Milwaukee’s Best, Part 4: The 50 Best To Play For Braves, Brewers: 20-11
By Phil Watson
Sixto Lezcano, as shown on a 1980 Topps baseball card.
20. Sixto Lezcano, RF
Brewers 1974-80
The Brewers signed Sixto Lezcano as a 16-year-old international free agent from Puerto Rico in October 1970 and by September 1974, Lezcano was in the big leagues.
He took over as the regular right fielder in 1975 and turned into one of the best defensive outfielders in baseball, capped by a Gold Glove Award in 1979.
He had a career year offensively that season as well, hitting .321/.414/.573 with 28 homers and 101 RBI.
In 1979, Lezcano was third in the American League in slugging, fourth in on-base percentage, seventh in batting and 10th in home runs.
The Brewers traded Lezcano along with right-hander Lary Sorensen, left-hander Dave LaPoint and outfielder David Green in December 1980 to the St. Louis Cardinals for catcher Ted Simmons, closer Rollie Fingers and right-hander Pete Vuckovich.
Lezcano was later traded to the San Diego Padres in December 1981 and to the Philadelphia Phillies in August 1983 before signing as a free agent with the Pittsburgh Pirates in January 1985.
Lezcano was released by the Pirates in April 1986 and after a year away from the game, he attempted to revive his career in 1987 with the Yokohama Taiyo Whales in the Japan Central League, but was released after hitting .217/.250/.348 in 20 games.
Lezcano has been a coach in the Atlanta Braves organization since 2004.
Here are Lezcano’s statistics from his seven seasons with the Brewers:
| Year | Age | G | PA | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | SB | CS | BB | SO | BA | OBP | SLG | OPS | OPS+ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1974 | 20 | 15 | 61 | 54 | 5 | 13 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 9 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 9 | .241 | .283 | .389 | .672 | 93 |
| 1975 | 21 | 134 | 489 | 429 | 55 | 106 | 19 | 3 | 11 | 43 | 5 | 5 | 46 | 93 | .247 | .324 | .382 | .706 | 100 |
| 1976 | 22 | 145 | 580 | 513 | 53 | 146 | 19 | 5 | 7 | 56 | 14 | 10 | 51 | 112 | .285 | .348 | .382 | .730 | 116 |
| 1977 | 23 | 109 | 457 | 400 | 50 | 109 | 21 | 4 | 21 | 49 | 6 | 5 | 52 | 78 | .273 | .358 | .503 | .861 | 133 |
| 1978 | 24 | 132 | 519 | 442 | 62 | 129 | 21 | 4 | 15 | 61 | 3 | 3 | 64 | 83 | .292 | .377 | .459 | .837 | 135 |
| 1979 | 25 | 138 | 566 | 473 | 84 | 152 | 29 | 3 | 28 | 101 | 4 | 3 | 77 | 74 | .321 | .414 | .573 | .987 | 164 |
| 1980 | 26 | 112 | 460 | 411 | 51 | 94 | 19 | 3 | 18 | 55 | 1 | 1 | 39 | 75 | .229 | .298 | .421 | .719 | 98 |
| TOTALS | 785 | 3132 | 2722 | 360 | 749 | 130 | 22 | 102 | 374 | 34 | 28 | 333 | 524 | .275 | .354 | .452 | .805 | 125 |
Provided by Baseball-Reference.com: View Original Table
Generated 3/20/2015.
Next: 19. All-Star Catcher, Hall Of Fame Manager