Donald James Cooper is a former pitcher

Pitcher

In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throwsthe baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of retiring a batter, who attempts to either make contact with the pitched ball or draw a walk. In the numbering system used to record defensive plays, the...

 in Major League Baseball

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...

 and the current pitching coach of the Chicago White Sox

Chicago White Sox

The Chicago White Sox are a Major League Baseball team located in Chicago, Illinois.The White Sox play in the American League's Central Division. Since , the White Sox have played in U.S. Cellular Field, which was originally called New Comiskey Park and nicknamed The Cell by local fans...

.

Early life

He attended Monsignor McClancy Memorial High School

Monsignor McClancy Memorial High School

Monsignor McClancy Memorial High School is an all-boys Catholic high school located in the East Elmhurst neighborhood of Queens, New York. As of Fall 2012, the school will start accepting young women, and will become fully co-educational by 2016. Founded by the Brothers of the Sacred Heart in 1956,...

 (class of 1974) and New York Institute of Technology

New York Institute of Technology

New York Institute of Technology is a private, non-sectarian, co-educational research university in New York City. NYIT has five schools and two colleges, all with a strong emphasis on technology and applied scientific research...

.

Playing career

Cooper was drafted by the New York Yankees

New York Yankees

The New York Yankees are a professional baseball team based in the The Bronx, New York. They compete in Major League Baseball in the American League's East Division...

 in the 17th round of the 1978 Major League Baseball Draft

1978 Major League Baseball Draft

-First round selections:The following are the first round picks in the 1978 Major League Baseball draft.- Background :In 1978, four players made the jump from amateur baseball to the major leagues, including Arizona State third baseman Bob Horner, who was selected number one overall by the Atlanta...

. After the 1980 season, he was selected by the Minnesota Twins

Minnesota Twins

The Minnesota Twins are a professional baseball team based in Minneapolis, Minnesota. They play in the Central Division of Major League Baseball's American League. The team is named after the Twin Cities area of Minneapolis and St. Paul. They played in Metropolitan Stadium from 1961 to 1981 and the...

 from the Yankees in the Rule 5 draft

Rule 5 draft

The Rule 5 draft is a Major League Baseball player draft that occurs each year in December, at the annual Winter Meeting of general managers. The Rule 5 draft aims to prevent teams from stockpiling too many young players on their minor league affiliate teams when other teams would be willing to...

.

Cooper played for the Twins in 1981 and 1982, before being traded to the Toronto Blue Jays

Toronto Blue Jays

The Toronto Blue Jays are a professional baseball team located in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The Blue Jays are a member of the Eastern Division of Major League Baseball 's American League ....

 for Dave Baker

Dave Baker

Dave Baker was a defensive back in the NFL, playing for the San Francisco 49ers for three years....

. After 1983, Cooper was traded to the Yankees for a minor league player. He signed with the Athletics for the 1986 season, appearing only in the minor leagues. In 44 MLB games (3 starts) spread over 4 seasons, Cooper compiled a 1-6 record, with a 5.27 ERA.

Coaching career

Cooper has worked in the White Sox organization since 1988, when he served as a minor league pitching coach for the Single-A South Bend Silver Hawks

South Bend Silver Hawks

The South Bend Silver Hawks are a U.S. Class A minor league baseball team, affiliated with the Arizona Diamondbacks, that plays in the Midwest League....

. He also served as pitching coach for the Single-A Advanced Sarasota White Sox from 1989 through 1991 and the Double-A Birmingham Barons

Birmingham Barons

The Birmingham Barons are a minor league baseball team based in Birmingham, Alabama. The team, which plays in the Southern League, is the Double-A affiliate of the Chicago White Sox major-league club....

 in 1992. He became the White Sox minor league pitching coordinator from 1993 through 2002, aside from serving as pitching coach for the Triple-A Nashville Sounds

Nashville Sounds

The Nashville Sounds are a minor league baseball team of the Pacific Coast League , and the Triple-A affiliate of the Milwaukee Brewers. They are located in Nashville, Tennessee, and are named for the city's association with the music industry...

 in 1995 and 1996.

Cooper became the White Sox pitching coach in 2002. With the departure of Ozzie Guillen

Ozzie Guillén

Oswaldo José "Ozzie" Guillén Barrios is a Venezuelan-American former Major League Baseball player and current manager of the Miami Marlins. He managed the Chicago White Sox from 2004 to 2011 before asking for his release at the end of the 2011 season....

 on September 26, 2011, and Joey Cora on September 27, 2011, Cooper became the 38th manager of the White Sox, filling the role for the final two games of the 2011 season.

External links

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