THIS DAY IN BÉISBOL November 30: Controversial SS Miguel Tejada signs with Giants

Miguel Tejada was at the tail end of his controversial career when the former AL MVP shortstop signed a one-year deal with the San Francisco Giants on this day in béisbol, November 30, 2010.

The Dominican native was arguably the best-hitting shortstop in the American League during his heyday, averaging 29 homers, 118 RBI and a .297 average during his prime years of 2000 to 2006 with the Athletics and the Orioles.

Tejada’s later years were marred by injuries and multiple allegations of performance enhancing drug use that were never proven, though he served a one-year probation for lying to Congress about PED use in the major leagues. He was also suspended for 105 games spanning in 2013 and 2014 seasons after testing positive for amphetamines.

After playing his final MLB game in 2013 with the Royals, he officially retired two years later with 307 career homers, 1,302 RBI and a .285 average.

Also on this day: In 1971, Cuban shortstop Leo Cardenas was traded by the Minnesota Twins to the California Angels for pitcher Dave LaRoche. Cardenas, regarded for his glove and bat, was the starting shortstop for the Cincinnati Reds for seven seasons, including the pennant-wining 1962 team.

dbking on Flickr (Original version) UCinternational (Crop), CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons; LatinoBaseball.com illustration