hit his third grand slam
home run of the season ... The only other Mets with three grand slams in a
year are John Milner in 1976, Robin Ventura in 1999 and Carlos Beltran in
2006.
* 7月18日揮出該球季的第三支滿貫砲，追平了大都會隊隊史紀錄。另外三位曾在一
個球季揮出三支滿貫全壘打的選手為1976年的John Milner，1999年的Robin Ventura與
2006年的Carlos Beltran。
* His 72 RBI prior to the All-Star Break in 2000 were, at the time, the
most in club history. Dave Kingman had 69 in 1976.
* 2000年球季於明星週前打出了72分打點為隊史紀錄。1976年Dave Kingman曾打出69
分打點。
* He and Derek Jeter are the only players in major league history to hit
a World Series home run in both Yankee Stadium and Shea Stadium.
* 在大聯盟歷史上，Piazza與Derek Jeter是唯一曾在世界大賽中於Yankee Stadium
與Shea Stadium皆擊出全壘打的選手。
* He won a record 10 consecutive Louisville Silver Slugger Awards.The
award is given annually to the best offensive player at each position in each
league.
* Piazza連續十度贏得Louisville銀棒獎。這個獎項是每年頒給在各聯盟各個守備位
置上進攻能力最佳的選手。
* He joined Cincinnati's Johnny Bench (1968), New York Yankees' Thurman
Munson (1970), Atlanta's Earl Williams (1971), Boston's Carlton Fisk (1972),
San Diego's Benito Santiago (1987) and Cleveland's Sandy Alomar, Jr. (1990)
as the only catchers to be named Rookie of the Year.
* Piazza成為繼辛辛那提紅人隊Johnny Bench(1968)，紐約洋基Thurman
Munson(1970)，亞特蘭大勇士隊Earl Williams(1971)，波士頓紅襪隊Carlton
Fisk(1972)，聖地牙哥教士隊Benito Santiago(1987)與克利夫蘭印第安人隊Sandy
Alomar Jr.(1990)之後第7位獲得年度最佳新人的捕手。
* He finished second in the NL Most Valuable Player voting behind San
Diego's Ken Caminiti after batting .336 with 36 home runs, 105 RBI, 87 runs
and 16 doubles in 148 games in 1996. (Caminiti later admitted to taking
steroids during his MVP Award-winning season.)
* 1996年在國聯最有價值球員的投票中，得票數僅次於聖地牙哥教士隊的Ken
Caminiti。該年Piazza的成績為出賽148場，打擊率.336，36支全壘打，105分打點，87分
得分，16支二壘安打(之後 Caminiti坦承獲得MVP的球季曾服用類固醇。)
* He led the All-Star voting in 1996, 1997, and 2000.
* 在1996，1997與2000年的明星賽票選中，Piazza都排名第一。
* He hit more than 30 home runs in eight consecutive seasons (1995-2002).
He has nine career 30-homer seasons.
* 連續8個球季擊出至少30支全壘打(1995-2002)，生涯有九個球季全壘打數超過20支
* He hit .300 in nine consecutive seasons, dating from 1993 to 2001.
* 從1993年到2001年球季，連續9年打出超過3成的打擊率。
* Yogi Berra, Carlton Fisk, Gary Carter, and Johnny Bench were on hand at
Shea Stadium to honor Mike on "Mike Piazza Night" on June 18, 2004. Piazza
was celebrated for breaking the record for career home runs by a catcher.
* 2004年6月18日在Shea Stadium，Yogi Berra，Carlton Fisk，Gary Carter與
Johnny Bench一同出席了慶祝Piazza打破捕手生涯全壘打紀錄的"Mike Piazza之夜"。
* He hit his 400th career home run on April 26, 2006, off the Arizona
Diamondbacks' Jose Valverde.
* 2006年4月26日從亞利桑那響尾蛇Jose Valverde打出生涯第400支全壘打。
* He hit a double off of the San Francisco Giants' Matt Cain for his
2,000th career hit on July 21, 2006.
* 2006年7月21日從巨人隊投手Matt Cain手中揮出生涯第2000支安打。
* Hit three home runs against the Colorado Rockies on June 29, 1996.
* 1996年6月29日面對科羅拉多落磯隊的比賽中單場擊出三發全壘打。
在google上搜尋Piazza的圖片時，無意間看到了一張Jason Giambi的癡漢表情照
http://img374.imageshack.us/img374/3733/328912276ygtygoph0fm.jpg