Howard Roddy Clark (born February 13, 1974) is 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 leagues and associated farm teams throughout the world.
Modern professional ...
coach
Coach may refer to:
Guidance/instruction
* Coach (sport), a director of athletes' training and activities
* Coaching, the practice of guiding an individual through a process
** Acting coach, a teacher who trains performers
Transportation
* Co ...
and former
utility player. 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
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 ...
,
Toronto Blue Jays
The Toronto Blue Jays are a Canadian professional baseball team based in Toronto. The Blue Jays compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. Since 1989, the team has played its home games ...
, and
Minnesota Twins, and coached for the Orioles and
Chicago White Sox
The Chicago White Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The White Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. The team is owned by Jerry Reinsdorf, and ...
. He is currently the
hitting coach for the
Memphis Redbirds
The Memphis Redbirds are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League and the Triple-A affiliate of the St. Louis Cardinals. They are located in Memphis, Tennessee, and are named for their Major League Baseball affiliate. The Redbir ...
.
Playing career
Clark was selected by the Baltimore Orioles in the 27th round (744th overall) of the
1992 Major League Baseball Draft
The 1992 Major League Baseball draft took place on June 1, 1992, through a conference call involving all 28 MLB teams of the time. Phil Nevin of Cal State Fullerton was the first overall selection, chosen by the Houston Astros. Derek Jeter, sel ...
. He would spend ten years in Baltimore's minor league system before making an appearance in the majors.
[ ] During this time, Clark played in parts of four seasons with the
Rochester Red Wings, the Orioles'
Triple-A affiliate, from to and was named the team captain.
After his contract was purchased by the Orioles on July 16, 2002, he finally made his major-league debut as a
designated hitter
The designated hitter (DH) is a baseball player who bats in place of another position player, most commonly the pitcher. The position is authorized by Major League Baseball Rule 5.11. It was adopted by the American League in 1973 and later by th ...
batting leadoff that same day in a 6–1 victory over 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 ...
at
Camden Yards
The Oriole Park at Camden Yards is a baseball stadium located in Baltimore, Maryland. It is the home field of Major League Baseball's Baltimore Orioles, and the first of the "retro" major league ballparks constructed during the 1990s and early ...
. He was given a
standing ovation
A standing ovation is a form of applause where members of a seated audience stand up while applauding after extraordinary performances of particularly high acclaim. In Ancient Rome returning military commanders (such as Marcus Licinius Crassus a ...
after his first
at bat resulted in a
double
A double is a look-alike or doppelgänger; one person or being that resembles another.
Double, The Double or Dubble may also refer to:
Film and television
* Double (filmmaking), someone who substitutes for the credited actor of a character
* ...
off
Joel Piñeiro
Joel Alberto Piñeiro (, ; born September 25, 1978) is a Puerto Rican former professional baseball pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Seattle Mariners, Boston Red Sox, St. Louis Cardinals, and Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim ...
. Clark eventually scored the first
run of the contest.
He played in 14 games with the Orioles in his first major league action, batting .302 with 4 RBI.
He became a
free agent
In professional sports, a free agent is a player who is eligible to sign with other clubs or franchises; i.e., not under contract to any specific team. The term is also used in reference to a player who is under contract at present but who is a ...
after the 2002 season and signed with the
Toronto Blue Jays
The Toronto Blue Jays are a Canadian professional baseball team based in Toronto. The Blue Jays compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. Since 1989, the team has played its home games ...
on November 12, 2002.
After two seasons with the Blue Jays, Clark signed a minor league contract with the
Pittsburgh Pirates on November 1, 2004.
He spent the season with the Rookie-level
Gulf Coast League Pirates
The Florida Complex League Pirates are a Rookie-level affiliate of the Pittsburgh Pirates, competing in the Florida Complex League of Minor League Baseball. Prior to 2021, the team was known as the Gulf Coast League Pirates. The team plays its h ...
and the Double-A
Altoona Curve
The Altoona Curve are a Minor League Baseball team based in Altoona, Pennsylvania, named after nearby Horseshoe Curve (but also alluding to the curveball, a type of pitch). The team plays in the Eastern League and is the Double-A affiliate of th ...
, batting a combined .394 with two home runs and 17 RBI in 39 games.
Clark re-signed with Baltimore before the season. Clark played most of the year with their Triple-A affiliate, the
Ottawa Lynx
The Ottawa Lynx were a Minor League Baseball team that competed in the Triple-A International League (IL) from 1993 to 2007. The team's home field was Lynx Stadium in Ottawa, Ontario. Over 15 seasons, the team was an affiliate of the Montreal ...
