Robert Sherwood Bailey (October 13, 1942 – January 9, 2018) was an American

professional baseball Professional baseball is organized baseball in which players are selected for their talents and are paid to play for a specific team or club system. It is played in baseball league, leagues and associated farm teams throughout the world. Mod ...

third baseman A third baseman, abbreviated 3B, is the player in baseball or softball whose responsibility is to defend the area nearest to third base — the third of four bases a baserunner must touch in succession to score a run. In the scoring system us ...

. He played 17 seasons 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) between 1962 and 1978 for the

Pittsburgh Pirates The Pittsburgh Pirates are an American professional baseball team based in Pittsburgh. The Pirates compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) Central division. Founded as part of the American Associati ...

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 (NL) West division. Established in 1883 in the city of Brooklyn ...

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 ...

Cincinnati Reds The Cincinnati Reds are an American professional baseball team based in Cincinnati. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) National League Central, Central division and were a charter member of ...

, and

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 eight ...

Early life

Bailey attended

Wilson Classical High School Woodrow Wilson High School (colloquially known as Long Beach Wilson) is an American state school, public secondary school, high school located in Long Beach, California, Long Beach, California. This City block, two-block campus is located approxima ...

, where he was the 1961 CIF Baseball Player of the Year and quarterbacked the football team for two years, one of which was undefeated.

Career

He was originally signed by the Pittsburgh Pirates as a bonus baby."Bob Bailey Statistics and History"
"baseball-reference.com. Retrieved May 23, 2017. After the 1966 season, the Pirates traded Bailey and Gene Michael to the

for Maury Wills. In a 17-season career, Bailey posted a .257 batting average with 189

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 773

Runs batted in A run batted in (RBI; plural RBIs ) 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 the bat ...

in 1931

games played Games played (GP) is a statistic used in team sports to indicate the total number of games in which a player has participated (in any capacity); the statistic is generally applied irrespective of whatever portion of the game is contested. Basebal ...

. Bailey batted fifth in the inaugural game of the

versus the New York Mets on April 8, 1969, going 2-for-4 with two RBIs and one walk in the 11-10 win. Bailey led the

National League The National League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the National League (NL), is the older of two leagues constituting Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada, and the world's oldest extant professional team s ...

Double Play In baseball and softball, a double play (denoted as DP in baseball statistics) is the act of making two outs during the same continuous play. Double plays can occur any time there is at least one baserunner and fewer than two outs. In Major Leag ...

s turned by a

Third baseman A third baseman, abbreviated 3B, is the player in baseball or softball whose responsibility is to defend the area nearest to third base — the third of four bases a baserunner must touch in succession to score a run. In the scoring system us ...

in 1963, Double Plays turned by a

Left fielder In baseball, a left fielder, abbreviated LF, is an outfielder who plays defense in left field. Left field is the area of the outfield to the left of a person standing at home plate and facing towards the pitcher's mound. In the numbering system ...

in 1974 and

Fielding percentage In baseball statistics, fielding percentage, also known as fielding average, is a measure that reflects the percentage of times a defensive player properly handles a batted or thrown ball. It is calculated by the sum of putouts and assists, div ...

by a Third baseman in 1971. He was acquired by the Reds from the Expos for Clay Kirby on December 12, 1975.

Later life

After his playing days were over, Bailey was a minor league manager and hitting instructor, most notably in the

organization. In 1987, he was the final manager of the Hawaii Islanders. Bailey died on January 9, 2018 at the age of 75.Bob Bailey, ‘the Babe Ruth of Long Beach’ who played for the Dodgers in 17 MLB seasons, dies at 75
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References

External links

1942 births 2018 deaths American expatriate baseball players in Canada Asheville Tourists players Baseball coaches from California Baseball players from Long Beach, California Birmingham Barons managers Boston Red Sox players Cincinnati Reds players Columbus Jets players Hawaii Islanders managers Los Angeles Dodgers players Major League Baseball third basemen Montreal Expos players Pittsburgh Pirates players Sportspeople from Long Beach, California Wilson Classical High School alumni {{US-baseball-third-baseman-stub