Nathaniel Joseph Spears (born May 3, 1985) is an American former professional

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding ...

utility player In sports, a utility player is one who can play several positions competently. Sports in which the term is often used include association football, American football, baseball, rugby union, rugby league, softball, ice hockey, and water polo. The ...

and current

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 N ...

coach. He played 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

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 eig ...

Playing career

Spears was drafted by 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 ...

in the 5th round of the 2003 Major League Baseball draft out of Charlotte High School in Punta Gorda, Florida.

Baltimore Orioles

Spears made his professional debut with the Rookie-level

Gulf Coast League Orioles The Florida Complex League Orioles are a Rookie-level affiliate of the Baltimore Orioles, competing in the Florida Complex League of Minor League Baseball. Before 2021, the team was known as the Gulf Coast League Orioles. The team plays its hom ...

, hitting .289 in 56 games. He played 2004 with Single-A

Delmarva The Delmarva Peninsula, or simply Delmarva, is a large peninsula and proposed state on the East Coast of the United States, occupied by the vast majority of the state of Delaware and parts of the Eastern Shore regions of Maryland and Virginia. ...

, hitting .275 in 97 games. His best year in the Oriole organization was in 2005 with High-A

Frederick Frederick may refer to: People * Frederick (given name), the name Nobility Anhalt-Harzgerode * Frederick, Prince of Anhalt-Harzgerode (1613–1670) Austria * Frederick I, Duke of Austria (Babenberg), Duke of Austria from 1195 to 1198 * Frederi ...

, where he hit .294 in 112 games and was both a Mid-Season and Post-Season

Carolina League The Carolina League is a Minor League Baseball league which has operated along the Atlantic Coast of the United States since 1945. Having been classified at various levels throughout its existence, it operated at Class A-Advanced from 1990 un ...

All-Star.

Chicago Cubs

On January 9, 2006, Spears was traded to the

Chicago Cubs The Chicago Cubs are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The Cubs compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as part of the National League (NL) Central division. The club plays its home games at Wrigley Field, which is locate ...

in the

Corey Patterson Donald Corey Patterson (born August 13, 1979) is an American former professional baseball center fielder. Currently, he is the manager of the Brookhaven Bucks in the Sunbelt Baseball League. He is the older brother of infielder Eric Patterson, a ...

deal. His debut in the Cubs' organization wasn't the greatest, hitting only .246 in 97 games with High-A Daytona. He started 2007 with Daytona, but was promoted to Double-A

Tennessee Tennessee ( , ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked state in the Southeastern region of the United States. Tennessee is the 36th-largest by area and the 15th-most populous of the 50 states. It is bordered by Kentucky to ...

, where he hit .298 in 38 games there. He played 2008 with Tennessee, where he was a Southern League All-Star and was the Best Hustler. He also played five games with Triple-A

Iowa Iowa () is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States, bordered by the Mississippi River to the east and the Missouri River and Big Sioux River to the west. It is bordered by six states: Wiscon ...

. He also played in the

Arizona Fall League The Arizona Fall League (AFL) is an off-season sports league owned and operated by Major League Baseball (MLB) which operates during the autumn in Arizona, United States, at six different baseball complexes. Arizona Fall League rosters are fi ...

for

Mesa A mesa is an isolated, flat-topped elevation, ridge or hill, which is bounded from all sides by steep escarpments and stands distinctly above a surrounding plain. Mesas characteristically consist of flat-lying soft sedimentary rocks capped by a ...

, hitting .349 in 23 games. He played 2009 with Iowa, where he only hit .253 in 128 games.

Boston Red Sox

On March 3, 2010, Spears was signed to a minor league deal with an invite to spring training by the

, where he went 4-6 in 6 games. He played that year with Double-A

Portland Portland most commonly refers to: * Portland, Oregon, the largest city in the state of Oregon, in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States * Portland, Maine, the largest city in the state of Maine, in the New England region of the northeas ...

, where he was an Eastern League All-Star, hitting .272 in 136 games. He was again invited to spring training, hitting .290 in 28 games. He started 2011 with Triple-A Pawtucket before his promotion. He was called up to the Red Sox on September 5, 2011.

