Vernon Wells

On September 24, he recorded his 500th RBI in a game against the Boston Red Sox.

Vernon Michael Wells III (born December 8, 1978) is an American former professional baseball center fielder.

He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Toronto Blue Jays, the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, and the New York Yankees.

Wells has appeared on three All-Star teams in his career, been awarded three Gold Glove Awards, and one Silver Slugger Award.

He is second all-time for the Blue Jays in career hits, doubles, runs, RBI and total bases, and fourth in home runs, behind Carlos Delgado, José Bautista, and Edwin Encarnación.

Wells was born in Shreveport, Louisiana, to Vernon Wells, Jr. and grew up in Arlington, Texas, where his family moved in 1988.

His father played in the Canadian Football League and is an accomplished painter.

In 1993, Wells entered Arlington's Bowie High School where he played quarterback on the football team and was an outfielder on the baseball team.

In his senior year, he batted .565 with seven home runs and 20 runs batted in (RBI).

Before entering the Major League Baseball Draft, Wells signed a letter of intent to attend the University of Texas at Austin to play baseball and football (as a wide receiver).

The Toronto Blue Jays made Wells the fifth pick overall in the 1997 MLB draft out of Bowie High School.

He spent several years as a top prospect in the Blue Jays organization, starting with the St. Catharines Stompers, Toronto's Class-A team in the short-season New York–Penn League.

In 1998, he played for the Hagerstown Suns and was selected as the Utility Outfielder on the South Atlantic League End of Season All-Star Team.

In 1999, he played in the Australian Baseball League with the Sydney Storm.

From 1999 through 2001, Wells was a regular September call-up and played in 57 major league games.

In 2002, Wells was given his first chance to be an everyday player.

Although disqualified from Rookie of the Year contention because he had exceeded the 130 career at-bat limit to qualify as a rookie (the award went to teammate Eric Hinske), Wells proved himself to be one of the game's rising stars.

He batted .275 with 23 home runs, 100 RBI and 87 runs while becoming one of the best defensive center fielders in the game.

In 2003, Wells' finished the season with a .317 batting average, 33 home runs, 117 RBI and 118 runs.

He led the league with 215 hits, 49 doubles, and 373 total bases and finished eighth in American League MVP voting.

He also participated in his first All-Star game.

He won the AL co-player of the week for the first time on June 23, 2003, sharing the honor with Corey Koskie.

Wells won his first Gold Glove Award in 2004, and a second in 2005.

Wells began the 2006 season on a torrid pace, and continued to hit well throughout the year, ending the season with a .303 batting average, 32 home runs, and 106 runs batted in.

Wells' year was capped by a game against the Boston Red Sox on May 30 in which he hit three home runs, with two coming off of Red Sox starter Josh Beckett.

He won the AL player of the week honor on July 24.

Wells was selected as a reserve outfielder on the American League All-Star Team and was promoted to the League's starting lineup after an injury to Boston's Manny Ramírez.

It was his second appearance in the mid-summer classic.

During the season, Blue Jays general manager J.P. Ricciardi criticized Wells, as well as teammates Troy Glaus and Shea Hillenbrand, for failure to perform during key situations after two losses to the Kansas City Royals just before the 2006 All-Star break.

He followed such criticisms with great play throughout the rest of the year, including a walk-off home run against New York Yankees closer Mariano Rivera.

At the end of the 2006 season, Wells was awarded his third consecutive Gold Glove Award for outfield defense, along with Torii Hunter, and Ichiro Suzuki.

On December 15, 2006, Wells signed a back-loaded contract extension for $126 million over seven years with the Blue Jays.

Wells suffered a shoulder injury early in the 2007 season, and had season-ending shoulder surgery in September.

He finished the season batting just .245 with 16 home runs and 80 RBI in 149 games.

On May 9, 2008, Wells suffered a broken left wrist while making a diving catch against the Cleveland Indians and was placed on the disabled list the next day.

He returned on June 7, but later strained his left hamstring on July 9 and missed over a month of the season.

Despite the significant amount of time missed to injury, 2008 otherwise represented a return to form for Wells as he finished the year hitting .300 with 20 home runs and 78 RBI in just 108 games.

During spring training in 2009, Wells suffered another injury, a strained left hamstring which kept him out for several weeks.

At the beginning of the season, Wells batted fourth in the lineup and was playing center field.

He struggled with consistency at the plate, and was subsequently dropped from the fourth spot in the lineup before the All-Star break.