Joseph Rudolph Nossek (born November 8, 1940) is an American former

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 ...

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 ...

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 ...

and

scout Scout may refer to: Youth movement *Scout (Scouting), a child, usually 10–18 years of age, participating in the worldwide Scouting movement ** Scouts (The Scout Association), section for 10-14 year olds in the United Kingdom ** Scouts BSA, sect ...

. He threw and batted right-handed, and stood 6' (183 cm) tall and weighed 178 pounds (81 kg) as an active player.

College career

Nossek attended

Ohio University Ohio University (Ohio or OU) is a Public university, public research university with its main campus in Athens, Ohio, United States. The university was first conceived in the 1787 contract between the United States Department of the Treasury#Re ...

and played on the

Ohio Bobcats baseball The Ohio Bobcats baseball team is a varsity intercollegiate athletic team of Ohio University in Athens, Ohio, United States. The team is a member of the Mid-American Conference East division, which is part of the National Collegiate Athletic Assoc ...

team; he was inducted to the

Kermit Blosser Ohio Athletics Hall of Fame The Kermit Blosser Ohio Athletics Hall of Fame is the hall of fame for Ohio Bobcats athletes and athletic personnel. Since 1965, selectees to the Hall are inducted during annual ceremonies, including recognition at halftime of a home college footb ...

in 2013.

Professional career

Nossek was signed by 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 ...

as an amateur free agent in 1961. He made his major league debut for the club on April 18, 1964, against the Washington Senators. A light eater, Nossek was known as "coffee and juice" to his Minnesota teammates. He served as a back-up outfielder on the pennant-winning Twins team of

1965 Events January–February * January 14 – The First Minister of Northern Ireland and the Taoiseach of the Republic of Ireland meet for the first time in 43 years. * January 20 ** Lyndon B. Johnson is Second inauguration of Lynd ...

, hitting .218 in 87 games. He also played some games at third base for the squad. Despite his modest abilities, he started in center field for most of the games of the

1965 World Series The 1965 World Series was the championship series of Major League Baseball's (MLB) 1965 season. The 62nd edition of the World Series, it was a best-of-seven playoff that matched the National League champion Los Angeles Dodgers against the Amer ...

over All-Star

Jimmie Hall Jimmie Randolph Hall (born March 17, 1938) is an American former Major League Baseball outfielder and left-handed batter who played eight seasons in the big leagues. A two-time All-Star, Hall made his debut with the Minnesota Twins (1963–66) ...

. The Twins lost to

Sandy Koufax Sanford Koufax (; né Braun; born December 30, 1935), nicknamed "the Left Arm of God", is an American former baseball pitcher who played 12 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Brooklyn Dodgers, Brooklyn/Los Angeles Dodgers from 195 ...

and 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 ...

in seven games. During the 1966 season, Nossek's contract was purchased by the

Kansas City Athletics The Kansas City Athletics were a Major League Baseball team that played in Kansas City, Missouri, from 1955 to 1967, having previously played in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, as the Philadelphia Athletics. After moving in 1967, the team became the ...

and played in 174 games for them over the next two years. In the middle of the 1969 campaign, he was traded to the

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 (baseball), National League (NL) National League Central, Centra ...

for Bob Johnson. He only played in 10 games for St. Louis, however, and retired after the 1970 season. Overall, Nossek batted .228 with three

home runs 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 ...

and 53

runs batted in A run batted in or runs batted in (RBI) is a statistic in baseball and softball that credits a batter for making a play that allows a run to be scored (except in certain situations such as when an error is made on the play). For example, if th ...

in 295 games during his six-year major league playing career.

Coaching

Nossek, skilled at

sign stealing In baseball, sign stealing is the act of observing the signs being signaled by the opposing catcher to the pitcher or a coach, and the subsequent relaying of those signals to members of one's own team. Signs are stolen with the intent of gainin ...

, was a longtime (28-year) coach in the major leagues after his active career ended, serving with the

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 ...

(1973–75), Twins (1976),

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) American League Central, Central Division. Since , the team ...

(1977–81),

Kansas City Royals The Kansas City Royals are an American professional baseball team based in Kansas City, Missouri. The Royals compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League Central, Central Division. The team ...

(1982–83) and

Chicago White Sox The Chicago White Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The White Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League Central, Central Division. The club plays its ...

(1984–86; 1990–2003). He then became a scout for the

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 ...

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Nossek, Joe 1940 births Living people All-American college baseball players Atlanta Crackers players Baseball players from Cleveland Charlotte Hornets (baseball) players Chicago White Sox coaches Cleveland Indians coaches Dallas Rangers players 20th-century American sportsmen Evansville Triplets players Houston Astros scouts Iowa Oaks players Kansas City Royals coaches Major League Baseball bench coaches Major League Baseball first base coaches Major League Baseball outfielders Milwaukee Brewers coaches Minnesota Twins coaches Minnesota Twins players Ohio Bobcats baseball players St. Louis Cardinals players Tulsa Oilers (baseball) players Vancouver Mounties players