Eugene Anthony Clines (October 6, 1946 – January 27, 2022) was an American professional

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball sport played between two team sport, teams of nine players each, taking turns batting (baseball), batting and Fielding (baseball), fielding. The game occurs over the course of several Pitch ...

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 * Coac ...

. He played in

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball league composed of 30 teams, divided equally between the National League (baseball), National League (NL) and the American League (AL), with 29 in the United States and 1 in Canada. MLB i ...

(MLB) as an

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 catch ...

from 1970 to 1979, most prominently as a member of the

Pittsburgh Pirates The Pittsburgh Pirates are an American professional baseball team based in Pittsburgh. The Pirates compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League Central, Central ...

teams that won four National League Eastern Division titles in five seasons between 1970 and 1974, and won the

World Series The World Series is the annual championship series of Major League Baseball (MLB). It has been contested since between the champion teams of the American League (AL) and the National League (NL). The winning team, determined through a best- ...

in 1971. He also played for the

New York Mets The New York Mets are an American professional baseball team based in the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of Queens. The Mets compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National ...

, Texas Rangers, and

Chicago Cubs The Chicago Cubs are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The Cubs compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League Central, Central Division. Th ...

. He batted and threw right-handed. After his playing career, Clines served as a

for various clubs, including the Cubs,

Houston Astros The Houston Astros are an American professional baseball team based in Houston. The Astros compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League West, West Division. They are one of two major leag ...

Seattle Mariners The Seattle Mariners are an American professional baseball team based in Seattle. The Mariners compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League West, West Division. The team joined the American ...

Milwaukee Brewers The Milwaukee Brewers are an American professional baseball team based in Milwaukee. The Brewers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League Central, Central Di ...

, and

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

, and an advisor with the

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 (baseball), National League (NL) National League West, West Div ...

later in his career.

Playing career

Clines attended Harry Ells High School in

Richmond, California Richmond is a city in western Contra Costa County, California, United States. The city was municipal corporation, incorporated on August 3, 1905, and has a Richmond, California, City Council, city council.

. The Pittsburgh Pirates selected Clines in the sixth round of the 1966 MLB draft. A fast runner with excellent defensive skills, Clines debuted in 1970 with the Pirates as a reserve outfielder, hitting .405 (15-for-37) in 31 games in his

rookie A rookie is a person new to an occupation, profession, or hobby. In sports, a ''rookie'' is a professional athlete in their first season (or year). In contrast with a veteran who has experience, a rookie is typically considered needing more tra ...

year. On September 1, 1971, Clines played in MLB's first-ever all-minority batting lineup. Clines went to the postseason with Pittsburgh in the 1971, 1972, and 1974

National League Championship Series The National League Championship Series (NLCS) is a best-of-seven playoff and one of two League Championship Series comprising the penultimate round of Major League Baseball's (MLB) postseason. It is contested by the winners of the two Natio ...

, winning a World Series ring with the Pirates in . His most productive season came in 1972, when he posted career-highs in average (.334), doubles (15), and

triples TripleS (; ; stylized as tripleS) is a South Korean 24-member multinational girl group formed by Modhaus. They aim to be the world's first decentralized idol group, where the members will rotate between the full group, sub-units, and solo activi ...

(6) in 107 games. Clines was traded from the

Pirates Piracy is an act of robbery or criminal violence by ship or boat-borne attackers upon another ship or a coastal area, typically with the goal of stealing cargo and valuable goods, or taking hostages. Those who conduct acts of piracy are call ...

to the

for Duffy Dyer on October 22, 1974. After the 1975 season, the Mets traded him to the Texas Rangers for Joe Lovitto. Before the 1977 season, the Rangers sent Clines to the Chicago Cubs as the

player to be named later In Major League Baseball, a player to be named later (PTBNL) is an unnamed player involved in exchange or "trade" of players between teams. The terms of a trade are not finalized until a later date, most often following the conclusion of the seaso ...

in the earlier trade for Darold Knowles. The Cubs released Clines in May 1979. He batted .277 in 10 MLB seasons.

Coaching career

Clines remained with the Cubs as a coach. He stayed on Chicago's coaching staff until 1981, and then joined the Houston Astros organization as a roving

minor league Minor leagues are professional sports leagues which are not regarded as the premier leagues in those sports. Minor league teams tend to play in smaller, less elaborate venues, often competing in smaller cities/markets. This term is used in Nort ...

hitting instructor, a position he held through 1987. Later, he worked as a hitting coach for Houston in 1988. The Seattle Mariners hired Clines as their hitting coach before the 1989 season. He spent four seasons as a hitting coach for the Mariners, and was fired after the 1992 season. He was the hitting coach for the

in 1993 and 1994 before joining the San Francisco Giants as a minor league hitting coordinator. After the 1996 season, the Giants promoted him to be their major league hitting coach. After the 2002 season, Giants'

manager Management (or managing) is the administration of organizations, whether businesses, nonprofit organizations, or a government bodies through business administration, nonprofit management, or the political science sub-field of public administra ...

Dusty Baker Johnnie B "Dusty" Baker Jr. (born June 15, 1949) is an American former professional baseball outfielder and Manager (baseball), manager in Major League Baseball (MLB). He played in MLB for 19 seasons, most notably with the Los Angeles Dodgers. D ...

was hired to manage the Cubs. Baker brought Clines to Chicago with him as his

first base coach In baseball, a number of coaches assist in the smooth functioning of a team. They are assistants to the manager, who determines the starting lineup and batting order, decides how to substitute players during the game, and makes strategy decisio ...

. He was named hitting coach prior to the 2005 season. Baker was fired after the 2006 season, and his coaching staff was dismissed with him. The Los Angeles Dodgers hired Clines as their roving outfield and base-running instructor in October 2006; he convinced

Juan Pierre Juan D'Vaughn Pierre (born August 14, 1977) is an American former professional baseball outfielder. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) from 2000–2013 for the Colorado Rockies, Miami Marlins, Florida/Miami Marlins, Chicago Cubs, Los Angele ...

to sign with the Dodgers the next month. After the 2011 season, he was promoted to the position of senior advisor for player development with the Dodgers.

Personal life

Clines had a daughter from his high school sweetheart LuWanda Brown and two children by his ex-wife, Fay, and two children with wife, Joanne. Clines died at his residence in

Bradenton, Florida Bradenton ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Manatee County, Florida, Manatee County, Florida, United States. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the city's population is 55,698, up from 49,546 at the 2010 census. It is a pri ...

, on January 27, 2022, at the age of 75.

References

External links

Chicago Cubs official site
{{DEFAULTSORT:Clines, Gene 1946 births 2022 deaths African-American baseball coaches African-American baseball players Águilas Cibaeñas players American expatriate baseball players in the Dominican Republic Baseball coaches from California Baseball players from Richmond, California Bradenton Explorers players Chicago Cubs coaches Chicago Cubs players Florida Instructional League Pirates players Houston Astros coaches Major League Baseball first base coaches Major League Baseball hitting coaches Major League Baseball outfielders Milwaukee Brewers coaches New York Mets players People from San Pablo, California Pittsburgh Pirates players Raleigh Pirates players Salem Rebels (baseball) players San Francisco Giants coaches Seattle Mariners coaches Baseball players from Bradenton, Florida Texas Rangers players Tiburones de La Guaira players American expatriate baseball players in Venezuela Waterbury Pirates players York Pirates players 21st-century African-American sportsmen 21st-century American sportsmen 20th-century African-American sportsmen 20th-century American sportsmen Harry Ells High School alumni