Jeffrey Todd Bailey (born November 19, 1978) is an American former professional baseball

first baseman A first baseman, abbreviated 1B, is the player on a baseball or softball team who fields the area nearest first base, the first of four bases a baserunner must touch in succession to score a run. The first baseman is responsible for the majori ...

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 ...

, and

designated hitter The designated hitter (DH) is a baseball player who bats in place of another position player, most commonly the pitcher. Unlike other players in a team's lineup, they generally only play as an offensive player and usually do not play defense as ...

. He formerly played

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 catc ...

until a throwing disorder prompted him to change positions. Bailey grew up in

Kelso, Washington Kelso is a city in the southwestern part of the State of Washington and is the county seat of Cowlitz County. At the 2020 census, the population was 12,720. Kelso is part of the Longview, Washington Metropolitan statistical area, which has ...

and graduated from Kelso High School.

Professional career

Bailey was selected by the

Florida Marlins The Miami Marlins are an American professional baseball team based in Miami. The Marlins compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) East Division. The team plays its home games at LoanDepot Park. The ...

in the second round (64th overall) of the

draft Draft, the draft, or draught may refer to: Watercraft dimensions * Draft (hull), the distance from waterline to keel of a vessel * Draft (sail), degree of curvature in a sail * Air draft, distance from waterline to the highest point on a v ...

. Bailey began his professional career in 1997 playing for the

Gulf Coast League Marlins The Florida Complex League Marlins are a Rookie-level affiliate of the Miami Marlins, competing in the Florida Complex League of Minor League Baseball. Prior to the 2021 season, the team was known as the Gulf Coast League Marlins. The team plays i ...

and played in the Marlins minor league system until . In March , the Marlins traded him to

Montreal Expos The Montreal Expos () were a Canadian professional baseball team based in Montreal. The Expos were the first Major League Baseball (MLB) franchise located outside the United States. They played in the National League (baseball), National League ...

for a player to be named later ( Wilson Valdéz). He played in the Expos system until October when he granted his free agency. Bailey was signed as a

free agent In professional sports, a free agent is a player or manager 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 a contract at present ...

by the Red Sox organization first on November 7, 2003, then again on December 15, , December 10, and December 13, . Between 2004 and , Bailey split time between Double-A

Portland Sea Dogs The Portland Sea Dogs are a Minor League Baseball team based in Portland, Maine, playing in the Eastern League (1938–present), Eastern League. Established in 1994, the Sea Dogs are the Double-A (baseball), Double-A affiliate of the Boston Red ...

and Triple-A

Pawtucket Red Sox The Pawtucket Red Sox, known colloquially as the PawSox, were a professional minor league baseball club based in Pawtucket, Rhode Island. From 1973 to 2020, the team was a member of the International League and served as the Triple-A affiliate ...

. In 2006, he played the entire season playing for the Pawtucket Red Sox and had a .275

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 ...

, 82 RBI, and 22

home run In baseball, a home run (abbreviated HR) is scored when the Baseball (ball), ball is hit in such a way that the batting (baseball), batter is able to circle the bases and reach home plate safe (baseball), safely in one play without any error ( ...

s in 134 games. PawSox Jeff Bailey

Bailey participated in the Red Sox' 2007

spring training Spring training, also called spring camp, is the preseason of the Summer Professional Baseball Leagues, such as Major League Baseball (MLB), and it is a series of practices and exhibition games preceding the start of the regular season. Spri ...

before being sent back to the Pawtucket Red Sox. He was called up from Pawtucket on July 6, 2007, and made his MLB debut for the Red Sox replacing the injured

Kevin Youkilis Kevin Edmund Youkilis (; born March 15, 1979), nicknamed "Youk" , is an American former professional baseball first baseman and third baseman, who primarily played for the Boston Red Sox. A native of Cincinnati, Ohio, he was drafted by the Red S ...

at first base, going 0-4. His first major league hit was a home run on July 8, against

Detroit Tigers The Detroit Tigers are an American professional baseball team based in Detroit. The Tigers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League Central, Central Division. One of the AL's eight chart ...

southpaw

Nate Robertson Nathan Daniel Robertson, (born September 3, 1977) is an American former professional baseball pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball for the Florida Marlins, Detroit Tigers and Philadelphia Phillies. Career Florida Marlins Robertson atten ...

