Morris Nettles (January 26, 1952 – January 24, 2017) was an American

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 ...

who played two seasons with the California Angels in the mid-1970s. Nettles was drafted by the Angels 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 ...

out of Venice High School in

Los Angeles, California Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

. A speedy runner with good range in the

outfield The outfield, in cricket, baseball and softball is the area of the field of play further from the batsman or batter than the infield. In association football, the outfield players are positioned outside the goal area. In cricket, baseball a ...

, he batted over .300 in the Angels' farm system to earn a roster spot with the Angels coming out of Spring training . He was demoted back to the triple A Salt Lake City Angels at the end of May with a .222

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 ...

, three extra base hits, seven runs scored and one stolen base. Nettles batted .328 with 26 stolen bases and 69 runs scored for Salt Lake City to earn a second chance with the big league club. He made the most of his second chance, batting .292 with nineteen stolen bases and scoring twenty runs at the top of the Angels' batting order. Nettles was handed the centerfield job heading into the campaign, but lost it to

Mickey Rivers John Milton "Mickey" Rivers (born October 30, 1948) is an American former baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball from 1970 to 1984 for the California Angels, New York Yankees and Texas Rangers. As a member of the Yankees, he was pa ...

a month into the season. Playing one of the corner outfield positions and occasionally filling in for Rivers in center the rest of the way, Nettles batted .231 with fifty runs scored. He stole 22 bases, but was caught fifteen times. He and

Jim Spencer James Lloyd Spencer (July 30, 1947 – February 10, 2002) was a Major League Baseball first baseman. Born in Hanover, Pennsylvania, the left-handed Spencer was recognized for his excellent fielding ability, but also served in later years as a d ...

were traded to 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

Bill Melton William Edwin Melton (born July 7, 1945), nicknamed "Beltin' Bill" and "Beltin' Melton", is an American former professional baseball player and television sports commentator. He played as a third baseman in Major League Baseball from through , m ...

and

Steve Dunning Steven John Dunning (born May 15, 1949) is an American former professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball as a right-handed pitcher between and for the Cleveland Indians, Texas Rangers, California Angels, Montreal Expos and ...

on December 11, 1975. Nettles was one of many young outfielders competing for the White Sox's centerfield job in Spring training . With

Chet Lemon Chester Earl Lemon (born February 12, 1955) is a former Major League Baseball outfielder. A native of Jackson, Mississippi, he grew up in Los Angeles. He was drafted in the first round of the 1972 Major League Baseball draft and played 16 season ...

eventually named the Chisox's

centerfielder A center fielder, abbreviated CF, is the outfielder in baseball who plays defense in center field – the baseball and softball fielding position between left field and right field. In the numbering system used to record defensive plays, the c ...

, Nettles split the season between the

Toledo Mud Hens The Toledo Mud Hens are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League and the Triple-A affiliate of the Detroit Tigers. They are located in Toledo, Ohio, and play their home games at Fifth Third Field. A Mud Hens team has played in ...

and Iowa Oaks, batting a combined .232 in his final professional season. Nettles died from complications of pancreatic cancer on January 24, 2017.

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Nettles, Moris 1952 births 2017 deaths African-American baseball players Major League Baseball outfielders California Angels players Baseball players from Los Angeles Águilas Cibaeñas players American expatriate baseball players in the Dominican Republic Deaths from cancer in California Deaths from pancreatic cancer 20th-century African-American sportspeople 21st-century African-American people Angeles de Puebla players American expatriate baseball players in Mexico Dorados de Chihuahua players El Paso Sun Kings players Idaho Falls Angels players Iowa Oaks players Piratas de Campeche players Plataneros de Tabasco players Quad Cities Angels players Salt Lake City Angels players Shreveport Captains players Toledo Mud Hens players Venice High School (Los Angeles) alumni