Timothy Lee Tolman (April 20, 1956 – June 3, 2021) 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 cat ...

Baseball career

Tolman played his college baseball at the

University of Southern California The University of Southern California (USC, SC, or Southern Cal) is a Private university, private research university in Los Angeles, California, United States. Founded in 1880 by Robert M. Widney, it is the oldest private research university in C ...

and was drafted by the

Houston Astros The Houston Astros are an American professional baseball team based in Houston, Texas. The Astros compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West division, having moved to the division in 2013 after ...

in the 12th round of the 1978 amateur draft. He reached the major leagues in 1981 after batting .322, hitting 14 home runs and having 99 runs batted in for the

Tucson Toros The Tucson Toros were a professional baseball team based in Tucson, Arizona, in the United States. The original Toros were a Triple-A minor league baseball team in the Pacific Coast League from 1969 to 1997, where they won the PCL Championship in ...

of 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 ...

. His

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was .927. In his seven major league seasons (with the Astros from 1981 through 1985, and the

Detroit Tigers The Detroit Tigers are an American professional baseball team based in Detroit. The Tigers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the American League (AL) Central division. One of the AL's eight charter franchises, the club was f ...

in 1986–1987), Tolman could never gain a regular job and hit only .168 for his career, never batting higher than the .196 he posted in 1983. Defensively, Tolman posted a perfect 1.000

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 ...

in his major league career (135 putouts, 5 assists). He played two more seasons in 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 ...

(for the

Tidewater Tides The Norfolk Tides are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League and the Triple-A affiliate of the Baltimore Orioles. They are located in Norfolk, Virginia, and are named in nautical reference to the city's location on the Chesapea ...

in 1988 and the

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 ...

in 1989) before retiring. After his playing career, Tolman managed from 1991–1996 in the Astros' minor-league system. He was a scout in 1997–1999 and a scouting supervisor for the Astros in 2000–2002, then became minor league field coordinator for 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 ...

from 2003 to 2006. Tolman was the

third base 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 decisi ...

for the

Washington Nationals The Washington Nationals are an American professional baseball team based in Washington, D.C.. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the National League (NL) East division. From 2005 to 2007, the team played in RFK Stadiu ...

in and was the subject of criticism. Tolman was fired on September 28, 2008, after the final game of the 2008 season. On January 13, 2009, Tolman was named 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) American League West, West division. The team joined the American League ...

coordinator of instruction. After the 2009 season, Tolman was hired as

bench 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 decisi ...

by new Cleveland Indians' new manager,

Manny Acta Manuel Elias Acta (born January 11, 1969) is a Dominican former professional baseball manager (baseball), manager who is currently the Third Base coach for the Seattle Mariners, and formerly a broadcast analyst for ESPN and ESPN Deportes. He has ...

, under whom Tolman had coached in Washington. The relationship between Tolman and Acta goes back to 1991, when Acta played for Tolman, who was managing the

Burlington Astros Burlington may refer to: Places Canada Geography * Burlington, Newfoundland and Labrador * Burlington, Nova Scotia * Burlington, Ontario, the most populous city with the name "Burlington" * Burlington, Prince Edward Island * Burlington Bay, n ...

of the

Midwest League The Midwest League is a Minor League Baseball league established in 1947 and based in the Midwestern United States. A Class A league for most of its history, the league was promoted to High-A as part of Major League Baseball's 2021 reorganizat ...

. Acta later served on Tolman's coaching staff. "He's a very bright baseball mind. I feel very comfortable with Tim," Acta said. "He managed me in the minor leagues. I feel like he's a guy that can really help me. He's never been afraid to talk to me, and that is very important for a bench coach. He's also very familiar with our system, which we took into consideration." Tolman retired from coaching following the 2011 season after being diagnosed with

Parkinson's disease Parkinson's disease (PD), or simply Parkinson's, is a long-term degenerative disorder of the central nervous system that mainly affects the motor system. The symptoms usually emerge slowly, and as the disease worsens, non-motor symptoms becom ...

. During the final game of the season, Acta was ejected by home plate umpire

Dan Bellino Daniel Anthony Bellino (born October 10, 1978) is an American umpire in Major League Baseball. Education Bellino was a catcher for his high school, Loyola Academy in Wilmette, Illinois. He attended Northern Illinois University and managed the me ...

in the first inning after arguing balls and strikes, which resulted in bench coach Tolman managing the Indians for the rest of the game in his final game as a major league coach. Speculation was raised that Acta intentionally got himself ejected so Tolman could have the honor of managing the rest of the game, which Acta denied.

References

External links

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Tolman, Tim 1956 births 2021 deaths Asheville Tourists managers Baseball players from Santa Monica, California Cleveland Indians coaches Columbus Astros players Daytona Beach Astros players Detroit Tigers players Gulf Coast Astros players Houston Astros players Houston Astros scouts Major League Baseball bench coaches Major League Baseball first basemen Major League Baseball outfielders Major League Baseball third base coaches Nashville Sounds players Navegantes del Magallanes players American expatriate baseball players in Venezuela Syracuse Chiefs players Tidewater Tides players Tigres de Aragua players Toledo Mud Hens players Tucson Toros players University of Southern California alumni USC Trojans baseball players Washington Nationals coaches Alaska Goldpanners of Fairbanks players