. Bailey was optioned back to Pawtucket on July 12, 2007, to make room on the active roster for pitcher

Joel Piñeiro Joel Alberto Piñeiro (, ; born September 25, 1978) is a Puerto Rican former professional baseball pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Seattle Mariners, Boston Red Sox, St. Louis Cardinals, and Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim ...

. Bailey participated in the Red Sox spring training camp, but was reassigned to minor league camp on March 8. Bailey had very good beginning to the 2008 season in Pawtucket, hitting well over .300 by the end of May. Bailey's contract was purchased by the Red Sox on May 30, 2008. On August 26, 2008, after being called up by the

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 eight ch ...

, he was denied entry to

Yankee Stadium Yankee Stadium is a baseball stadium located in the Bronx in New York City. It is the home field of Major League Baseball’s New York Yankees and New York City FC of Major League Soccer. The stadium opened in April 2009, replacing the Yankee S ...

, with security believing he was a fan trying to get in without a ticket. Eventually he was allowed in after they discovered he was a member of the Red Sox, and he drove in two runs to help give the Red Sox a 7-3 win. Bailey finished the 2008 season having played 27 games in the majors and batted .280 with two home runs and six RBIs. On February 6, 2009, Bailey was outrighted off the 40-man roster to create roster space for re-signed catcher

Jason Varitek Jason Andrew Varitek (; born April 11, 1972), nicknamed "Tek", is an American professional baseball coach and former catcher. He is the game planning coordinator, a uniformed coaching position, for the Boston Red Sox. After being traded as a min ...

. Bailey refused the assignment and became a

but was immediately re-signed to a minor league contract by the Red Sox and was invited to major league spring training. Early in the 2009 season,

went on the DL, and Bailey was called to fill in his spot. On June 2, 2009 was optioned back to Triple-A Pawtucket after

Mark Kotsay Mark Steven Kotsay (born December 2, 1975) is an American professional baseball manager and former outfielder. He is the manager for the Athletics of Major League Baseball (MLB). As a player, Kotsay appeared in 1,914 MLB games for the San Diego ...

being activated off the DL. He was once again called to the majors on June 30, after

Mike Lowell Michael Averett Lowell (born February 24, 1974) is a Puerto Rican former Major League Baseball third baseman. During a 13-year career, Lowell played for the New York Yankees (1998), Florida Marlins (1999–2005), and the Boston Red Sox (2006& ...

was placed on the DL. Bailey was designated for assignment on September 1, 2009. In October 2009, Bailey was granted free agency. On December 28, 2009, Bailey signed a minor league contract with the

Arizona Diamondbacks The Arizona Diamondbacks are an American professional baseball team based in Phoenix, Arizona. The Diamondbacks compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West Division. The franchise was established ...

with an invitation to spring training. On November 20, 2010, Bailey signed a minor league contract with the

Minnesota Twins The Minnesota Twins are an American professional baseball team based in Minneapolis. The Twins compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League Central, Central Division. The team is named afte ...

with an invitation to spring training.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bailey, Jeff 1978 births Living people American expatriate baseball players in Canada Baseball players from Washington (state) Boston Red Sox players Brevard County Manatees players Edmonton Trappers players Gulf Coast Marlins players Harrisburg Senators players International League MVP award winners Kane County Cougars players Major League Baseball first basemen Major League Baseball left fielders Major League Baseball right fielders Pawtucket Red Sox players People from Kelso, Washington Sportspeople from Longview, Washington Portland Sea Dogs players Texas A&M Aggies baseball players