Todd Sears Season 1997

Todd Sears, a native of Ankeny, Iowa, spent three seasons with the Huskers from 1995 to 1997. In his freshman season, Sears batted .346 with 54 hits, 51 runs scored and 10 home runs. Against Missouri, Sears hit for the cycle, going 4-5 at the plate and adding two runs scored and four RBIs. Sears also had a career-high nine RBIs in a game against Washington, going 4-7 at the plate, including a grand slam and a two-run home run. His play on the field earned him multiple postseason honors, including Big Eight Co-Freshman of the Year, honorable mention All-Big Eight and first-team Freshman All-American by Baseball America.

In his sophomore campaign, Sears batted .380 with 82 hits, 62 RBI's, all of which were second-best on the team. He also hit a team-high 18 doubles and led the Huskers with 60 runs scored, which helped him earn honorable mention All-Big Eight honors for the second consecutive year.

During his final season with the Huskers, Sears led the team in multiple offensive categories, including batting average (.421), home runs (17), total bases (173), walks (62) and slugging percentage (.742). He added 98 hits, 78 runs scored and 18 doubles on his way to earning first-team All-Big 12 honors and a selection as a third-team All-American by the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association. 

Todd Sears spent parts of two seasons in the Major Leagues, splitting time between the Minnesota Twins and San Diego Padres. Sears, a third-round pick of the Minnesota Twins in 1997, was called up by Minnesota on Sept. 17, 2002, hitting .333 with two doubles and three runs scored in seven contests. Sears began the 2003 season with Minnesota before being dealt to the San Diego Padres in September. He appeared in 33 games, batting .247 with two homers and 11 RBIs between the two clubs. Sears appeared in 24 games for Minnesota and drove in a career-high four runs against Boston on May 9. In limited duty with San Diego, he batted .250 with a double and two runs scored in nine games.