Curtis Granderson Jr. (born March 16, 1981), nicknamed "the Grandyman," is an American former professional baseball outfielder. He played 16 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Detroit Tigers, New York Yankees, New York Mets, Los Angeles Dodgers, Toronto Blue Jays, Milwaukee Brewers, and Miami Marlins.
Granderson played college baseball at the University of Illinois Chicago. He was chosen by the Tigers in the 2002 MLB draft. He started playing in the MLB with the Tigers in 2004. Granderson was named to the MLB All-Star team three times and won a Silver Slugger Award in 2011. He retired after the 2019 season.
Off the field, Granderson is known for helping others through community projects and charity work. Much of his charity work supports children in urban areas. He has also worked as an ambassador for MLB in other countries. Granderson won the Marvin Miller Man of the Year Award four times and the Roberto Clemente Award in 2016 for his work in the community.
Early years
Granderson was born and raised in Blue Island, Illinois, and Lynwood, Illinois, which are areas near Chicago. His father, Curtis Sr., worked as a dean and physical education teacher at Nathan Hale Elementary School in Illinois. His mother, Mary, taught chemistry at Curie Metropolitan High School in Chicago. Granderson has a half-sister who is an English professor at Jackson State University.
As a child, Granderson was a fan of the Atlanta Braves, a baseball team in Major League Baseball (MLB). He did not support the Chicago Cubs, a local team, because he often returned home from school quickly to watch the TV show Saved by the Bell and was upset when Cubs games were on television instead. Granderson attended Thornton Fractional South High School (T.F. South) in Lansing, Illinois, where he played baseball and basketball. In high school, he had a batting average of .369, hit 11 home runs, and recorded 88 runs batted in (RBIs). He was honored as an All-State selection during his senior year. Granderson wore uniform number 14 at T.F. South because his father wore the same number while playing softball. In December 2011, T.F. South retired Granderson’s jersey in a special ceremony.
College career
Granderson was invited by several college baseball programs and chose the University of Illinois Chicago (UIC) because the school allowed him to play both baseball and basketball. However, he stopped playing basketball after two weeks of his freshman year to focus on baseball. In 2000, as a freshman, Granderson had the most home runs and walks for the UIC Flames, with seven home runs and 45 walks. He then hit .304 as a sophomore, leading the team in runs, home runs, and walks. After his sophomore year, Granderson played in a summer league with the Mankato Mashers of the Northwoods League, where he hit .328 in 44 games. During that time, he had eight doubles, two triples, one home run, 17 RBIs, 28 runs scored, and 15 stolen bases. He wore number 28, which the team retired on May 29, 2023.
During his junior season at UIC, Granderson hit .483, which was second in the country to Rickie Weeks Jr. He was named to the Second-Team All-American by Baseball America and USA Today’s Baseball Weekly and was also selected as a Third-Team Louisville Slugger NCAA Division I All-American. Granderson earned a double major in business administration and business marketing from UIC. On February 6, 2013, UIC retired Granderson’s number 28.
Professional career
The Detroit Tigers selected Curtis Granderson in the third round of the 2002 MLB draft. The Tigers assigned Granderson to the Oneonta Tigers, their Minor League Baseball affiliate in the Class A-Short Season New York-Penn League. With Oneonta, Granderson batted .344 in 52 games. Determined to finish his college education, even though the fall semester began before the minor league season ended, Granderson arranged to begin his senior year at UIC through internet courses.
The Tigers assigned Granderson to the Lakeland Tigers of the Class A-Advanced Florida State League in 2003 and the Erie SeaWolves of the Double-A Eastern League in 2004. With the SeaWolves, Granderson hit .303 with 21 home runs and 93 RBIs. Baseball America named Granderson the Tigers' minor league player of the year and top prospect after the 2004 season. Before the 2005 season, Baseball America ranked Granderson as the 57th best prospect in baseball. Granderson competed for the Tigers' starting center fielder position in 2005 spring training, but the team decided he needed more experience and assigned him to the Toledo Mud Hens of the Triple-A International League. With Toledo, he hit .290 with 15 home runs, 65 RBIs, and 22 stolen bases.
The Tigers promoted Granderson to MLB for the first time in September 2004. He made his MLB debut on September 13 against the Minnesota Twins, going hitless but throwing out a baserunner from the outfield. He received his second promotion to the majors in July 2005, playing in six games. After his third promotion to MLB that August, he stayed in the majors permanently. Granderson hit his first MLB inside-the-park home run on September 15, had a five-hit game on September 18, and hit a walk-off home run on September 26 against the Chicago White Sox.
Granderson became the Tigers' starting center fielder for the 2006 season after beating out Nook Logan for the position during spring training. From the start of his major league career in 2004, Granderson began a 151-game errorless streak, the longest by a position player to start his career since Dave Roberts went errorless in 205 games. Granderson hit two home runs during the American League (AL) Division Series and one in the AL Championship Series, but struggled in the World Series, batting .095, as the Cardinals defeated the Tigers.
