Milt Thompson (baseball)
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| Milt Thompson | ||
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| Outfielder - |
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| Born: January 5, 1959 | ||
| Batted: Left | Threw: Right | |
| MLB debut | ||
| September 4, 1984 for the Atlanta Braves |
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| Final game | ||
| July 28, 1996 for the Colorado Rockies |
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| Career statistics | ||
| AVG | .274 | |
| Hits | 1029 | |
| SB | 214 | |
| Teams | ||
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| Career highlights and awards | ||
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Milton Bernard "Milt" Thompson (b. January 5, 1959 in Washington, D.C.) was a major league left fielder and pinch hitter and is currently the hitting coach for the Philadelphia Phillies. Thompson played with several teams (including the Phillies and the Atlanta Braves), and hit a career average of .289.
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[edit] Major league career
The Braves began Thompson's career by drafting him in the 2nd round of 1979 draft, and starting him five years later in 1984 [1]. After playing fabulously in left field, Atlanta traded Thompson with Steve Bedrosian to the Phillies for Ozzie Virgil, among others. Thompson impressed Philadelphia, batting .251 to .303 during his three-year stint there. On December 16, 1988 Thompson was traded to the St. Louis Cardinals for Steve Lake and Curt Ford, where he spent four years and batted his for highest average ever, .307. In 1992, Thompson was granted free agency. As a free agent, he signed once again with the Phillies. This led to Thompson being traded to the Houston Astros for Tom Edens, a pitcher. Once again, in 1994, Thompson was granted free agency after being with Houston for only seven months. He resigned with Houston as a free agent, which extended his career there to two years. After that, Thompson was back in free agency, and signed with the Los Angeles Dodgers, which led to him being selected off waivers for the Colorado Rockies in July, 1996. His career with the Rockies only lasted three months: Thompson was released on August 2 of the same year, ending his career [2].
[edit] Coaching
In 1997, Milt became the minor league outfield/baserunning coordinator in the Tampa Bay Devil Rays organization. In 1998, he joined the Phillies as a minor league coach. He lasted there for two seasons, until taking 2000 off, until returning to become a minor league baserunning/outfield coordinator again in the Phillies' farm system. On September 9, 2003, Thompson joined the major league Phillies staff as first base coach. The next year, he changed coaching positions to hitting, where he has been for two seasons. [3] Since Thompson's tenure as batting coach the Phillies have led the league twice in runs scored, even though they have alternated between only 2nd and 3rd place in their respective division due to pitching difficulties. Thompson was one of the only coaches not fired from the organization in 2005.
[edit] Personal life
Thompson has been married to Rhonda Scott Thompson since 1996, and the couple have four daughters. He resides in the Delaware Valley area with his family.
[edit] Trivia
- Hit .313 with 6 RBI in 1993 World Series and set a Phillies record with 5 RBI in Game 4 at Veterans Stadium.
- played Little League
- Attended Colonel Zadok A. Magruder High School and Howard University
- Graduated from high school in 1977, where, among playing baseball, he played football and ran track
- Thompson was well-known for his incredible feats in left field during the early 1990s, including catching several balls over the fence. One famous play took place during the bottom of the eighth inning against the San Diego Padres, with the Phillies up by 2, with the bases loaded and two outs. Thompson robbed the Padres of a grand slam in the final moments of the inning, snatching a ball over the wall.
[edit] References
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