Marcus Christian Jensen (born December 14, 1972) is an American

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 ...

player and

coach Coach may refer to: Guidance/instruction * Coach (sport), a director of athletes' training and activities * Coaching, the practice of guiding an individual through a process ** Acting coach, a teacher who trains performers Transportation * Co ...

. He played as a

catcher Catcher is a position in baseball and softball. When a batter takes their turn to hit, the catcher crouches behind home plate, in front of the ( home) umpire, and receives the ball from the pitcher. In addition to this primary duty, the ca ...

for the

San Francisco Giants The San Francisco Giants are an American professional baseball team based in San Francisco, California. The Giants compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Founded in 1883 as the New Y ...

, Detroit Tigers, Milwaukee Brewers,

St. Louis Cardinals The St. Louis Cardinals are an American professional baseball team based in St. Louis. The Cardinals compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) Central division. Since the 2006 season, the Cardinals ha ...

, Minnesota Twins,

Boston Red Sox The Boston Red Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Boston. The Red Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. Founded in as one of the American League's eigh ...

and Texas Rangers 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) from 1996 through 2002. After retiring as a player, Jensen coached and managed in the minor leagues. In 2015, he was the coach for the Oakland Athletics of MLB.

Playing career

Jensen attended Skyline High School in

Oakland, California Oakland is the largest city and the county seat of Alameda County, California, United States. A major West Coast of the United States, West Coast port, Oakland is the largest city in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area, the third ...

. The

(MLB) selected Jensen in the first round, with the 33rd overall selection, of the

1990 MLB Draft The 1990 Major League Baseball (MLB) Draft was held in June 1990. The draft placed amateur baseball players onto major league teams. 1,487 players were distributed to 26 teams. The draft consisted of first round selections, supplemental first ...

. He made his MLB debut in 1996. Though he was labeled the Giants' "catcher of the future", he struggled, and was traded to the Detroit Tigers in July 1997 in exchange for

Brian Johnson Brian Johnson (born 5 October 1947) is an English singer and songwriter. In 1980, after the death of Bon Scott, he became the third lead singer of the Australian rock band AC/DC. He and the rest of the band were inducted into the Rock and Rol ...

. He played for the Milwaukee Brewers in 1998, the

in 1999, the Minnesota Twins in 2000, the

and the Texas Rangers in 2001, and the Brewers in 2002. Jensen played for the

United States national baseball team The United States national baseball team represents the United States in international-level baseball competitions. The team is currently ranked 5th in the world by the World Baseball Softball Confederation. Team USA won the Olympic baseball t ...

in the

1999 Pan American Games The 1999 Pan American Games, officially the XIII Pan American Games or the 13th Pan American Games, was a major international multi-sport event that was held from July 23 to August 8, 1999, in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada and surrounding towns and ...

, and the

2000 Summer Olympics The 2000 Summer Olympics, officially the Games of the XXVII Olympiad and also known as Sydney 2000 ( Dharug: ''Gadigal 2000''), the Millennium Olympic Games or the Games of the New Millennium, was an international multi-sport event held from ...

. Jensen also spent time in the

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 ...

organization in 2003, the independent

Golden Baseball League The Golden Baseball League was an independent baseball league based in San Ramon, California, with teams located in the western United States, western Canada and northwest Mexico. The GBL was not affiliated with Major League Baseball or the orga ...

from 2005 to 2006.

Coaching career

In January 2007, Jensen retired as an active player to become a hitting coach in the Oakland Athletics organization. From 2009 through 2013, he was the

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 ...

of the

Arizona Athletics The Arizona Complex League Athletics are a Minor League Baseball team based in Phoenix, Arizona, which plays as a Rookie-level team in the Arizona Complex League and has served as a farm team for the Oakland Athletics organization since 1988. T ...

of the Rookie-level

Arizona League The Arizona Complex League (ACL) is a rookie-level Minor League Baseball league that operates in and around Phoenix, Arizona, since 1988. Prior to 2021, it was known as the Arizona League (AZL). Along with the Florida Complex League (FCL), it ...

. Jensen succeeded

Todd Steverson Todd Anthony Steverson (born November 15, 1971) is an American professional baseball coach, and a former left and right fielder. He played for the Detroit Tigers and San Diego Padres and coached for the Oakland Athletics and Chicago White Sox, al ...

as the Athletics' the minor league roving hitting instructor for Athletics after the 2013 season. After the 2014 season, he was named the assistant hitting coach on the Athletics' Major League roster.

Personal life

Jensen's son, Marcus Proctor, was chosen by the

Tampa Bay Rays The Tampa Bay Rays are an American professional baseball team based in St. Petersburg, Florida. The Rays compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. Since its inception, the team's home v ...

in the 2009 MLB Draft.

References

External links

, o
Retrosheet
o

o
Pura Pelota (Venezuelan Winter League)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Jensen, Marcus 1972 births Living people African-American baseball coaches African-American baseball managers African-American baseball players American expatriate baseball players in Mexico Arizona League Giants players Baseball players at the 1999 Pan American Games Baseball players at the 2000 Summer Olympics Baseball coaches from California Baseball players from Oakland, California Boston Red Sox players Clinton Giants players Columbus Clippers players Detroit Tigers players Everett Giants players Indianapolis Indians players Langosteros de Cancún players Louisville Redbirds players Major League Baseball catchers Major League Baseball hitting coaches Medalists at the 2000 Summer Olympics Memphis Redbirds players Mesa Miners players Milwaukee Brewers players Minnesota Twins players Minor league baseball managers Oakland Athletics coaches Oklahoma RedHawks players Olympic gold medalists for the United States in baseball Pan American Games medalists in baseball Pan American Games silver medalists for the United States Pawtucket Red Sox players Phoenix Firebirds players Reno Silver Sox (Golden Baseball League) players Salt Lake Buzz players San Francisco Giants players San Jose Giants players Shreveport Captains players St. Louis Cardinals players Texas Rangers players Tiburones de La Guaira players American expatriate baseball players in Venezuela Toledo Mud Hens players Medalists at the 1999 Pan American Games 21st-century African-American sportspeople 20th-century African-American sportspeople Skyline High School (Oakland, California) alumni