Drew Sutton Stephen Drew Sutton (born June 30, 1983) is an American former professional baseball infielder and outfielder. He played in Major League Baseball for the Cincinnati Reds, Cleveland Indians, Boston Red Sox, Tampa Bay Rays, and Pittsburgh Pirates. ...

was designated for assignment to make room for him on the 40-man roster. Spears started the 2012 season in Pawtucket. He was called up from Pawtucket to play with the MLB Boston on April 15, 2012. On April 22, Spears was

designated for assignment Designated for assignment (DFA) is a contractual term used in Major League Baseball (MLB). A player who is designated for assignment is immediately removed from the team's 40-man roster, after which the team must within seven days, return the play ...

. After clearing waivers, Spears was outrighted to the

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 October 2012, Spears elected minor league free agency.

Cleveland Indians

On November 16, 2012, the Indians signed Spears to a minor league deal. He played 68 games for the Columbus Clippers and 4 games for the Akron Aeros in 2013. He became a free agent at the end of the season.

Philadelphia Phillies

Spears signed a minor league deal with the

Philadelphia Phillies The Philadelphia Phillies are an American professional baseball team based in Philadelphia. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the National League (NL) East division. Since 2004, the team's home stadium has been Citize ...

on June 8, 2014. He hit .299 with 2 HR and 15 RBI in 52 games with Triple-A Lehigh Valley. He elected free agency after the 2014 season.

Somerset Patriots

Spears signed with the

Somerset Patriots The Somerset Patriots are an American Minor League Baseball team based in Bridgewater Township, New Jersey, that is the Double-A affiliate of the New York Yankees. They compete in the Eastern League, known as the Double-A Northeast in 2021, an ...

of the

Atlantic League of Professional Baseball The Atlantic League of Professional Baseball (ALPB) is a professional independent baseball league based in the United States. It is an official MLB Partner League based in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern United States. The Atlantic League's ...

for the 2015 season. He became a free agent after the 2015 season.

Coaching career

Spears was a coaching assistant in 2016 with Boston's

Single-A Class A, also known as Single-A and sometimes as Low-A, is the fourth-highest level of play in Minor League Baseball in the United States, below Triple-A, Double-A, and High-A. There are 30 teams classified at the Single-A level, one for eac ...

affiliate, the

Greenville Drive The Greenville Drive are a Minor League Baseball team based in Greenville, South Carolina. They are the High-A affiliate of the Boston Red Sox and are a member of the South Atlantic League. They play their home games at Fluor Field at the West ...

. He was named hitting coach for the

Lowell Spinners The Lowell Spinners were a baseball team based in Lowell, Massachusetts. From 1996 to 2020, they were members of Minor League Baseball's New York–Penn League (NYPL) as the Class A Short Season affiliate of the Boston Red Sox. With Major League ...

, Boston's

Class A-Short Season Class A Short Season (officially Short-Season A) was a level of play in Minor League Baseball in the United States from 1965 through 2020. In the hierarchy of minor league classifications, it was below Triple-A, Double-A, Class A-Advanced (cre ...

affiliate, in January 2017. In February 2021, he was named hitting coach for Greenville, now a Boston farm team at the

Class A-Advanced High-A (officially Class High-A, formerly known as Class A-Advanced, and sometimes abbreviated "A+" in writing) is the third-highest level of play in Minor League Baseball in the United States and Canada, below Triple-A and Double-A, and abov ...

level.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Spears, Nate 1985 births Living people Major League Baseball infielders Boston Red Sox players Gulf Coast Orioles players Delmarva Shorebirds players Frederick Keys players Daytona Cubs players Tennessee Smokies players Iowa Cubs players Portland Sea Dogs players Pawtucket Red Sox players Akron Aeros players Columbus Clippers players Somerset Patriots players Lehigh Valley IronPigs players Sportspeople from Fort Myers, Florida Baseball players from Lee County, Florida Mesa Solar Sox players Gigantes del Cibao players American expatriate baseball players in the Dominican Republic Charlotte High School (Punta Gorda, Florida) alumni Baseball players from Charlotte County, Florida