Brett Gardner has been with the Yankees since June 30, 2008. Selected with the 109th overall pick in the 3rd round of the 2005 draft, Gardner received a $210,000 signing bonus and began in the depths of the minor league system.
He compiled a minor league career batting average of .291 with a .389 OBP. Most notably Gardner stole a total of 183 bases, being caught only 31 times for an 83% success rate.
Gardy collected his first major league hit on July 2, 2008, with an RBI. He’d also steal a base and score a run that day — seems like forever ago.