Thomas James Sandt (December 22, 1950 – December 1, 2020) 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), ...

player and

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 ...

, as well as a minor league

manager 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 ...

. An infielder, Sandt played for the Oakland Athletics in and . He threw and batted right-handed, stood tall and weighed . His professional playing career lasted all or parts of 15 seasons, and his

MLB 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), ...

coaching tenure lasted for 16 years. He was the first-base coach of the 1997 world-champion Florida Marlins.

Early life

Born in

Brooklyn Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York. Kings County is the most populous county in the State of New York, and the second-most densely populated county in the United States, be ...

, Sandt graduated from Pacifica High School in West Garden Grove, California, in 1968.

Career

He was selected by Oakland in the second round of the

1969 Major League Baseball draft The 1969 Major League Baseball (MLB) draft took place prior to the 1969 MLB season. The draft featured future Hall of Famers Bert Blyleven (pick 55) and Dave Winfield (pick 882). First round selections The following are the first round picks ...

, and made his pro debut that season. His

playing career consisted of 42 games: one appearance on June 29, 1975, as a defensive replacement at second base against the California Angels, and 41 games as a

utility As a topic of economics, utility is used to model worth or value. Its usage has evolved significantly over time. The term was introduced initially as a measure of pleasure or happiness as part of the theory of utilitarianism by moral philosoph ...

infielder in 1976, when he spent the entire season on the Oakland roster. In the majors, Sandt batted .209 in 67

at bats In baseball, an at bat (AB) or time at bat is a batter's turn batting against a pitcher. An at bat is different from a plate appearance. A batter is credited with a plate appearance regardless of what happens during their turn at bat, but a batt ...

, with his 14 hits including one

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 * ...

. In the field, he got into 29 games as a

shortstop Shortstop, abbreviated SS, is the baseball or softball fielding position between second and third base, which is considered to be among the most demanding defensive positions. Historically the position was assigned to defensive specialists wh ...

, ten as a second baseman, and two as a

third baseman 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 ...

. Sandt joined the Pittsburgh Pirates' organization in 1979 while still an active player. He then managed Pirate farm teams in the Eastern League and Pacific Coast League from 1982 to 1986, and was voted 1984's PCL Manager of the Year while managing 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 1987, he joined the MLB coaching staff of Pittsburgh manager

Jim Leyland James Richard Leyland (born December 15, 1944) is an American former professional baseball player, coach and manager. He serves as a special assistant to the Detroit Tigers of Major League Baseball (MLB). Leyland led the Florida Marlins to the ...

, and worked under Leyland for the next 13 years with the Pirates (through 1996), Marlins (1997–1998) and Colorado Rockies (1999). He then returned to Pittsburgh for a 2-year stint under skippers

Gene Lamont Gene William Lamont (born December 25, 1946) is an American special assistant to the general manager of the Kansas City Royals. He was a catcher and manager in Major League Baseball who managed the Chicago White Sox (1992–1995) and Pittsburgh P ...

(2000) and

Lloyd McClendon Lloyd Glenn McClendon (born January 11, 1959) is an American former professional baseball player, coach and manager. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) as an outfielder from 1987 to 1994 for the Pittsburgh Pirates, Seattle Mariners and the ...

(2001–2002).

Death

Sandt died on December 1, 2020, in

Lake Oswego, Oregon Lake Oswego () is a city in the U.S. state of Oregon, primarily in Clackamas County, with small portions extending into neighboring Multnomah and Washington counties. Located about south of Portland and surrounding the Oswego Lake, the town w ...

References

External links

1950 births 2020 deaths Baseball coaches from New York (state) Baseball players from Brooklyn Birmingham A's players Buffalo Bisons (minor league) managers Burlington Bees players Cangrejeros de Santurce (baseball) players Colorado Rockies (baseball) coaches Florida Marlins coaches Hawaii Islanders managers Hawaii Islanders players Liga de Béisbol Profesional Roberto Clemente infielders Lynn Pirates (1983) players Major League Baseball first base coaches Major League Baseball second basemen Major League Baseball shortstops Minor league baseball managers Navegantes del Magallanes players American expatriate baseball players in Venezuela New Orleans Pelicans (baseball) players Oakland Athletics players Pittsburgh Pirates coaches Portland Beavers players Syracuse Chiefs players Tigres de Aragua players Tri-City A's players Tucson Toros players {{baseball-manager-stub