Jason Bay Part Of Four Player Major League Trade
8/26/2003 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
Aug. 26, 2003
PITTSBURGH - Former Gonzaga University baseball player Jason Bay has been traded for the third time in his career as he was part of a four player deal on Tuesday afternoon that sent the outfielder from the San Diego Padres organization to the Pittsburgh Pirates for outfielder Brian Giles. The Pirates also acquired left-hander Oliver Perez and a player to be named later in the deal announced by Pittsburgh Senior Vice President and General Manager Dave Littlefield. Bay and Perez are expected to join the Pirates in time for Wednesday night's game against the Florida Marlins.
Prior to the trade Bay was playing for the Padres Triple-A franchise in Portland, Ore. The 24-year-old was hitting .303 with a team-leading 20 home runs and 59 RBI with the Beavers. Bay was tied for the Pacific Coast League lead with a .541 slugging percentage and ranked third in the league with a .410 on-base percentage. Bay made his Major League debut on May 23 this year during a three-game series against the Arizona Diamondbacks. Bay appeared in three games before being sent to the disabled list with a broken hand. He went 2-for-8 with a home run and two RBI during his short stint in the Majors.
A 22nd round selection by the Montreal Expos in the 2000 baseball draft, Bay was traded to the New York Mets organization in 2002 before being dealt to the Padres midway through the 2002 season. Bay has compiled a .300 batting average in four minor league seasons including a .362 average in Clinton in 2001 when he won the Midwest League batting title.
A native of Trail, B.C., Bay played two seasons for Gonzaga earning first team All-West Coast Conference honors in 1999 and 2000. Bay won the WCC batting crown in 2000 with a .388 average and finished his Bulldogs career with a .374 career mark. Bay also ranks third on the Bulldogs career home run list with 35.
