Damon Minor
Encyclopedia
Damon Reed Minor is a former Major League Baseball
first baseman
for the San Francisco Giants
. He also played one year in Japan
for the Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles
in . He is the hitting coach for Triple A New Orleans Zephyrs (Class AAA PCL for Florida Marlins)
Given the nickname "Tiny" by Barry Bonds
because of his large frame, 6' 7" 230 lbs, Minor is currently a co-owner of Minor-Foral Baseball Academy, where he gives hitting lessons and coaches prep summer showcase teams.
at the University of Oklahoma from to as the designated hitter
and was a three-year starter. He helped his team win the National Championship and made it back to the College World Series in . His best season came in 1996, when he batted
.348 with 14 home run
s and 62 RBI
and was named an All-American Honorable Mention.
. He started his minor league career in 1996 with the Low-A Bellingham Giants. He had one of his best years in with the High-A Bakersfield Blaze
; he hit .289 with 31 home runs and 99 RBI. Minor split between High-A San Jose
and Double-A Shreveport
. In , again with Shreveport, he hit 20 home runs and had 82 RBI.
was Minor's career year. With Triple-A Fresno
, he hit .290 with 30 home runs and 102 RBI, which was good enough for a September call-up to the Giants. In , he was again good as he hit .308 with 24 home runs and 71 RBI and was twice promoted to the majors. In , he played only 9 games in the minors as he spent time in the majors and on the disabled list
. Minor struggled to begin and on May 19, he was traded to the Philadelphia Phillies
for minor leaguer Mike Wilson. Minor spent the rest of the year with the Phillies' Triple-A team, the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Red Barons. He became a free agent
at the end of the season. During the offseason, Minor had laser eye surgery
and lost 30 pounds and on February 6, , he re-signed with the Giants. He hit .302 for Fresno and again saw time in the majors. On November 17, 2004, he signed with the Pittsburgh Pirates
, but was released just one month later before the season began.
. He co-owns a baseball academy and coaches a prep team.
, was also a Major League Baseball player for the Baltimore Orioles
and Montreal Expos
. They were teammates at Oklahoma from 1993 to 1995.
Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball is the highest level of professional baseball in the United States and Canada, consisting of teams that play in the National League and the American League...
first baseman
First baseman
First base, or 1B, is the first of four stations on a baseball diamond which must be touched in succession by a baserunner in order to score a run for that player's team...
for the San Francisco Giants
San Francisco Giants
The San Francisco Giants are a Major League Baseball team based in San Francisco, California, playing in the National League West Division....
. He also played one year in Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
for the Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles
Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles
The is a baseball team founded in 2004; it played its first season in the Japanese Pacific League in 2005. It is simply called Rakuten . The team was created to fill the void left by the merger of the Orix Blue Wave and the Kintetsu Buffaloes, after the 2004 season due to financial difficulties,...
in . He is the hitting coach for Triple A New Orleans Zephyrs (Class AAA PCL for Florida Marlins)
Given the nickname "Tiny" by Barry Bonds
Barry Bonds
Barry Lamar Bonds is an American former Major League Baseball outfielder. Bonds played from 1986 to 2007, for the Pittsburgh Pirates and San Francisco Giants. He is the son of former major league All-Star Bobby Bonds...
because of his large frame, 6' 7" 230 lbs, Minor is currently a co-owner of Minor-Foral Baseball Academy, where he gives hitting lessons and coaches prep summer showcase teams.
College career
Minor played four years of baseballBaseball
Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each. The aim is to score runs by hitting a thrown ball with a bat and touching a series of four bases arranged at the corners of a ninety-foot diamond...
at the University of Oklahoma from to as the designated hitter
Designated hitter
In baseball, the designated hitter rule is the common name for Major League Baseball Rule 6.10, an official position adopted by the American League in 1973 that allows teams to designate a player, known as the designated hitter , to bat in place of the pitcher each time he would otherwise come to...
and was a three-year starter. He helped his team win the National Championship and made it back to the College World Series in . His best season came in 1996, when he batted
Batting average
Batting average is a statistic in both cricket and baseball that measures the performance of cricket batsmen and baseball hitters. The two statistics are related in that baseball averages are directly descended from the concept of cricket averages.- Cricket :...
.348 with 14 home run
Home run
In baseball, a home run is scored when the ball is hit in such a way that the batter is able to reach home safely in one play without any errors being committed by the defensive team in the process...
s and 62 RBI
Run batted in
Runs batted in or RBIs is a statistic used in baseball and softball to credit a batter when the outcome of his at-bat results in a run being scored, except in certain situations such as when an error is made on the play. The first team to track RBI was the Buffalo Bisons.Common nicknames for an RBI...
and was named an All-American Honorable Mention.
Minor leagues
Minor was drafted by the San Francisco Giants in the 12th round of the 1996 Major League Baseball Draft1996 Major League Baseball Draft
The 1996 First-Year Player Draft, Major League Baseball's annual amateur draft of high school and college baseball players, was held on June 4 and 5, 1996...
