Jim Essian | |
---|---|
Catcher / Manager | |
Born: Detroit, Michigan, U.S. | January 2, 1951|
Batted: Right Threw: Right | |
MLB debut | |
September 15, 1973, for the Philadelphia Phillies | |
Last MLB appearance | |
September 30, 1984, for the Oakland Athletics | |
MLB statistics | |
Batting average | .244 |
Home runs | 33 |
Runs batted in | 307 |
Managerial record | 59–63 |
Winning % | .484 |
Teams | |
|
James Sarkis Essian,Jr. (born January 2,1951) is an American former professional baseball player,coach,and manager. [1] He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a catcher for the Philadelphia Phillies,Chicago White Sox,Oakland Athletics,Seattle Mariners,and Cleveland Indians. [2]
After his playing career,Essian served as a coach with the Chicago Cubs organization in 1986. [3] After managing in the minor leagues,he became the Cubs manager in 1991. Essian was inducted into the Reading Baseball Hall of Fame in 2000. [3]
Born in Detroit,Michigan,Essian was signed at age 18 by the Philadelphia Phillies as an undrafted amateur free agent,out of Arizona State in 1969. [2] He made his major league debut at the age of 22 with the Phillies on September 15,1973. [4] He continued to bounce back and forth from the major leagues to the minors for the next few seasons.
Having amassed only 24 major league at-bats during three seasons with the Phillies,on May 7,1975,Essian was traded (along with Barry Bonnell and cash considerations) to the Atlanta Braves for Dick Allen and Johnny Oates;on May 15,Essian was selected by the Chicago White Sox (from Atlanta),as the player to be named later,thereby completing the December 1974 trade in which the Braves had originally acquired Allen from the White Sox. [2]
Essian was with the White Sox the next two seasons,seeing his most extensive playing time. In 1976,he finished second to Rick Dempsey among American League catchers in caught stealing percentage. [5] He had his best year offensively in 1977 when he hit 10 home runs and had 44 runs batted in along with a .374 on base percentage,all of which were career highs. In 1978,Essian was traded to the Oakland Athletics,where he appeared in a career-high 126 games played. In 1979,he led American League catchers in range factor. [6]
After three seasons with the Oakland Athletics,he returned to the White Sox in 1981 where,he served as a back up catcher to future Baseball Hall of Fame member Carlton Fisk. On December 11,1981,Essian was traded with Todd Cruz and Rod Allen to the Seattle Mariners for Tom Paciorek. Essian spent the next few seasons as a reserve catcher for the Cleveland Indians and the Athletics. At the age of 33,he retired following his release by the Athletics at the end of spring training,on March 31,1985. [2]
After he was released by Oakland in spring training of 1985,Essian signed with the Minor League Baseball (MiLB) Miami Marlins of the Florida State League. [7] The Marlins were an independent team,meaning they were not affiliated with any major league club. Though the Marlins were a Single-A team,ownership was aggressive in signing former major league players in order to increase interest and game attendance. The Marlins added Essian and such fading big league players as Broderick Perkins,Juan Eichelberger,Derrel Thomas,Ed Farmer,and Mike Torrez. However,this plan backfired,after manager Tom Burgess was unable to get much out of his squad of former major leaguers and marginal prospects. Burgess was fired and Essian took over as manager. The team finished 58-83. 1985 was Essian's final season as an active player. [7]
Essian became a coach for the Chicago Cubs,and in 1991 he became manager of the club after Don Zimmer was fired;Essian finished that year with a won-loss record of 59-63. [1]
He became the first MLB manager of Armenian heritage. A Cubs blog,"Hire Jim Essian," was named in honor of the former Cubs manager and has an author patterned after him named "Skip",due to Essian's insistence that his former players refer to him as "Skip Johnson".
Essian is the head coach of the Greek National Baseball Team and in 2017,he became the manager of the Utica Unicorns of the United Shore Professional Baseball League where he's won three USPBL championships,with three in a row from 2019 to 2021. [7] [8] [9]
The following are the baseball events of the year 2003 throughout the world.
The following are the baseball events of the year 2002 throughout the world.
The following are the baseball events of the year 2000 throughout the world.
Nathan Daniel Robertson,is an American former professional baseball pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball for the Florida Marlins,Detroit Tigers and Philadelphia Phillies.
