Mark Eugene Wiley (born February 28, 1948) is the former Director of Pitching Operations for the

Colorado Rockies The Colorado Rockies are an American professional baseball team based in Denver. The Rockies compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. The team plays its home baseball games at Coors Fie ...

. Wiley only pitched in parts of two

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), ...

seasons, however, he has remained in the game as a

pitching coach In baseball, a number of coaches assist in the smooth functioning of a team. They are assistants to the manager, who determines the starting lineup and batting order, decides how to substitute players during the game, and makes strategy decisio ...

and front office executive for over forty years.

Minnesota Twins

Wiley was drafted by the

Minnesota Twins The Minnesota Twins are an American professional baseball team based in Minneapolis. The Twins compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central Division. The team is named after the Twin Cities area w ...

in the second round of the

1970 Major League Baseball Draft First round selections The following are the first round picks in the 1970 Major League Baseball draft. ''*'' Did not sign Other notable Selections ''*'' Did not sign References External links Complete draft list from ''The Basebal ...

. After four unspectacular seasons in the Twins'

farm system In sports, a farm team, farm system, feeder team, feeder club, or nursery club is generally a team or club whose role is to provide experience and training for young players, with an agreement that any successful players can move on to a higher ...

, in which he went 49-44 with a 3.98

earned run average In baseball statistics, earned run average (ERA) is the average of earned runs allowed by a pitcher per nine innings pitched (i.e. the traditional length of a game). It is determined by dividing the number of earned runs allowed by the number ...

, Wiley had a breakthrough season with the

Pacific Coast League The Pacific Coast League (PCL) is a Minor League Baseball league that operates in the Western United States. Along with the International League, it is one of two leagues playing at the Triple-A (baseball), Triple-A level, which is one grade bel ...

's Tacoma Twins in . He went 9-1 with a 2.15 ERA to earn a call up to

Minnesota Minnesota () is a state in the upper midwestern region of the United States. It is the 12th largest U.S. state in area and the 22nd most populous, with over 5.75 million residents. Minnesota is home to western prairies, now given over to ...

that June. Wiley went 2-3 with a 6.05 ERA mostly as a

reliever In baseball and softball, a relief pitcher or reliever is a pitcher who enters the game after the starting pitcher is removed because of fatigue, ineffectiveness, injury, or ejection, or for other strategic reasons, such as inclement weather d ...

his only season in Minnesota, however, he earned a

complete game In baseball, a complete game (CG) is the act of a pitcher pitching an entire game without the benefit of a relief pitcher. A pitcher who meets this criterion will be credited with a complete game regardless of the number of innings played—pitche ...

victory in the second game of a doubleheader with the

California Angels The Los Angeles Angels are an American professional baseball team based in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. The Angels compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West division. Since 1966, the team ha ...

for his first major league win.

San Diego Padres

After spending the entire season with Tacoma, he was cut during

Spring training Spring training is the preseason in Major League Baseball (MLB), a series of practices and exhibition games preceding the start of the regular season. Spring training allows new players to try out for Schedule (workplace), roster and position spo ...

. He signed a minor league deal with 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 penna ...

shortly afterwards, and had a PCL leading sixteen victories for the

Hawaii Islanders The Hawaii Islanders were a minor league baseball team based in Honolulu, Hawaii, that played in the Triple-A Pacific Coast League for 27 seasons from 1961 through 1987. Originally an affiliate of the Kansas City Athletics, the Islanders played ...

in 1977. He earned a call up to the majors in June , and was effective in his first three appearances (1-0, 1.29 ERA, while holding batters to a .185

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 ...

), until a July 7 outing against the

Atlanta Braves The Atlanta Braves are an American professional baseball team based in the Atlanta metropolitan area. The Braves compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) National League East, East division. The Braves ...

. In two thirds of an inning, he allowed four earned runs, and also allowed two inherited runners to score. He returned to

Hawaii Hawaii ( ; haw, Hawaii or ) is a state in the Western United States, located in the Pacific Ocean about from the U.S. mainland. It is the only U.S. state outside North America, the only state that is an archipelago, and the only stat ...

shortly afterwards.

Toronto Blue Jays

That September, he was traded to 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 ...

for minor league

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 cat ...

Andrew Dyes. He made two appearances for the Jays, in blowout losses to the

New York Yankees The New York Yankees are an American professional baseball team based in the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of the Bronx. The Yankees compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Amer ...

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 ...

. He spent all of with the

International League The International League (IL) is a Minor League Baseball league that operates in the United States. Along with the Pacific Coast League, it is one of two leagues playing at the Triple-A level, which is one grade below Major League Baseball ...

Syracuse Chiefs Syracuse may refer to: Places Italy *Syracuse, Sicily, or spelled as ''Siracusa'' *Province of Syracuse United States *Syracuse, New York **East Syracuse, New York **North Syracuse, New York *Syracuse, Indiana * Syracuse, Kansas *Syracuse, Miss ...

