Joseph Jerome Cannon (born July 13, 1953) is a former

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 ...

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), ...

. Born in

Camp Lejeune, North Carolina Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune () is a United States military training facility in Jacksonville, North Carolina. Its of beaches make the base a major area for amphibious assault training, and its location between two deep-water ports ( Wilming ...

, he grew up in

Anne Arundel County Anne Arundel County (; ), also notated as AA or A.A. County, is located in the U.S. state of Maryland. As of the 2020 United States census, its population was 588,261, an increase of just under 10% since 2010. Its county seat is Annapolis, whi ...

in Maryland. Cannon was a first round

draft pick A draft is a process used in some countries (especially in North America) and sports (especially in closed leagues) to allocate certain players to teams. In a draft, teams take turns selecting from a pool of eligible players. When a team selec ...

by the Houston Astros in 1974 out of Pensacola State College. Cannon spent parts of four seasons in the majors with the Astros and 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 ...

. Upon his retirement as a player, Cannon became a minor league coach and manager. He managed for 11 seasons in the Toronto,

Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,715 ...

, and Houston organizations, taking the

Lexington Legends The Lexington Legends are an American professional baseball team based in Lexington, Kentucky. They are a member of the South Division of the Atlantic League of Professional Baseball, a "partner league" of Major League Baseball. The Legends ha ...

to their first championship in their inaugural season in 2001. His most recent baseball job, 2007-2009, was as the field coach for the

Frederick Keys The Frederick Keys are a collegiate summer baseball team of the MLB Draft League. The Keys are based in Frederick, Maryland. The franchise is named for "Star-Spangled Banner" writer Francis Scott Key, a native of Frederick County. A new team masc ...

, the

Carolina League The Carolina League is a Minor League Baseball league which has operated along the Atlantic Coast of the United States since 1945. Having been classified at various levels throughout its existence, it operated at Class A-Advanced from 1990 unti ...

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 2015 he was working at the Kentucky Methodist Group Home in

Versailles, Kentucky Versailles () is a home rule-class city in Woodford County, Kentucky, United States. It lies by road west of Lexington and is part of the Lexington-Fayette Metropolitan Statistical Area. Versailles has a population of 9,316 according to 2017 cen ...

, mentoring teenage boys. Cannon usually appears on baseball cards as "J.J. Cannon."

References

External links

Pura Pelota (Venezuelan Winter League)
* 1953 births Living people African-American baseball players American expatriate baseball players in Canada Baseball players from North Carolina Cedar Rapids Astros players Charleston Charlies players Columbus Astros players Covington Astros players Dubuque Packers players Houston Astros players Kinston Blue Jays players Knoxville Blue Jays players Major League Baseball outfielders Minor league baseball coaches Minor league baseball managers Navegantes del Magallanes players American expatriate baseball players in Venezuela Sportspeople from Anne Arundel County, Maryland People from Jacksonville, North Carolina Pensacola State Pirates baseball players Syracuse Chiefs players Toronto Blue Jays players 20th-century African-American sportspeople {{US-baseball-outfielder-1950s-stub