. He started his minor league career in 1996 with the Low-A Bellingham Giants. He had one of his best years in with the High-A Bakersfield Blaze
Bakersfield Blaze
The Bakersfield Blaze are a minor league baseball team in Bakersfield, California, USA. They are a Class A – Advanced team in the California League and are a farm team of the Cincinnati Reds. The Bakersfield Blaze play their home games at Historic Sam Lynn Ballpark...
; he hit .289 with 31 home runs and 99 RBI. Minor split between High-A San Jose
San Jose Giants
The San Jose Giants are a minor league baseball team in San Jose, California, USA. They are a Class A - Advanced team in the Northern Division of the California League, and have been a farm team of the San Francisco Giants since 1988. Home games are played at San Jose Municipal Stadium...
and Double-A Shreveport
Frisco RoughRiders
The Frisco RoughRiders are currently the Class AA affiliate of the Texas Rangers major league baseball club. The team plays in the Texas League, assigned to the South Division. Prior to 2003, the franchise was based in Shreveport, Louisiana, and were known as the Shreveport Captains...
. In , again with Shreveport, he hit 20 home runs and had 82 RBI.
was Minor's career year. With Triple-A Fresno
Fresno Grizzlies
The Fresno Grizzlies are a minor league baseball team based in Fresno, California. The team, which plays in the Pacific Coast League , is the Triple-A affiliate of the San Francisco Giants major league club. The Grizzlies play in Chukchansi Park , located in downtown Fresno and built in 2002...
, he hit .290 with 30 home runs and 102 RBI, which was good enough for a September call-up to the Giants. In , he was again good as he hit .308 with 24 home runs and 71 RBI and was twice promoted to the majors. In , he played only 9 games in the minors as he spent time in the majors and on the disabled list
Disabled list
In Major League Baseball, the disabled list is a method for teams to remove their injured players from the roster in order to summon healthy players.-General guidelines:...
. Minor struggled to begin and on May 19, he was traded to the Philadelphia Phillies
Philadelphia Phillies
The Philadelphia Phillies are a Major League Baseball team. They are the oldest continuous, one-name, one-city franchise in all of professional American sports, dating to 1883. The Phillies are a member of the Eastern Division of Major League Baseball's National League...
for minor leaguer Mike Wilson. Minor spent the rest of the year with the Phillies' Triple-A team, the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Red Barons. He became a free agent
Free agent
In professional sports, a free agent is a player whose contract with a team has expired and who is thus eligible to sign with another club or franchise....
at the end of the season. During the offseason, Minor had laser eye surgery
LASIK
LASIK or Lasik , commonly referred to simply as laser eye surgery, is a type of refractive surgery for correcting myopia, hyperopia, and astigmatism...
and lost 30 pounds and on February 6, , he re-signed with the Giants. He hit .302 for Fresno and again saw time in the majors. On November 17, 2004, he signed with the Pittsburgh Pirates
Pittsburgh Pirates
The Pittsburgh Pirates are a Major League Baseball club based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. They play in the Central Division of the National League, and are five-time World Series Champions...
, but was released just one month later before the season began.
Major leagues
Minor made his major league debut on September 2, , for the San Francisco Giants, and appeared in 10 games that year. In , he played 19 games in the majors and spent most of the season with Triple-A Fresno. In , he spent nearly the entire year in the majors. In 83 games, Minor hit .237 with 10 home runs and 24 RBIs. He spent all of 2003 in the minors with the Giants' and Phillies' organizations. After re-signing with the Giants in the offseason, Minor appeared in 24 games for the Giants in . and became a free agent after the season.Japan
In , Minor signed with the Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles of Japan's Nippon Professional Baseball, but was limited to 6 games because of injuries.Post-playing career
In , Minor became a volunteer coach for his alma mater, the University of Oklahoma to help with their hitting. He currently resides in Edmond, OklahomaEdmond, Oklahoma
Edmond is a city in Oklahoma County, Oklahoma, United States, and a part of the Oklahoma City metropolitan area in the central part of the state. As of the 2010 census, the population was 81,405, making it the sixth largest city in the state of Oklahoma....
. He co-owns a baseball academy and coaches a prep team.
Personal life
Minor's twin brother, RyanRyan Minor
Ryan Dale Minor is a retired American professional baseball third baseman and college basketball player. He played all or part of four seasons in Major League Baseball, from 1998-2001, with the Baltimore Orioles and Montreal Expos. He is currently the manager of the Delmarva Shorebirds of the...
, was also a Major League Baseball player for the Baltimore Orioles
Baltimore Orioles
The Baltimore Orioles are a professional baseball team based in Baltimore, Maryland in the United States. They are a member of the Eastern Division of Major League Baseball's American League. One of the American League's eight charter franchises in 1901, it spent its first year as a major league...
and Montreal Expos
Montreal Expos
The Montreal Expos were a Major League Baseball team located in Montreal, Quebec from 1969 through 2004, holding the first MLB franchise awarded outside the United States. After the 2004 season, MLB moved the Expos to Washington, D.C. and renamed them the Nationals.Named after the Expo 67 World's...
. They were teammates at Oklahoma from 1993 to 1995.