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  • Robbie Grossman

    Birth Date: 09/15/1989

    Robbie Grossman Autograph

    Robbie Grossman's Autograph

    Robbie Grossman Bio

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    Robert Edward Grossman was born on September 16, 1989 in San Diego, California.

    He was considered a first round pick in 2008 by several talent evaluators, but fell to the sixth round due to high signing bonus demands and a commitment to the University of Texas. The Pittsburgh Pirates drafted him, and paid him well above slot value to buy Grossman out of his college commitment. Baseball Prospectus ranked him as their 76th best prospect ahead of the 2012 season. He was traded to the Houston Astros at the deadline that year in a deal that sent veteran starter Wandy Rodriguez to Pittsburgh.

    Grossman made his Major League debut for Houston on April 24, 2013. He played 63 games for the 111-loss Astros that season, slashing .268/.332/.370. The .332 on-base percentage was third on the team, trailing future Minnesota Twins teammate Jason Castro (.350) and L.J. Hoes (.337). Grossman slashed .233/.337/.333 in 103 games during the 2014 season, but was designated for assignment in 2015 after his performance cratered.

    The Cleveland Indians singed Grossman to a minor league contract ahead of the 2016 campaign. He opted out of his contract on May 16th, and signed with the Twins. Minnesota added him to their big league roster on May 20th, and he went 3-for-4 with a double and a home run in his first game with the club. This sparked a nine game on-base streak to begin his Twins tenure. When that streak ended in his tenth game with the club, Grossman turned around and hit three doubles in his 11th game. He quickly became a bright spot for an otherwise dreadful team that lost 103 games, finishing the season with a .386 on-base percentage over 99 games.

    Minnesota penciled in Grossman as their designated hitter on Opening Day in 2017, batting right between All-Star leadoff man Brian Dozier and super prospect Byron Buxton. He drew a bases loading walk in their Opening Day win over the Kansas City Royals, kick-starting another successful season. His .361 on-base percentage in 2017 was second on the team behind Joe Mauer (.384), and the Twins embarked on a 26 win year-to-year improvement. This got them to the AL Wild Card Game, where they fell to the New York Yankees. Grossman went 0-for-4 in the Wild Card Game, serving as the Twins designated hitter.

    His role was expected to be smaller in 2018, after Minnesota signed Logan Morrison to provide some middle of the order power from the DH slot. This signing ultimately flopped, and Grossman was able to be a regular in the Twins lineup. He played 129 games that season, slashing .273/.367/.384.

    The Twins added Nelson Cruz during the next off-season. This was a singing that did work, and Grossman left for the Oakland Athletics in free agency. He helped them reach the playoffs in 2019, going 2-for-4 in their Wild Card Game loss against the Tampa Bay Rays. He had a power surge with Oakland in 2020, hitting eight home runs with a career high .482 slugging percentage during the COVID shortened season. The Athletics were AL West champions, but lost to the Houston Astros in the ALDS.

    Grossman signed a two year deal with the Detroit Tigers ahead of 2021, and he produced a solid 20-20 season in the first year of that contract. It's the only year of his career with double digit stolen bases. He was traded to the Atlanta Braves at the deadline in 2022. While with the Braves, he platooned in left field with former Twins teammate Eddie Rosario.

    The Texas Rangers signed Grossman to a one year deal ahead of the 2023 season. He slashed .238/.340/.394 for them in 115 regular season games. Grossman was just 2-for-19 with a walk during the postseason that year, starting five of the Rangers playoff games that fall. Texas won the World Series, defeating the Arizona Diamondbacks in five games.

    He began 2024 with the Chicago White Sox, but struggled. He wound up back on the Rangers, and then finished the season with the Kansas City Royals. Grossman was left off the Royals playoff roster. He is currently a free agent as of Opening Day in 2025.