Through June, Granderson ranked first among AL outfielders in triples (14), third in doubles (22), tied for fourth in runs (58), and tied for 10th in home runs (11) with a .289 batting average in the 2007 season. Although Granderson was not listed on the All-Star Game ballot, due to the Tigers' decision to put Gary Sheffield as an outfielder on the ballot, he still received 376,033 write-in votes, the most write-in votes for any player. Granderson was named the AL Player of the Week on July 16, the first time he had won the award, as he hit .500 (8 for 16) with two doubles, a triple, and a home run during that week. Granderson slugged .938, drove in two runs, scored seven runs, and had fifteen total bases during Detroit's four-game series against the Seattle Mariners.
On August 7, Granderson became the second player in franchise history to have at least 30 doubles, 15 triples, 15 home runs, and ten stolen bases in a single season when he hit a double in a game against the Tampa Bay Devil Rays. The other Tiger to accomplish this feat was Charlie Gehringer in 1930. He became the sixth member of baseball's 20–20–20 club on September 7, joining the Kansas City Royals' George Brett (1979), Willie Mays of the New York Giants (1957), Cleveland's Jeff Heath (1941), St. Louis' Jim Bottomley (1928), and Frank Schulte of the Chicago Cubs (1911). Granderson stole his 20th base of the season on September 9, joining Mays and Schulte as the only players in major league history to reach 20 doubles, 20 triples, 20 home runs, and 20 stolen bases in a season, a feat accomplished by the Philadelphia Phillies' Jimmy Rollins 21 days later.
Granderson hit .302 with 23 home runs for the season, and was 26 for 27 in stolen base attempts. He also improved his plate discipline, as he finished seventh in the AL in strikeouts with 141. He was one of six AL players to have at least 20 home runs and 20 stolen bases, along with teammate Gary Sheffield, Ian Kinsler, Alex Rodriguez, Grady Sizemore, and B. J. Upton.
During the 2007 season, Granderson hit 23 triples, which led all of baseball. The Tigers and AL single-season record is 36 triples, achieved by Sam Crawford, the all-time triples king, in 1914. Granderson was the first player since 1949 with at least 23 in a season. Granderson hit only ten triples at home despite the fact Comerica Park allowed far more triples than most MLB ballparks. Granderson's 23 triples matched or exceeded six entire teams' triples in 2007: the Chicago White Sox, Cincinnati Reds, Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, Oakland Athletics, Seattle Mariners, and St. Louis Cardinals.
In February 2008, Granderson signed a five-year, $30.25 million contract extension with the Tigers that included a club option for 2013. Granderson continued hitting well in 2008, finishing with a .280 batting average, 13 triples, and 22 home runs. He continued to improve his plate discipline, striking out only 111 times (versus 141 in 2007 and 174 in 2006) and drawing a career-high 71 walks. During August, he hit six triples, including two in consecutive innings during a game
Personal life
Granderson enjoys watching WWE and attended WrestleMania 23 in Detroit. His favorite wrestlers include the Ultimate Warrior, the Undertaker, Junkyard Dog, and "Macho Man" Randy Savage. He also likes college basketball and supports the Kansas Jayhawks team.
Granderson has worked as an ambassador for Major League Baseball International. He has visited countries such as England, Italy, the Netherlands, France, South Africa, China, New Zealand, South Korea, and Japan to help promote baseball. Commissioner Bud Selig wrote a letter thanking him, stating, "There are many talented players in Major League Baseball, but I believe no one is better suited to represent our national pastime than you." Granderson has also supported African-American baseball players by discussing challenges they face in the sport. When he signed deals with companies like Nike, Louisville Slugger, and Rawlings, he requested that they donate money or equipment to inner-city baseball programs instead of giving him money.
Granderson founded the Grand Kids Foundation, which raises funds to support the education of children in inner-city areas. He wrote a children’s book titled All You Can Be: Dream It, Draw It, Become It!, published in August 2009. The book includes illustrations by students from New York City public schools. In February 2010, he represented Major League Baseball at a White House event to announce Let’s Move!, a program led by First Lady Michelle Obama to help reduce childhood obesity. In 2013, Granderson donated $5 million to help build a new baseball stadium at the University of Illinois at Chicago.
Since 2006, Granderson has been part of the Major League Baseball Players Association (MLBPA) and has participated in discussions about labor contracts. He won the Marvin Miller Man of the Year Award in 2009, 2016, 2018, and 2019 for his work outside of baseball.
In 2011, a survey by Sports Illustrated of 290 players named Granderson one of the friendliest players in Major League Baseball. During his career, he wore his socks high to honor players from the Negro leagues.
Publications
Granderson, Curtis (2009). All You Can Be: Dream It, Draw It, Become It! . Published by Triumph Books. ISBN 978-1-60078-247-3. Accessed on December 13, 2011.