, but was called up to Baltimore for a brief stretch during the months of June and July. He played in seven games, recording one hit in seven at-bats (.143).
Clark signed with the San Diego Padres on January 10, 2007. He was released at the end of Spring Training on March 31.
On May 12, Clark signed a contract to return to the Blue Jays.
On May 30, , while playing
third base
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 ...
for the Blue Jays, Clark let an easy pop fly fall after
Alex Rodriguez
Alexander Emmanuel Rodriguez (born July 27, 1975), nicknamed "A-Rod", is an American former professional baseball shortstop and third baseman, businessman and philanthropist. Rodriguez played 22 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the ...
yelled "Mine" in order to distract the infielders.
Sports telecasts aired this play numerous times in the following days as part of discussions on Rodriguez's poor sportsmanship.
Clark was cited in the 2007
Mitchell Report
The ''Report to the Commissioner of Baseball of an Independent Investigation into the Illegal Use of Steroids and Other Performance Enhancing Substances by Players in Major League Baseball'', informally known as the Mitchell Report, is the res ...
on performance-enhancing drugs in baseball, but was later acquitted when it was discovered his
GH was bunk because he bought it from a false Mexican source.
Clark was outrighted to Triple-A by the Blue Jays on August 7, 2007. He then signed a minor league contract with the
Minnesota Twins on November 21, 2007.
He began the season with the
Rochester Red Wings, now the Triple-A affiliate of the Twins. Clark was called up to Minnesota on May 16 to replace the injured
Matt Tolbert, but 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 pla ...
to Rochester on May 31. He accepted the assignment, stating that one of his reasons for returning to Rochester was his good relationship with the fans. He became a free agent at the end of the season and signed a minor league contract with the Toronto Blue Jays on January 16, .
Coaching career
In February 2015, Clark was named the hitting coach of the
Delmarva Shorebirds
The Delmarva Shorebirds are a Minor League Baseball team based in Salisbury, Maryland. They are members of the Carolina League and the Single-A affiliate of the Baltimore Orioles. Their home games are played at Arthur W. Perdue Stadium. The Shor ...
, the Class-A affiliate of 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 February 2017, Clark was named the assistant
hitting coach for the Orioles. He was not retained by the ballclub following the
2019 season. He was named hitting coach of the
Charlotte Knights
The Charlotte Knights are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League and the Triple-A affiliate of the Chicago White Sox. They are located in Charlotte, North Carolina, and play their home games at Truist Field, which opened in 20 ...
, Triple-A affiliate of the
Chicago White Sox
The Chicago White Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The White Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. The team is owned by Jerry Reinsdorf, and ...
, for the 2020 season. On December 1, 2020, Clark was named assistant hitting coach for the
Chicago White Sox
The Chicago White Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The White Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. The team is owned by Jerry Reinsdorf, and ...
. In January 2023, Clark became the hitting coach of the
Memphis Redbirds
The Memphis Redbirds are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League and the Triple-A affiliate of the St. Louis Cardinals. They are located in Memphis, Tennessee, and are named for their Major League Baseball affiliate. The Redbir ...
, Triple-A affiliate of the
St. Louis Cardinals
The St. Louis Cardinals are an American professional baseball team based in St. Louis. The Cardinals compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) Central division. Since the 2006 season, the Cardinals ha ...
.
See also
*
References
External links
The Baseball GaugeMexican LeagueVenezuela Winter League
{{DEFAULTSORT:Clark, Howie
1974 births
Living people
Albany Polecats players
Altoona Curve players
American expatriate baseball players in Canada
American expatriate baseball players in Mexico
Baltimore Orioles coaches
Baltimore Orioles players
Baseball coaches from California
Baseball players from San Diego
Bluefield Orioles players
Bowie Baysox players
Chicago White Sox coaches
Chico Heat players
Frederick Keys players
Gulf Coast Orioles players
Gulf Coast Pirates players
High Desert Mavericks players
Las Vegas 51s players
Leones de Yucatán players
Leones del Caracas players
American expatriate baseball players in Venezuela
Major League Baseball hitting coaches
Major League Baseball infielders
Major League Baseball left fielders
Major League Baseball right fielders
Mexican League baseball center fielders
Mexican League baseball first basemen
Mexican League baseball right fielders
Mexican League baseball second basemen
Minnesota Twins players
Minor league baseball coaches
New Hampshire Fisher Cats players
Ottawa Lynx players
Pastora de los Llanos players
Rochester Red Wings players
Syracuse Chiefs players
Syracuse SkyChiefs players
Toronto Blue Jays players