Alonzo Sidney Powell (born December 12, 1964) is a former

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), ...

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 c ...

. He batted and threw

right-handed In human biology, handedness is an individual's preferential use of one hand, known as the dominant hand, due to it being stronger, faster or more dextrous. The other hand, comparatively often the weaker, less dextrous or simply less subjecti ...

. Powell was the first foreign player in the NPB to capture 3 consecutive batting titles.

Career

Playing career

Minor and Major League Baseball

Powell played under Gary Attell at Aptos Junior High School, where he honed his skills as a catcher. He was signed as an undrafted free agent by the

San Francisco Giants The San Francisco Giants are an American professional baseball team based in San Francisco, California. The Giants compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Founded in 1883 as the New Y ...

in February 1983. He made his major league debut on April 6, , with the

Montreal Expos The Montreal Expos (french: link=no, Les Expos de Montréal) were a Canadian professional baseball team based in Montreal, Quebec. The Expos were the first Major League Baseball (MLB) franchise located outside the United States. They played in t ...

. In 1987, Powell played 14 games, had 8 hits and 4 RBI. In , he played for the

Seattle Mariners The Seattle Mariners are an American professional baseball team based in Seattle. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West division. The team joined the American League as an expansion team ...

. He had 24 hits in 111 at-bats (a .216

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 ...

), 3

home run 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 i ...

s, and 12 RBI.

Nippon Professional Baseball

Following his major league career, Powell played for seven seasons in Japan. He was just the third player in

Central League The or is one of the two professional baseball leagues that constitute Nippon Professional Baseball in Japan. The winner of the league championship plays against the winner of the Pacific League in the annual Japan Series. It currently consi ...

history, and the first foreign player, to win three straight batting titles, hitting .324, .355, and .340 from 1994 to 1996. Four times NPB Japanese Baseball Best Nine center-fielder 1993 to 1996. He was also a two-time Central League All-Star.

Coaching career

Powell served as the hitting coach of the Double-A

Chattanooga Lookouts The Chattanooga Lookouts are a Minor League Baseball team of the Southern League and the Double-A affiliate of the Cincinnati Reds. They are located in Chattanooga, Tennessee, and are named for nearby Lookout Mountain. The team plays its home g ...

from - and the

manager Management (or managing) is the administration of an organization, whether it is a business, a nonprofit organization, or a government body. It is the art and science of managing resources of the business. Management includes the activities ...

of the Single-A

Dayton Dragons The Dayton Dragons are a Minor League Baseball team of the Midwest League and the High-A affiliate of the Cincinnati Reds. They are located in Dayton, Ohio, and play their home games at Day Air Ballpark, formerly known as Fifth Third Field. I ...

from -. In , he was the Seattle Mariners minor league hitting instructor. For , he was named the hitting coach for the Triple-A

Tacoma Rainiers The Tacoma Rainiers are a Minor League Baseball team of the Pacific Coast League (PCL) and the Triple-A affiliate of the Seattle Mariners. They are located in Tacoma, Washington, and play their home games at Cheney Stadium, which opened in 1960 ...

in the Mariners' organization. On May 9, 2010, the Seattle Mariners announced that Powell would serve as the team's hitting coach, replacing

Alan Cockrell Atlee Alan Cockrell (born December 5, 1962) is an American professional baseball outfielder and coach. He was most recently the hitting coach for the New York Yankees of Major League Baseball. Football career Twice named first-team all state, Co ...

. Powell then was hired as the Assistant Hitting Coach for the

San Diego Padres The San Diego Padres are an American professional baseball team based in San Diego. The Padres compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Founded in 1969, the club has won two NL penn ...

on November 17, 2011. On December 7, 2015, the Houston Astros named Powell as the team's new hitting coach. On November 2, 2017, he accepted the position of hitting coach for the

. On November 18, 2019, it was announced that Powell had become part of former teammate Tsuyoshi Yoda's backroom staff at the

Chunichi Dragons The are a professional baseball team based in Nagoya, the chief city in the Chūbu region of Japan. The team plays in the Central League of Nippon Professional Baseball. They have won the Central League pennant nine times (most recently in 2011) ...

Personal life

Powell underwent surgery for prostate cancer in January 2018. He later spoke about cancer in Napa.

References

External links

, o
Pura Pelota (Venezuelan Winter League)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Powell, Alonzo 1964 births Living people African-American baseball coaches African-American baseball players American expatriate baseball players in Canada American expatriate baseball players in Japan American expatriate baseball players in Venezuela Baseball coaches from California Baseball players from San Francisco Calgary Cannons players Chunichi Dragons players Clinton Giants players Colorado Springs Sky Sox players Columbus Clippers players Everett Giants players Great Falls Giants players Hanshin Tigers players Houston Astros coaches Indianapolis Indians players Jacksonville Expos players Major League Baseball hitting coaches Major League Baseball outfielders Minor league baseball coaches Minor league baseball managers Montreal Expos players Navegantes del Magallanes players Newark Bears players Nippon Professional Baseball first basemen Nippon Professional Baseball outfielders Portland Beavers players San Diego Padres coaches San Francisco Giants coaches San Jose Bees players Seattle Mariners coaches Seattle Mariners players Syracuse SkyChiefs players Tigres de Aragua players West Palm Beach Expos players