. During Spring training , he was traded to the California Angels for fellow right handed

pitcher In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throws ("pitches") the 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 ...

Mike Barlow Michael Roswell Barlow (born April 30, 1948) is a retired professional baseball player who played seven seasons for the St. Louis Cardinals, Houston Astros, Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, Los Angeles Angels, and Toronto Blue Jays of Major League ...

. He was released by the Angels without making an appearance at any level. He caught on with 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) American League East, East division. As one of the American L ...

, and spent the 1980 season with the

Rochester Red Wings The Rochester Red Wings are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League and the Triple-A (baseball), Triple-A affiliate of the Washington Nationals. They are located in Rochester, New York, and play their home games at Innovative Field ...

before retiring, and going into coaching.

Coaching

Wiley's first coaching job was

managing 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 o ...

the Orioles' Southern League affiliate, the

Charlotte O's 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 ...

in . Barely a month into his new job, Wiley was fined & suspended for bumping an

umpire An umpire is an official in a variety of sports and competition, responsible for enforcing the rules of the sport, including sportsmanship decisions such as ejection. The term derives from the Old French nonper, ''non'', "not" and ''per'', ...

. He led the team to a 74-69 record. He remained a coach in their minor league system until , when he was added to the major league staff under new manager

Cal Ripken, Sr. Calvin Edwin Ripken Sr. (December 17, 1935 – March 25, 1999) was an American baseball player, scout, coach and manager. who spent 36 years in the Baltimore Orioles organization. He played in the Orioles' farm system beginning in 1957, and ...

After just one season, in which the Orioles went 67-95 with a 5.01 ERA (second worst in the

American League The American League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the American League (AL), is one of two leagues that make up Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada. It developed from the Western League, a minor league ...

), Wiley resigned. A month later, he became pitching coach of the

Cleveland Indians The Cleveland Guardians are an American professional baseball team based in Cleveland. The Guardians compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. Since , they have played at Progressive F ...

, who had the worst ERA in the AL in 1987. With Wiley on board, the Indians' staff ERA improved more than one

run Run(s) or RUN may refer to: Places * Run (island), one of the Banda Islands in Indonesia * Run (stream), a stream in the Dutch province of North Brabant People * Run (rapper), Joseph Simmons, now known as "Reverend Run", from the hip-hop group ...

per game in (4.16, from 5.28 in 1987). In , it improved to 3.65, fifth best in the American League. After a disastrous season, in which the Indians lost 105 games, Wiley was replaced as pitching coach by

Rick Adair Michael Richard Adair (born January 19, 1958) is a former pitching coach for the Baltimore Orioles and a former minor league baseball player. He was succeeded as pitching coach by Bill Castro. Playing career As a player, Adair played college b ...

, however, he accepted another position within the organization. From -, he served as a special assignment scout. He was renamed pitching coach in , and held the position until . He was again offered another position in the organization following his dismissal as pitching coach, but declined. Shortly afterwards, he accepted a job as pitching coach with the

Kansas City Royals The Kansas City Royals are an American professional baseball team based in Kansas City, Missouri. The Royals compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. The team was founded as an expans ...

. The Royals finished with a league worst 5.35 ERA, and the fewest

strikeout In baseball or softball, a strikeout (or strike-out) occurs when a batter accumulates three strikes during a time at bat. It usually means that the batter is out. A strikeout is a statistic recorded for both pitchers and batters, and is deno ...

s in the American League on its way to a 64-97 record in . After just one season in Kansas City, Wiley resigned, and accepted a front office position with the Colorado Rockies. He left the Rockies' front office to become pitching coach for the

Florida Marlins The Miami Marlins are an American professional baseball team based in Miami. The Marlins compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) East division. The club's home ballpark is LoanDepot Park. The franc ...

on November 9, . He was, however, fired after just one season, in which the Marlins went 83-79 with a 4.16 ERA. He returned to his front office job with the Rockies for two years, until returning to the Marlins' dugout for the season. He was fired at the end of the season despite the Marlins finishing twelve games about .500 with the lowest payroll in baseball. He accepted the position of special assistant to Marlins General Manager Mike Hill until returning to the Rockies in . On October 24, 2021, Wiley announced his retirement.

References

External links

Venezuelan Winter League
{{DEFAULTSORT:Wiley, Mark 1948 births Living people American expatriate baseball players in Canada Auburn Twins players Baltimore Orioles coaches Baseball players from California Cal Poly Pomona Broncos baseball players California Polytechnic State University alumni Charlotte Hornets (baseball) players Cleveland Indians coaches Cleveland Indians scouts Florida Marlins coaches Hawaii Islanders players Kansas City Royals coaches Major League Baseball pitchers Major League Baseball pitching coaches Minnesota Twins players Minor league baseball managers Navegantes del Magallanes players American expatriate baseball players in Venezuela Orlando Twins players People from National City, California Rochester Red Wings managers San Diego Padres players Syracuse Chiefs players Tigres de Aragua players Toronto Blue Jays players