    Notable Events & Trivia

    • 2023 World Series champion
    • MLB record of 440 convective games played without an error
      • Streak ended on July 10, 2022 while with the Tigers
    • Had one of the worst defensive seasons in team history in 2016, posting a -20 DRS (Defensive Runs Saved)

    Robbie Grossman Statistics

    Standard Batting Table
    Season Age Team Lg WAR G PA AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB CS BB SO BA OBP SLG OPS OPS+ rOBA Rbat+ TB GIDP HBP SH SF IBB Pos Awards
    2013 23 HOU AL 0.6 63 288 257 29 69 14 0 4 21 6 7 23 70 .268 .332 .370 .702 95 .311 96 95 2 2 5 1 0 78/9D  
    2014 24 HOU AL 1.6 103 422 360 42 84 14 2 6 37 9 3 55 105 .233 .337 .333 .670 92 .320 98 120 7 2 3 2 1 79/8DH  
    2015 25 HOU AL -0.4 24 54 49 7 7 2 0 1 5 0 0 5 17 .143 .222 .245 .467 31 .231 34 12 0 0 0 0 0 7/H9D  
    2016 26 MIN AL 0.3 99 389 332 49 93 19 1 11 37 2 3 55 96 .280 .386 .443 .828 124 .367 131 147 3 2 0 0 0 7D/H8  
    2017 27 MIN AL 0.9 119 456 382 62 94 22 1 9 45 3 1 67 79 .246 .361 .380 .741 100 .332 101 145 6 3 2 2 0 D97H  
    2018 28 MIN AL 1.6 129 465 396 50 108 27 1 5 48 0 1 60 83 .273 .367 .384 .751 106 .347 116 152 2 2 2 5 0 9D7H  
    2019 29 OAK AL 1.0 138 482 420 57 101 21 3 6 38 9 4 59 86 .240 .334 .348 .682 87 .306 90 146 7 1 0 2 2 *7H9/8  
    2020 30 OAK AL 1.2 51 192 166 23 40 12 2 8 23 8 1 21 38 .241 .344 .482 .826 128 .368 130 80 1 5 0 0 2 *7/H8D9  
    2021 31 DET AL 2.9 156 671 557 88 133 23 3 23 67 20 5 98 155 .239 .357 .415 .772 115 .348 120 231 8 8 2 6 3 *79/DH  
    2022 32 2TM 2LG 0.6 129 477 411 40 86 19 1 7 45 6 2 56 129 .209 .310 .311 .622 78 .292 82 128 3 6 0 4 0 *79H/D  
    2022 32 DET AL 0.1 83 320 273 24 56 13 1 2 23 3 1 38 90 .205 .313 .282 .595 74 .284 79 77 2 6 0 3 0 79/HD  
    2022 32 ATL NL 0.5 46 157 138 16 30 6 0 5 22 3 1 18 39 .217 .306 .370 .675 87 .308 89 51 1 0 0 1 0 97/HD  
    2023 33 TEX AL 0.1 115 420 353 56 84 23 1 10 49 1 0 57 98 .238 .340 .394 .734 103 .327 105 139 8 2 0 8 0 7D9H  
    2024 34 3TM AL -0.3 87 245 208 21 44 8 0 3 16 3 0 34 58 .212 .322 .293 .616 79 .291 84 61 8 1 0 2 0 DH79  
    2024 34 CHW AL -0.1 25 85 71 6 15 4 0 0 4 2 0 13 20 .211 .329 .268 .597 75 .295 85 19 2 0 0 1 0 9/H7D  
    2024 34 TEX AL 0.2 46 122 105 13 25 4 0 3 10 1 0 16 25 .238 .336 .362 .698 101 .318 104 38 5 0 0 1 0 DH7/9  
    2024 34 KCR AL -0.4 16 38 32 2 4 0 0 0 2 0 0 5 13 .125 .263 .125 .388 15 .201 17 4 1 1 0 0 0 D/H79  
    12 Yrs 10.2 1213 4561 3891 524 943 204 15 93 431 67 27 590 1014 .242 .345 .374 .719 100 .327 104 1456 55 34 14 32 8 79DH8  
    162 Game Avg 1.4 162 609 520 70 126 27 2 12 58 9 4 79 135 .242 .345 .374 .719 100 .327 104 194 7 5 2 4 1    
                                                               
