César Cedeño Encarnación (born February 25, 1951) is a Dominican former professional baseball player and coach. He played in Major League Baseball as a center fielder from 1970 to 1986, most prominently as a member of the Houston Astros where he helped the franchise win its first-ever National League Western Division title and postseason berth in . The four-time All-Star player combined speed and power to become one of the best all around players of his era. Cedeño set the standards for major league outfielders in the early 1970s by winning five consecutive Gold Glove Awards between 1972 and 1976, and he became only the second player in Major League Baseball history to hit 20 home runs and steal 50 bases in one season. He also played for the Cincinnati Reds, St. Louis Cardinals and the Los Angeles Dodgers. After his playing career, Cedeño spent several years as a minor league hitting coach for the Astros and Nationals organizations. In 2020, Cedeño was inducted into the Houston Astros Hall of Fame. Cedeño still holds the Astros team record for career stolen bases more than 40 years after last playing for the team. Baseball career Houston Astros Signed by Houston as an amateur free agent in 1967, Cedeño debuted on June 20, 1970, at 19 years of age. His .310 batting average in his rookie season in , allowed him to finish 4th in the Rookie of the Year voting. The next season, he led the major leagues in doubles. On September 2 of that year, he hit an unusual home run: against the Los Angeles Dodgers in the Astrodome, with the bases loaded, he hit a blooper that dropped between the right fielder and second baseman, who collided with one another as the ball rolled away; Cedeno and the rest of his teammates scurried quickly to reach home plate for an inside-the-park grand slam. The following season, his third, he again led in doubles, not just his league, but in the majors. He batted .320 in both 1972 and 1973. In 1972, Cedeño hit 22 home runs, had 55 stolen bases, and again led the league in doubles. He won a Gold Glove Award that season as well. Houston manager Leo Durocher once compared Cedeño to Willie Mays, saying "At 22 Cedeño is as good or better than Willie was at the same age". Possessing a rare combination of power,