Dion James (born November 9, 1962) is a former

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...

player who played as a left and center fielder for an eleven-year career from 1983 to 1985, 1987–1990, 1992–1993, 1995-1996. James starred at C. K. McClatchy High School in

Sacramento, California ) , image_map = Sacramento County California Incorporated and Unincorporated areas Sacramento Highlighted.svg , mapsize = 250x200px , map_caption = Location within Sacramento ...

, before being selected by the Milwaukee Brewers in the first round (25th overall) in the 1980 Amateur Entry Draft. He played for the Brewers,

Cleveland Indians The Cleveland Guardians are an American professional baseball team based in Cleveland. The Guardians compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. Since , they have played at Progressive Fi ...

and

New York Yankees The New York Yankees are an American professional baseball team based in the New York City borough of the Bronx. The Yankees compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. They are one of ...

all of the

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and the

Atlanta Braves The Atlanta Braves are an American professional baseball team based in the Atlanta metropolitan area. The Braves compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) East division. The Braves were founded in Bos ...

of the

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. James was the Brewers' Rookie of the Year in 1984, when he won the center field job and batted .295. In 1987, James was traded to the Braves for

Brad Komminsk Brad Lynn Komminsk (born April 4, 1961), is an American former professional baseball outfielder. He attended Shawnee High School in Lima, Ohio, where he played basketball and baseball and was an all-state linebacker in football. He received athle ...

. With the Braves, the slap-hitter switched from a straight-up stance to an open crouch, giving him new power; he hit .312 with 37 doubles and 10 homers in 1987. James was a major disappointment in Atlanta's dismal 1988 season and was criticized for erratic fielding. He was traded to the Indians in mid-1989 for

Oddibe McDowell Oddibe McDowell (born August 25, 1962) is an American former center fielder in Major League Baseball (MLB) who played from 1985 to 1994 for the Texas Rangers, Cleveland Indians, and Atlanta Braves. His first name is pronounced "owed a bee" or " ...

, the Rangers' number-one pick in 1984. James lasted less than two seasons with the Indians, but found a part-time job with the Yankees in 1992, hitting .332 as the club's everyday left fielder in 1993. James left for Japan after the season; when he returned to the club in '95, he found little playing time in the Yankees outfield (by that time well-stocked with burgeoning talent) but did see post-season action for the first time in his career.

Career statistics

In 917 games over 11 seasons, James compiled a .288

batting average Batting average is a statistic in cricket, baseball, and softball that measures the performance of batters. The development of the baseball statistic was influenced by the cricket statistic. Cricket In cricket, a player's batting average is ...

(781-for-2708) with 362 runs, 142 doubles, 21 triples, 32 home runs, 266 RBI, 318 base on balls, a .364 on-base percentage and .392 slugging percentage. He recorded a .987 fielding percentage at all three outfield positions and first base.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:James, Dion 1962 births Living people African-American baseball players Milwaukee Brewers players Atlanta Braves players Cleveland Indians players New York Yankees players American expatriate baseball players in Japan Chunichi Dragons players Major League Baseball outfielders Baseball players from Pennsylvania 21st-century African-American people 20th-century African-American sportspeople