Eli Whiteside

Dustin Eli Whiteside (born October 22, 1979) is an American former professional baseball catcher who is currently a roving catching instructor for the San Francisco Giants. He stands tall, weighs . He batted and threw right-handed. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Baltimore Orioles, San Francisco Giants, and Chicago Cubs.

Whiteside attended Delta State University before being drafted in the sixth round of the 2001 Major League Baseball (MLB) Draft by the Baltimore Orioles. He played in their organization through 2007, though he only played nine games in the major leagues with the Orioles, all coming in 2005. He signed with the Minnesota Twins in 2008 but was released after playing for their Triple-A team for a month. The San Francisco Giants then signed him, assigning him to the minor leagues. He was called up to be their backup catcher in May 2009, and he caught Jonathan Sánchez's no-hitter on July 10. In 2010, he remained the backup catcher and was on the Giants' roster when they won the World Series, despite not playing any playoff games.

After an injury to Buster Posey in May 2011, Whiteside split time catching with Chris Stewart for the rest of the year. He lost the role of backup to Héctor Sánchez in 2012 and appeared in just 12 games for the Giants during their second World Series-winning season in three years. Following 2012, Whiteside was claimed off waivers multiple times by different clubs before finally winding up with the Texas Rangers, who assigned him to their Triple-A team in 2013. In 2014, he competed for a spot on the Cubs' roster but was beaten out by John Baker and sent to the minors.

Early life Whiteside was born on October 22, 1979, in New Albany, Mississippi. He was raised on an 80-acre farm that belonged to his grandfather. Whiteside attended W. P. Daniel High School, where he played both baseball and soccer before graduation in 1998.

He then spent three years at Delta State University, majoring in business. At Delta State, he was an All-American, an All-Gulf South Conference, and an All-Region player all three years with the baseball team, in which he batted .390/.440/.620. After his junior year in 2001, the Baltimore Orioles drafted Whiteside in the sixth round of the Major League Baseball (MLB) Draft.

Professional career

Baltimore Orioles (2005) Whiteside began his minor league career in 2001 with the Single-A Delmarva Shorebirds of the South Atlantic League. In 61 games (212 at bats), he batted .250 with 53 hits, seven home runs, and 28 runs batted in (RBI). He finished second on the club in home runs and had a caught stealing percentage of 41%. On July 4, Whiteside was called up by the Orioles after Gerónimo Gil was placed on the disabled list. He made his major league debut the next day, entering as a defensive replacement for Fasano in a 12–3 loss to the New York Yankees. Four days later, making his first major league start, he got his first hit, an RBI single against Scott Cassidy in a 9–1 victory over the Boston Red Sox. He appeared in six games and committed two throwing errors, one of which was important. On July 19, he made a wild throw to second base on a stolen base attempt that put Joe Mauer in position to score the tying run from third on a wild pitch in a 4–3 loss to the Minnesota Twins. Whiteside was sent back to Ottawa on July 25 when Javy López came off the disabled list. In 95 games (317 at bats) with Ottawa, Whiteside hit .233 with 74 hits, four home runs, and 27 RBI while posting a caught stealing percentage of 40%. On May 21, Whiteside had four RBI in a game against the Rochester Red Wings, and he had back-to-back three-hit games against the Norfolk Tides from July 23 through 24. Whiteside began the season with the Orioles' Triple-A affiliate, which was now the Norfolk Tides, but after he batted .180 in 18 games he was reassigned to Bowie on May 11. He spent time on the disabled list from June 18 through July 12 with a fractured right cheekbone. Upon returning, he had a seven-game hitting streak, but he was lost for the season on August 6 after suffering a concussion.

San Francisco Giants (2009-2012) Five days after getting released by the Twins, the San Francisco Giants signed Whiteside. He had a .986 fielding percentage but only threw out seven percent of attempted base-stealers. In 57 games (175 at bats) between Rochester and Fresno, he hit .229 with 40 hits, three home runs, and 23 RBI. The same day, he played his first major league game in four years (and his first for a National League team). He finished the game with a hit and an RBI in three at-bats. Matt Cain said of Whiteside, "He's been great. He's a guy who definitely takes advantage of his days in between, when he's not catching, and asking what guys threw in situations and what the pitches were, so he isn't thrown into the fire the days he's starting. Even if he doesn't see a team, he's still figuring out how guys got them out. He's definitely always learning." threw a no-hitter against the San Diego Padres. When asked if he thought it was more unlikely for Sánchez to throw a no-hitter or for him to catch it, he said, "Probably me catching one." He hit a grand slam, his first Major League home run, against Brian Moehler of the Houston Astros in a 10–6 Giants' victory on August 5, 2009. He joined Bobby Bonds, Dave Kingman, Brandon Crawford and Brian Dallimore as the only Giants to hit a grand slam for their first home run. He served as Sánchez's personal catcher for much of the season, catching 19 of his starts. Following Molina's trade to the Texas Rangers on June 30, Whiteside saw his playing time reduced as Buster Posey caught more and more games; Whiteside would only start six of the Giants' final 57 games. He finished the regular season with a .238 batting average, appearing in 73 games. Though Whiteside did not appear in any playoff games, he was on the team's roster throughout the playoffs, earning his first career championship title after the Giants won the series against the Rangers.

In 2011, Whiteside again began the year as the backup catcher. However, following Posey's season-ending leg injury on May 25, 2011, he moved into a more prominent role, splitting starting time with Chris Stewart. On June 22, he had two hits (including a triple) and a season-high three RBI in a 5–2 victory over the Twins. He had a season-high three hits on July 14 in a 12-inning, 6–2 victory over San Diego. From August 19 through August 25, he was on the seven-day disabled list with a concussion. In 82 games (213 at bats), Whiteside hit .197 with 42 hits, four home runs, and 17 RBI.

In 2012 spring training, Whiteside competed with Stewart for the backup catcher job. However, the Giants ultimately decided to give the role to prospect Héctor Sánchez, a promising hitter who had been expected to start the season with Fresno to work on his defense. Stewart was traded to the Yankees and Whiteside was sent to Fresno. In 60 games (201 at bats) with Fresno, he hit .224 with 45 hits, one home run, and 20 RBI. He was then recalled on August 26 to be the third-string catcher. Whiteside appeared in 12 games with the Giants in 2012, having one hit (an RBI double) in 11 at bats. Just two days later, the Yankees designated Whiteside for assignment to make room for Andy Pettitte. On December 3, he was claimed off waivers by the Toronto Blue Jays. He was designated for assignment by the Rangers on January 3, 2013, and removed from the 40 man roster to make room for Jason Frasor. Whiteside cleared waivers the next day and was assigned to the Rangers' Triple-A affiliate Round Rock Express of the Pacific Coast League.

Whiteside attended 2013 spring training as a non-roster invitee, appearing in five games. In 67 games (225 at bats) with the Express, he hit .187 with 5 home runs and 25 RBI. His contract was selected from Iowa on June 3 when Welington Castillo was placed on the disabled list. Whiteside appeared in eight games, batting .120. Whiteside elected free agency in October 2014.

Retirement He signed a minor league contract with the Atlanta Braves during the off-season in 2015, but decided to retire instead. He returned to the San Francisco Giants as a bullpen catcher.

Personal life Whiteside married his high school sweetheart, Amy, in 2004. They have two sons: Whit and Wake who play soccer at TFC New albany. Whiteside is easily recognized by his completely gray hair, which he said began to gray when he was in high school. Whiteside said, "I've come to terms with it. As long as it doesn't fall out, I'll be doing all right, I think."