This article is about the baseball player. For the U.S. Representative see John R. Buck and for the artist see John E. Buck.
| Kansas City Royals — No. 14 | |
| Catcher | |
| Born: July 7 1980 | |
|---|---|
| Bats: Right | Throws: Right |
| Major League Baseball debut | |
| June 25, 2004 for the Kansas City Royals | |
| Selected MLB statistics (through 2007) |
|
| Batting average | .237 |
| Home runs | 53 |
| Runs batted in | 175 |
| Teams | |
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Johnathan Richard Buck (born July 7, 1980 in Kemmerer, Wyoming) is an American baseball player for the Kansas City Royals. He went to high school in Taylorsville, UT. He is a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. A catcher, Buck was initially drafted by the Houston Astros in the 7th round of the 1998 Amateur Draft. He was signed to a minor league contract on June 11, 1998, but struggled in the minor leagues, failing to play a single Major League game with the Astros. on June 24, 2004, the Astros traded him as part of a trade to acquire Carlos Beltran, sending Buck to the Kansas City Royals. The Royals immediately put Buck in their starting lineup, replacing injured veteran Benito Santiago. Buck made his major league debut on June 25. Although he initially appeared overmatched by major-league pitching—his batting average reached a low of .138 on July 7—he impressed the team with his defensive ability and his handling of pitchers. His hitting improved with time, and by September 25 he had raised his average to .243 and hit 12 home runs and driven in 30. In 2006, Buck fought with teammate Runelvys Hernandez in the Royals dugout in a game against the Indians. In the 2007 season, while sharing starts with Jason LaRue, Buck saw success at the plate. At the end of May, Buck had a .272 average, 8 home runs, and 18 rbi's with an OPS around 940. On May 28th, Kansas City's manager Buddy Bell said Buck is expected to get the start when Gil Meche, Jorge de la Rosa and Odalis Perez are pitching and Jason LaRue will catch when Scott Elarton and Brian Bannister pitch. Buck remains unhappy with the situation, as he would like to be a full time catcher. After the first half of the 2007 season, he led all American League catchers in home runs with 15. He finished the season as the Royals' leader in Homers with 18.
External links
- Career statistics and player information from Baseball-Reference
