He played college baseball at Central Arizona College, alongside future major leaguer Ian Kinsler.
Professional career
Arizona Diamondbacks
Hairston was drafted by the Arizona Diamondbacks in the third round of the 2001 MLB Draft. He started at second base for part of his rookie season of 2004, but has played mostly a reserve role since then. On July 27, 2007, the Diamondbacks traded him to the San Diego Padres for Leo Rosales.
San Diego Padres
During his first game as a San Diego Padres starter, Hairston hit two consecutive home runs. The first was a 3-run blast in the 8th inning that pushed the gameagainst the Giants into extra innings and the second was a walk-off blast in the 10th inning. Hairston was placed into the game to substitute for Milton Bradley. The following day in his first at-bat, Hairston hit another home run, making it three home runs in three consecutive at-bats. The first game was also the game in which Barry Bonds hit his 755th home run to tie the all-time record previously held by Hank Aaron. Hairston has become a fan favorite in San Diego, well known for his clutch home runs and late-inning heroics. He has hit three walk-off home runs for the Padres, in addition to other walk-off hits. From 2007 to 2009, he hit 12 home runs in late and clutch situations. These are classified as at-bats in the 7th or later with the batting team tied, ahead by one, or the tying run at least on deck. He has been particularly tough against the Giants, with 11 of his 58 career homers coming off San Francisco, as well as 23 RBI, by far the most against any team he's faced. Hairston hit a home run to break a 6–6 tie in the top of the 13th inning against the Colorado Rockies in the 2007 Wild Card tie-breaker game. The Rockies won the game in the bottom half of that inning. Hairston represented Mexico at the 2009 World Baseball Classic alongside his brother Jerry. Hairston's mother was born in Mexico, making him eligible to play for the Mexican team.
Oakland Athletics
On July 5, 2009, Hairston was traded to the Oakland Athletics for Sean Gallagher and minor leaguers Ryan Webb and Craig Italiano.
On January 20, 2011, Hairston signed a one-year contract with the New York Mets. He resigned with the Mets on January 5, 2012, to a one-year contract worth $1.1 million. On April 27 in Colorado, Hairston became the 10th Met in history to hit for the cycle. On October 3, 2012, Hairston hit his 20th home run of the season off Tom Koehler in the Mets regular season finale against the Miami Marlins.
Chicago Cubs
Hairston became a free agent following the 2012 season. He agreed to a two-year, $5 million contract with the Chicago Cubs in January 2013 with up to $1 million in performance bonuses. The contract became official on February 10, 2013. He began the year in a platoon in right field with Nate Schierholtz and was used as a pinch-hitter when he didn't start. He went 3–31 with 2 HR in April, 8–31 with 2 HR in May, and 6–31 in June and the beginning of July with 4 HR before being traded
Washington Nationals
On July 7, 2013 Hairston was traded to the Washington Nationals for minor league pitcher Ivan Pineyro. Used mostly off the bench in 2013 with Washington, he did start in left field against most left-handed starters, spelling Bryce Harper or Denard Span. He finished July going 2–17 with 0 HR, went 6–23 with 1 HR in August, and went 5–18 with 1 HR in September. In 85 games combined in 2013, he hit.191 with 10 HR and 26 RBI in 157 AB.
On November 18, 2015, Hairston signed a minor league contract with the Chicago White Sox. He was released on March 31, 2016.
Family
Hairston comes from the biggest Major League Baseball family. He is the brother of Jerry Hairston, Jr., the son of Jerry Hairston, Sr., the nephew of Johnny Hairston, and the grandson of Sammy Hairston, a former Negro Leaguer who later became the first African American player in Chicago White Sox history. The five Hairstons that have played in the majors set a record; in addition, Sam Hairston, Jr spent a year in the minors as part of the Chicago White Sox organization; Johnny Hairston had three sons, Johnny Jr Jeff and Jason who had brief minor league careers. Two other three-generation MLB families have four members each: the Boone family and the Bell family. Hairston is of Mexican descent on his mother's side. He and his wife, Jill, and sons, Landon and Dallas, reside in Gilbert, Arizona.
