DeJesus Traded to the Angels
Jul 29 | Baseball
PISCATAWAY, N.J. - Former Rutgers baseball standout and MLB veteran David DeJesus was traded from the Tampa Bay Rays to the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, the teams announced Tuesday. The left-handed hitter is expected to see time in left field for the Angels, who are tied for first in the American League West.
"To go over to a first-place team, a great team, a tough team, that's playing well again this year and can go deep into the playoffs -- that's awesome," DeJesus told MLB.com. Click here for more comments.
DeJesus, 35, is in his 13th year in the big leagues after breaking in with the Kansas City Royals in 2003. He has also played for the Oakland Athletics, Chicago Cubs and Washington Nationals during his professional career, holding a .276 batting average in 1,442 games. The outfielder hit .259/.323/.375 with five homers and 26 RBIs for the Rays this season and has a $5 million team option ($1 million buyout) on his contract for 2016.
A native of Brooklyn, N.Y., and graduate of Manalapan High School, DeJesus was a three-year starter (1998-2000) for the Scarlet Knights and is the second in the RU record books with 203 career runs, including a then-school and Big East record 85 during the 1999 season. He hit .373 for the Scarlet Knights as a sophomore in 1999 and followed with a .368 average as a junior in 2000. He led Rutgers to three-consecutive NCAA appearances and the Big East regular season and conference championship as a junior in 2000. He earned Big East All-Rookie honors in 1998 and was a First Team All-Big East pick in 1999 and 2000. The Royals drafted DeJesus in the fourth round of the 2000 draft.
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