Robert Daniel Kennedy was an American right fielder/third baseman,manager and executive in Major League Baseball.
James Joseph Deshaies is an American former professional baseball left-handed starting pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for six teams over the course of 12 big league seasons. He is currently a color commentator for broadcasts of Chicago Cubs games.
Gabor Paul Bako II is an American former professional baseball catcher. He is an example of a baseball "journeyman",having played for 11 different teams during his 12-year Major League Baseball (MLB) career. During his playing days,he was listed at 6 feet 3 inches (1.91 m) and 210 pounds (95 kg).
The following are the baseball events of the year 1991 throughout the world.
Matthew Henry Murton is an American former professional baseball outfielder. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Chicago Cubs,Oakland Athletics,and Colorado Rockies. Murton also played in Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) for the Hanshin Tigers.
Rene George Lachemann is an American former professional baseball coach,catcher and manager. He spent 53 years in Major League Baseball,including service as the manager of the Seattle Mariners (1981–83),Milwaukee Brewers (1984),and expansion Florida Marlins (1993–96).
Ronald William Hassey is an American former professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a catcher for the Cleveland Indians (1978–1984),Chicago Cubs (1984),New York Yankees (1985–1986),Chicago White Sox (1986–1987),Oakland Athletics (1988–1990),and Montreal Expos (1991). Hassey is notable for being the only catcher in MLB history to have caught more than one perfect game. Hassey joined Gus Triandos as the only catchers in MLB history to have caught a no-hitter in both leagues.
Steven Eugene Swisher is an American former professional baseball player and minor league manager. He played in Major League Baseball as a catcher for the Chicago Cubs,St. Louis Cardinals,and San Diego Padres from 1974 to 1982. Swisher was elected to the 1976 National League All-Star team with the Cubs but did not play in the game. He is the father of former MLB first baseman Nick Swisher.
Richard Avina Renteria is a Mexican-American former professional baseball infielder and former manager of the Chicago Cubs and Chicago White Sox of Major League Baseball (MLB). Renteria played in parts of five seasons between 1986 and 1994 with the Pittsburgh Pirates,Seattle Mariners,and Florida Marlins. He then coached and managed in the Marlins organization until 2001,and in the San Diego Padres organization until 2013. He was the manager of the Chicago Cubs in 2014. Renteria was also the bench coach for the Chicago White Sox in 2016.
Philip Anthony Roof is an American former professional baseball player,coach and minor league manager. He played for 15 seasons as a catcher in Major League Baseball in 1961 and from 1964 to 1977,most notably for the Kansas City/Oakland Athletics and the Minnesota Twins. Although Roof did not produce impressive offensive statistics,he excelled defensively as a catcher which enabled him to sustain a lengthy career in the major leagues due to his valuable defensive abilities. He was the first player acquired by the expansion Toronto Blue Jays.
Henry Adrian Garrett Jr.,nicknamed "Pat" and "Smokey",was an American professional baseball player and coach. A utility man in Major League Baseball,he appeared in 163 total games during eight seasons between 1966 and 1976 for the Atlanta Braves,Chicago Cubs,Oakland Athletics and California Angels. He batted left-handed,threw right-handed,and was listed at 6 feet 3 inches (1.91 m) tall and 185 pounds (84 kg).
The 2008 Major League Baseball season began on March 25,2008,in Tokyo,Japan with the 2007 World Series champion Boston Red Sox defeating the Oakland Athletics at the Tokyo Dome 6–5 in the first game of a two-game series,and ended on September 30 with the host Chicago White Sox defeating the Minnesota Twins in a one-game playoff to win the AL Central. The Civil Rights Game,an exhibition,in Memphis,Tennessee,took place March 29 when the New York Mets beat the Chicago White Sox,3–2.
The 1991 Major League Baseball season saw the Minnesota Twins defeat the Atlanta Braves for the World Series title,in a series where every game was won by the home team.
The following are the baseball events of the year 2010 throughout the world.
A phantom ballplayer is either a baseball player who is incorrectly listed in source materials as playing in a Major League Baseball (MLB) game,often the result of typographical or clerical errors,or a player who spent time on an MLB active roster without ever appearing in an MLB contest during his career. Most of the first form of phantom players date from the 19th or early 20th century,with at least one showing up as late as World War II.
The following are the baseball events of the year 2020 throughout the world.