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Matthew Thomas "Matt" Holliday (born January 15, 1980) is an American professional baseball left fielder for the St. Louis Cardinals of Major League Baseball (MLB). A World Series champion in 2011, Holliday is regarded as a key figure of the Cardinals' success of the 2010s and of the Colorado Rockies' in 2007 for hitting, baserunning and leadership abilities. As of 2014, he has totaled nearly 2,000 hits, more than 250 home runs, 400 doubles, 1,000 runs scored, 1,000 runs batted in, 100 stolen bases, a .300 batting average, .500 slugging percentage and .900 on-base plus slugging percentage. His distinctions include six All-Star selections, four Silver Slugger Awards, a National League Championship Series Most Valuable Player Award (NLCS MVP), and a Darryl Kile Good Guy Award. Throughout his career, he has generated a significantly higher on-base plus slugging percentage (OPS) in the second-half of the season.〔(【引用サイトリンク】title=Matt Holliday career batting splits )〕 The Colorado Rockies selected Holliday in the seventh round of the 1998 Major League Baseball Draft from high school in Oklahoma, where he was also a highly touted NFL quarterback prospect. He debuted in the major leagues in 2004, becoming the Rockies' starting left fielder and a middle of the lineup presence. In 2006, he became the 19th player ever to reach 195 hits, 30 home runs, 45 doubles, 115 runs and 110 RBI in one season. The next season, he won his first batting title, September National League Player of the Month honors and NLCS MVP as the Rockies won 21 of 22 games at the end of the regular season and in the playoffs en route to their first-ever World Series appearance. Four years later, he batted .435 with a .652 slugging percentage in the NLCS on his way to winning his first World Series ring with the Cardinals. In 2014, he became just the fifth player in MLB history to amass nine consecutive seasons of at least 20 home runs, 30 doubles, 75 RBI and 80 runs scored each season. Besides the Rockies and Cardinals, Holliday has also played for the Oakland Athletics. With six total postseason appearances, he has played in the NLCS five times, including four straight with the Cardinals from 2011–14. In addition to his presence as a leader on the field, Holliday is active in charity work and assisting his teammates off the field. As a result of his leadership and hitting abilities, he has sometimes been called the "Stillwater Stinger." He is under contract through 2016, with multiple option conditions for 2017. ==Early life== Matt Holliday was born and raised in Stillwater, Oklahoma. With easy athletic skill, he showed marked talent in baseball, football and basketball as a youth. He was also physically larger than most of his friends, so when they played games, they often modified the rules to offset his size advantage. In football, Holliday was required to play quarterback for both teams. In baseball, every three of his home runs were credited as one. He spent much of his free time with his father, Tom Holliday, and brother, Josh, at the Oklahoma State University (OSU) baseball field and training complex, where his father was a coach. There, the Holliday boys learned about the fundamentals of the sport, voluntarily trained and practiced, and watched future major leaguers such as Robin Ventura play and develop. In spite of the extensive time spent around the sport of baseball, Tom Holliday abstained from attempting to influence his sons on which sport or sports to concentrate.〔 At Stillwater High School, Holliday played both baseball and football. He was a quarterback while playing football. As a senior, he earned All-American honors in football and baseball and also earned his region's Gatorade Player of the Year award in both sports. He also competed for the 1997 USA Junior National Team. In his next-to-last football game for Stillwater, he helped bring the Pioneers back from a 42–21 deficit against Tulsa Union by throwing three touchdowns (TD) in the final six minutes of the game for a 43–42 score. However, his high school football career ended with a 63–0 loss to Jenks in the state semifinal contest. His career passing totals included 6,211 yards and 68 TD. His 35 TD passes as a junior set a then-11 man state record.〔 He garnered so much attention as a National Football League (NFL) prospect that former Dallas Cowboys head coach Jimmy Johnson once forecasted to Tom Holliday that his son "couldn't miss."〔 He was also rated the third-best quarterback prospect in the nation after graduating from Stillwater in 1998. Numerous connections throughout college and professional baseball span Holliday's family ties. His father, Tom Holliday, is the pitching coach for the Tigers of Auburn University, and former baseball head coach of OSU. Current Atlanta Braves MLB scout, Dave Holliday, is an uncle. His older brother, Josh, is currently the head baseball coach at OSU, and a former minor league player in the Toronto Blue Jays organization. A cousin, Heath Holliday, has also played baseball as a catcher for OSU.〔(【引用サイトリンク】title=Heath Holliday bio )〕 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Matt Holliday」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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