Juan Milton Samuel (born December 9, 1960) is a Dominican former

professional baseball Professional baseball is organized baseball in which players are selected for their talents and are paid to play for a specific team or club system. It is played in leagues and associated farm teams throughout the world. Modern professional ...

second baseman /

outfielder An outfielder is a person playing in one of the three defensive positions in baseball or softball, farthest from the batter. These defenders are the left fielder, the center fielder, and the right fielder. As an outfielder, their duty is to c ...

, who played 16 seasons in

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), ...

(MLB), for the Philadelphia Phillies (1983–1989),

New York Mets The New York Mets are an American professional baseball team based in the New York City borough of Queens. The Mets compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the National League (NL) East division. They are one of two major league ...

(1989),

Los Angeles Dodgers The Los Angeles Dodgers are an American professional baseball team based in Los Angeles. The Dodgers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Established in 1883 in the city of Brooklyn ...

(1990–1992), Kansas City Royals (1992, 1995), Cincinnati Reds (1993), Detroit Tigers (1994–1995), and

Toronto Blue Jays The Toronto Blue Jays are a Canadian professional baseball team based in Toronto. The Blue Jays compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. Since 1989, the team has played its home games ...

(1996–1998). A three-time

National League The National League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the National League (NL), is the older of two leagues constituting Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada, and the world's oldest extant professional team ...

(NL) All-Star, he appeared in the

1983 World Series The 1983 World Series was the championship series of Major League Baseball's (MLB) 1983 season. The 80th edition of the World Series, it was a best-of-seven playoff played between the American League champion Baltimore Orioles and the National ...

with the Phillies. Samuel served as interim

manager Management (or managing) is the administration of an organization, whether it is a business, a nonprofit organization, or a government body. It is the art and science of managing resources of the business. Management includes the activities ...

for the

Baltimore Orioles The Baltimore Orioles are an American professional baseball team based in Baltimore. The Orioles compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. As one of the American League's eight charter ...

during the

2010 MLB season The 2010 Major League Baseball season began April 4, with the regular season ending on October 3. The 2010 All-Star Game was played on July 13 at Angel Stadium of Anaheim in Anaheim, California. The National League ended a 13-game winless stre ...

, as well as many years in the MLB

coaching Coaching is a form of development in which an experienced person, called a ''coach'', supports a learner or client in achieving a specific personal or professional goal by providing training and guidance. The learner is sometimes called a ''coa ...

ranks. Known widely for his unique combination of speed and power, Samuel was inducted into the Hispanic Heritage Baseball Museum Hall of Fame, in 2010.

Baseball career

In a 16-season playing career, Samuel was a .259 hitter with 161

home run In baseball, a home run (abbreviated HR) is scored when the ball is hit in such a way that the batter is able to circle the bases and reach home plate safely in one play without any errors being committed by the defensive team. A home run i ...

s and 703 RBI in 1,720 games. Samuel was originally signed as a non-drafted

free agent In professional sports, a free agent is a player who is eligible to sign with other clubs or franchises; i.e., not under contract to any specific team. The term is also used in reference to a player who is under contract at present but who is a ...

by the Philadelphia Phillies in 1980. A three-time All-Star, Samuel earned

(NL) Rookie of the Year honors from ''The Sporting News'' in 1984, when he tied for the NL lead with 19 triples and placed second with 72 stolen bases, which established a then-MLB rookie single-season record for steals, previously held by

Tim Raines Timothy Raines Sr. (born September 16, 1959), nicknamed "Rock",Raines received this nickname at an Expo rookie camp when he was seventeen, based on his physique. is an American professional baseball coach and former player. He played as a left ...

with 71 in 1981. He finished second in official NL Rookie of the Year voting behind

Dwight Gooden Dwight Eugene Gooden (born November 16, 1964), nicknamed "Dr. K" and "Doc", is an American former professional baseball pitcher who played 16 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB). Gooden pitched from 1984 to 1994 and from 1996 to 2000 for the N ...

