Rey Ordonez, shortstop - NYM, TAM, CHC1999: Gold Glove winner; .994 fielding percentage; 4 errors in 154 games; 1 home run.
Ordonez never was known for his ability with the bat - hit a combined 12 home runs in his 9 seasons of professional ball. But his defense is what kept him in the lineup all those years, featuring his "patented" sliding knee stab and throw technique. By 2002, the Mets had seen enough horrid swings from Ordonez, and dealt him to the Tampa Bay Devil Rays. Ordonez never really had any kind of playing time after that, and pretty much took the money and ran.
1999: .292 batting average; 18 home runs; 68 RBIs; .393 OBP; 28 SB
Knobluach was the Rookie of the Year winner in 1991 with the Twins, but it honestly wasn't a very impressive season. He amassed only one home run over his 565 at-bats, and only hit .281. But he won three rings with the Yankees, and was a 4-time All-Star over his 12 year career. But towards the tail end of his career, Knobluach started having serious problems in the field. With 26 errors in 1999 and 15 the following season, the Yanks had grown tired of the throws into the stands from second base, and allowed him to sign with the Royals after the 2001 campaign. He retired a year later.
1995: Rookie of the Year; 24 home runs; .277 batting average; 84 RBIs; 20 SB; .486 SLG%
Cordova also won the Rookie of the Year honors with the Twins, in 1995. His rookie season was actually admirable, and, though plagued by injuries throughout part of his career, he finished with some nice numbers. In his 9 major league seasons, Cordova totalled 122 career home runs, and a career batting average of .274.
1995: Rookie of the Year; 13-6; 2.54 ERA; 236 K; 192 IP
Nomo burst onto the scene with the Dodgers in 1995 with his funky wind-up and wound up being named the National League Rookie of the Year, and being selected to be on the All-Star team. He had some pretty good subsequential seasons as well, going 16-11 in 1996 and a career best 16-6 in 2002 (during a second stint with the Dodgers). But his career took a sharp decline after 2003. In his final two seasons (2004-05), Nomo finished a combined 9-19 and struck out only 10 more batters than he walked. Nomo, who will be 40 before 2008 comes to a close, hasn't pitched in the biggs since 2005, but there are reports that he is pitching in winter ball this off-season, in attempt to resurrect what was once a very promising career.
1998: 13-9; 4.06 ERA; 126 K; 76 BB
Keeping with the Japanese pitching phenoms, Irabu came up with the Yanks after being sent to the Bombers by the San Diego Padres to complete a trade made earlier in the season. The 38-year old right-hander was supposed to be the next big thing for the Yankees. But after a couple of promising seasons in the Bronx, owner George Steinbrenner had seen enough from the "Fat Toad", as the Boss had once called him, and traded him to the now defunked Montreal Expos. Irabu never had much of a career after that, starting in only 16 games between 2000-02.
Rico Brogna, first base - DET, NYM, PHI, BOS, ATL1999: 24 homeruns; 102 RBI; .278 batting average; .454 SLG%
Rico Brogna was possibly one of the most underrated first basemen of the 1990s. He had 4 seasons of 20+ home runs, while flashing a very nifty glove over at first. His career fielding percentage is a crisp .995, and wound up being a real leader for a struggling mid-to-late 90s Mets team. But after having one good year in Philly, Brogna's body gave way to injuries and a decline in production lead to his demise.
Those were the names I was able to come up with. I am interested to see if anyone else can think of players of recent memory who had great promise, or perhaps came out of nowhere to put up a career year, only to become more of a bust than a prize.
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