Todd Zeile

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Todd Edward Zeile
(Goodwill or Ziplock)

• Bats Right, Throws Right
• Height 6' 1", Weight 190 lb.
• School University of California, Los Angeles
• High School Hart High School (Newhall)
• Debut August 18, 1989
• Final Game October 3, 2004
• Born September 9, 1965 in Van Nuys, CA USA

BR page

Biographical Information

Journeyman

Todd Zeile was signed as a 3rd round pick in the 1986 amateur draft by the St. Louis Cardinals and scout Marty Keough.

Zeile played for 11 major league teams over fifteen seasons. This is just one team short of the record at the time, which was 12, shared by Deacon McGuire and Mike Morgan. Zeile began his career as a catcher, moved to third base, then played first base, before returning to third. He committed more errors (219) than any other player in the 1990s.

Zeile was the first player in history to hit a home run for 11 Major League teams: the previous record had stood for 108 years. (Tom Brown, Dan Brouthers and Kenny Lofton each hit home runs for ten teams.) Matt Stairs tied Zeile's record in 2010. He was one of only a handful of players to hit 250 or more home runs and never make a big league All-Star team.

He was the starting third-baseman on two division-winning Texas Rangers teams.

Acting Career

Zeile had a cameo in a sketch on Saturday Night Live on December 13, 1997. He also played "Mullet" in the 2005 movie, "Dirty Deeds" in which he received credit as an executive producer. His wife and Jason Giambi were also executive producers of the movie. He appeared in two episodes of "The King of Queens" in 2005 and 2006.

Other Notes

An article in Baseball Digest in 2001 looked at major league career leaders by alphabetical last name. Zeile was one of the leaders in most categories, along with other long-time ballplayers with names that started with a Z: Heinie Zimmerman, Chief Zimmer, Richie Zisk, and Gus Zernial. He was the all-time home run leader for players in that category with 253 until passed by Ryan Zimmerman in April of 2018. Todd is married to 1984 Olympic gold-medal gymnast Julianne McNamara.

Zeile's nephew, Shane Zeile, also went to UCLA and was a fifth-round pick in the 2014 amateur draft.

Notable Achievements

• 1987 MVP Midwest League Springfield Cardinals
• 30-Home Run Seasons: 1 (1997)
• 100 RBI Seasons: 1 (1993)

Related Sites

• Todd Zeile at the SABR Bio Project