. During his majors career, Samuel collected 1,578 hits, 396 stolen bases, and also reached double figures in home runs nine times. A popular player in Philadelphia, he appeared in the

, going 0-for-1 in three games. Samuel was sent to the New York Mets during the 1989 midseason in the same transaction that brought

Lenny Dykstra Leonard Kyle Dykstra (; born February 10, 1963), is an American former professional baseball center fielder, who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the New York Mets (1985–1989) and Philadelphia Phillies (1989–1996). Dykstra was a thre ...

and

Roger McDowell Roger Alan McDowell (born December 21, 1960) is an American former professional baseball right-handed relief pitcher who played in Major League Baseball from 1985 to 1996. He played for the New York Mets, Philadelphia Phillies and Los Angeles Dod ...

to Philadelphia. He also played two and a half seasons both for the Dodgers and Tigers, spent a year in Cincinnati, had two brief stints with the Royals, and provided three years of good services for Toronto, pinch-hitting, serving as DH, and playing at first base, second, third,

left field In baseball, a left fielder, abbreviated LF, is an outfielder who plays defense in left field. Left field is the area of the outfield to the left of a person standing at home plate and facing towards the pitcher's mound. In the numbering system ...

and

right Rights are legal, social, or ethical principles of freedom or entitlement; that is, rights are the fundamental normative rules about what is allowed of people or owed to people according to some legal system, social convention, or ethical ...

. He retired after the 1998 season. Samuel holds the major league record for most at-bats by a right-handed hitter in one season with 701, set in 1984. That mark was also the most for any National League batter in a single campaign, later surpassed by

Jimmy Rollins James Calvin Rollins (born November 27, 1978), nicknamed "J-Roll", is an American former professional baseball shortstop, who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Philadelphia Phillies (–), Los Angeles Dodgers (), and Chicago White S ...

. He also tied an ML record for consecutive strikeout titles with four (1984–87), shared with

Hack Wilson Lewis Robert "Hack" Wilson (April 26, 1900 – November 23, 1948) was an American Major League Baseball player who played 12 seasons for the New York Giants, Chicago Cubs, Brooklyn Dodgers and Philadelphia Phillies. Despite his diminutive statur ...

(1927–30) and

Vince DiMaggio Vincent Paul DiMaggio (September 6, 1912 – October 3, 1986) was an American Major League Baseball center fielder. During a 10-year baseball career, he played for the Boston Bees (1937–1938), Cincinnati Reds (1939–1940), Pittsburgh Pirates ( ...

(1942–45).

Post-playing career

Coaching career

Since retiring from play, Samuel has coached at various levels and in various roles. He coached

third base A third baseman, abbreviated 3B, is the player in baseball or softball whose responsibility is to defend the area nearest to third base — the third of four bases a baserunner must touch in succession to score a run. In the scoring system us ...

for the Detroit Tigers in 2005 after having coached first base for the team since 1999. He managed the Double-A

Binghamton Mets The Binghamton Rumble Ponies are an American Minor League Baseball team based in Binghamton, New York. The team, which plays in the Eastern League, is the Double-A affiliate of the New York Mets major-league club. The Rumble Ponies play in Mirab ...

for the 2006 season, and was named the third base coach for the Baltimore Orioles on October 31, 2006, where he remained through the first part of 2010. In August 2008, Samuel was inducted into the Philadelphia Phillies Wall of Fame at

Citizens Bank Park Citizens Bank Park is a baseball stadium located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in the city's South Philadelphia Sports Complex. It is the home playing field of the Philadelphia Phillies, the city's Major League Baseball (MLB) franchise. The ...