    MIN (3 Yrs) 2.8 347 1310 1110 161 295 68 3 25 130 5 5 182 258 .266 .371 .400 .771 109 .348 115 444 11 7 4 7 0 7D9H/8  
    HOU (3 Yrs) 1.8 190 764 666 78 160 30 2 11 63 15 10 83 192 .240 .327 .341 .668 89 .311 93 227 9 4 8 3 1 798H/D  
    DET (2 Yrs) 3.0 239 991 830 112 189 36 4 25 90 23 6 136 245 .228 .343 .371 .714 102 .327 108 308 10 14 2 9 3 *79D/H  
    OAK (2 Yrs) 2.3 189 674 586 80 141 33 5 14 61 17 5 80 124 .241 .337 .386 .722 98 .323 101 226 8 6 0 2 4 *7H9/8D  
    TEX (2 Yrs) 0.3 161 542 458 69 109 27 1 13 59 2 0 73 123 .238 .339 .386 .726 103 .325 105 177 13 2 0 9 0 D79H  
    ATL (1 Yr) 0.5 46 157 138 16 30 6 0 5 22 3 1 18 39 .217 .306 .370 .675 87 .308 89 51 1 0 0 1 0 97/HD  
    CHW (1 Yr) -0.1 25 85 71 6 15 4 0 0 4 2 0 13 20 .211 .329 .268 .597 75 .295 85 19 2 0 0 1 0 9/H7D  
    KCR (1 Yr) -0.4 16 38 32 2 4 0 0 0 2 0 0 5 13 .125 .263 .125 .388 15 .201 17 4 1 1 0 0 0 D/H79  
                                                               
    AL (12 Yrs) 9.6 1167 4404 3753 508 913 198 15 88 409 64 26 572 975 .243 .346 .374 .720 100 .328 105 1405 54 34 14 31 8 79DH8  
    NL (1 Yr) 0.5 46 157 138 16 30 6 0 5 22 3 1 18 39 .217 .306 .370 .675 87 .308 89 51 1 0 0 1 0 97/HD  
    Provided by Baseball-Reference.com: View Original Table
    Generated 4/3/2025.

    See all » Robbie Grossman Articles

    AL Central Offseason Update: Twins Wait While Others Active

    Coming off an MLB season unlike any other, many predicted this offseason was going to be a different than one that fans had previously experienced. Every team dealt with a decrease in revenues and many teams were expected to cut payroll. The AL Central’s clubs have seen a variety of moves so far this winter, while Minnesota has been relatively quiet. What does that mean for the AL Central’s future?

    Getting Defensive

    Remember when Doug Mientkiewicz was really good at first base for the Twins one year, but Rafael Palmiero won the Gold Glove despite barely playing the position that year? Defensive analysis and Gold Glove voting have come a long way since then. Whether we agree with each of them, there are now at least several statistical data to measure defense.

    SABR Defensive Index is one of those data points and it is used to help select the Rawlings Gold Glove Award ®. According to their site, “The SABR Defensive Index accounts for approximately 25 percent of the Rawlings Gold Glove Award selection process that was added to the votes from the managers and coaches.”

    A perfect system? No. But a better system? Probably.

    MIN 2, TEX 0: La MaKKKKKKKKKKKKina

    Jose Berrios struck out a career-high 12 batters and pitched seven shutout innings to set the tone for the Twins. The offense managed to scratch across two runs, both coming with two outs, and the bullpen combo of Trevor Hildenberger and Fernando Rodney protected the lead.

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    Robbie Grossman Baseball Cards

    Page Creator:

    William Malone

    Other Contributors:

    Brock Beauchamp

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