American softball player
Crystl Irene Bustos (born September 8, 1977), also known as The Big Bruiser , is an American softball player at the designated hitter or third base position although on the roster she is a designated player .[ 1] She is a two-time Olympic gold medalist. She holds the world record for home runs during an Olympic series, with six.[ 2]
Career
Bustos, a Mexican American , was born in Canyon Country, California (currently a part of Santa Clarita ). She began her career playing softball at Canyon Country Little League and attended Palm Beach Community College .[ 3] She is a member of the 2008 U.S. Olympic softball team, which won the silver medal after losing to Japan in the gold-medal game, the first loss for the U.S. women in 23 straight Olympic games.[ 4] Her accomplishments also include two World Cup Championships (2006 and 2007), three Pan American gold medals (1999, 2003 and 2007), and a gold medal at the 2006 ISF World Championships . She has also played for the NPF Akron Racers , and was the Most Valuable Player in the WPSL for the Orlando Wahoos in 1998.[ 5]
Bustos announced that she would retire from international competition after the 2008 Beijing Olympics .[ 6]
Bustos was named 2008 USA Softball Player of the Year. She became the field manager for the Akron Racers in October 2009,[ 7] but elected to return to the playing field for the Racers in 2010.
Statistics
[ 8] [ 9] [ 10]
Team USA
YEAR
G
AB
R
H
BA
RBI
HR
3B
2B
TB
SLG
BB
SO
SB
SBA
2000
10
37
5
10
.270
4
2
0
1
17
.459%
4
8
1
1
2004
9
26
9
9
.346
10
5
0
0
24
.923%
2
4
0
0
2008
9
22
12
11
.500
10
6
0
0
29
1.318%
6
1
0
0
TOTALS
28
85
26
30
.353
24
13
0
1
70
.823%
12
13
1
1
References
^ Coffey, Wayne (July 4, 2000). "CRYSTL PURE GOLD FOR U.S. WOMEN'S OLYMPIC SOFTBALLER GETS RAVES" . New York Daily News . Archived from the original on September 12, 2008.
^ "U.S. advances to gold medal game with 5-0 win over Australia" . Amateur Softball Association. August 22, 2004. Retrieved October 25, 2006 .
^ Branch, John (August 17, 2008). "Bustos Is a Rugged Slugger With a Heart of Gold" . New York Times . Retrieved July 12, 2015 .
^ "Team USA loses bid for fourth straight softball gold medal" . Sports Illustrated. August 21, 2008. Archived from the original on August 24, 2008.
^ "Crystl Bustos" . United States Olympic Committee. Retrieved August 16, 2008 .[permanent dead link ]
^ Branch, John (August 16, 2008). "The Babe Ruth of Women's Softball Has a Heart of Gold" . New York Times . Retrieved April 30, 2010 .
^ cleveland.com
^ "Olympic Games Sydney, Australia" . Teamusa.org . Archived from the original on December 29, 2015. Retrieved June 26, 2018 .
^ "Olympic Games Athens, Greece" . Teamusa.org . Archived from the original on December 29, 2015. Retrieved June 26, 2018 .
^ "Olympic Games Beijing China" . Teamusa.org . Archived from the original on August 9, 2014. Retrieved June 26, 2018 .
External links