. Samuel joined the Phillies coaching staff for the 2011 season as third base coach, with former third base coach

Sam Perlozzo Samuel Benedict Perlozzo (born March 4, 1951) is a former second baseman and manager in Major League Baseball, most recently with the Baltimore Orioles. Biography After graduating from Bishop Walsh School in Cumberland, Maryland, Perlozzo was ...

moving to first base coach. In 2013, he moved to first base coach with

Ryne Sandberg Ryne Dee Sandberg (born September 18, 1959), nicknamed "Ryno", is an American former professional baseball player, coach, and manager. He played sixteen seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a second baseman for the Philadelphia Phillies (19 ...

taking over the duties at third base. Upon Sandberg being named interim manager, Samuel returned to filling the role of third base coach for the Phillies. On January 6, 2022, Samuel was hired to serve as a minor league hitting instructor for the Cincinnati Reds organization.

Managerial career

Baltimore Orioles

Samuel was named interim

of the

Orioles Oriole or Orioles may refer to: Animals * Old World oriole, colorful passerine birds in the family Oriolidae * New World oriole, a group of birds in the family Icteridae Music * The Orioles, an R&B and doo-wop group of the late 1940s and earl ...

after Dave Trembley's dismissal on June 4, 2010. He took over a ballclub that was in last place in the American League (AL) East with the majors' worst record at 15–39. During his brief tenure, the team had a pair of four-game win streaks. The first one on June 24–27 was highlighted by a three-game sweep of the

Washington Nationals The Washington Nationals are an American professional baseball team based in Washington, D.C.. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the National League (NL) East division. From 2005 to 2007, the team played in RFK Stadiu ...

Camden Yards The Oriole Park at Camden Yards is a baseball stadium located in Baltimore, Maryland. It is the home field of Major League Baseball's Baltimore Orioles, and the first of the "retro" major league ballparks constructed during the 1990s and early ...

. Its first four-game road sweep since 1995 occurred after the vanquishing of the eventual AL champion Texas Rangers at

Rangers Ballpark in Arlington Choctaw Stadium, formerly Globe Life Park, is an American multi-purpose stadium in Arlington, Texas, between Dallas and Fort Worth. Originally built as a baseball stadium, it was home to the Texas Rangers of Major League Baseball and the Te ...

two weekends later and immediately prior to the All-Star break. Beyond this, the Orioles showed little tangible improvement as they went 17–34 under Samuel, whose stint ended on August 1 with a 5–4 loss at

Kauffman Stadium Kauffman Stadium (), often called "The K", is a baseball stadium located in Kansas City, Missouri. It is home to the Kansas City Royals of Major League Baseball (MLB). It is part of the Truman Sports Complex together with the adjacent Arrowhead ...

, the third straight defeat to the Kansas City Royals. Three days earlier on July 29,

Buck Showalter William Nathaniel "Buck" Showalter III (born May 23, 1956) is an American professional baseball manager for the New York Mets of Major League Baseball (MLB). Previously, he served as manager of the New York Yankees ( 1992–1995), Arizona Diamon ...

was announced as Samuel's successor on a full-time basis beginning on August 3. After declining an offer to return to his old third-base coaching job, Samuel accepted a position elsewhere in the organization as an evaluator for its Dominican Republic academy for the remainder of that season.

Managerial record

Notes

References

External links

Juan Samuel #8 Managing/Coaching Career
2017 Philadelphia Phillies Manager & Coaches
Juan Samuel
at Baseballbiography.com : {{DEFAULTSORT:Samuel, Juan 1960 births Living people Baltimore Orioles coaches Binghamton Mets managers Central Oregon Phillies players Cincinnati Reds players Detroit Tigers coaches Detroit Tigers players Dominican Republic baseball coaches Dominican Republic expatriate baseball players in Canada Dominican Republic expatriate baseball players in the United States Dominican Republic national baseball team people Kansas City Royals players Los Angeles Dodgers players Major League Baseball players from the Dominican Republic Major League Baseball second basemen Major League Baseball third base coaches National League All-Stars New York Mets players Sportspeople from San Pedro de Macorís Peninsula Pilots players Portland Beavers players Philadelphia Phillies coaches Philadelphia Phillies players Reading Phillies players Silver Slugger Award winners Spartanburg Phillies players Toronto Blue Jays players