William Frederick "Woody" Woodward (born September 23, 1942) is an American former professional

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding tea ...

player,

college baseball College baseball is baseball that is played on the intercollegiate level at institutions of higher education. In comparison to football and basketball, college competition in the United States plays a smaller role in developing professional pl ...

coach, and

general manager A general manager (GM) is an executive who has overall responsibility for managing both the revenue and cost elements of a company's income statement, known as profit & loss (P&L) responsibility. A general manager usually oversees most or all of ...

. He played in

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), ...

, primarily 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 who ...

from 1963 to 1971 for 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 ...

and the

Cincinnati Reds The Cincinnati Reds are an American professional baseball team based in Cincinnati. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) National League Central, Central division and were a charter member of ...

. Woodward is better known for his tenure as general manager of 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 ...

Playing career

Woodward played baseball at

Coral Gables Senior High School Coral Gables Senior High School is a secondary school located at 450 Bird Road in Coral Gables, Florida. Coral Gables SHS opened its doors in 1950; its architectural design reflects a Spanish influence, with open courtyards adorned with water fo ...

and led the team to the 1960 Class AA state title. He attended

Florida State University Florida State University (FSU) is a public research university in Tallahassee, Florida. It is a senior member of the State University System of Florida. Founded in 1851, it is located on the oldest continuous site of higher education in the st ...

, where he played for the

Florida State Seminoles baseball The Florida State Seminoles baseball team represents Florida State University (variously Florida State or FSU) in the sport of college baseball. Florida State competes in NCAA Division I, and the Atlantic Division of the Atlantic Coast Conferenc ...

team. In 1963 he was named third-team All-American and was named to the

College World Series The College World Series (CWS), officially the NCAA Men's College World Series (MCWS), is an annual baseball tournament held in June in Omaha, Nebraska. The MCWS is the culmination of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Divisi ...

all-tournament squad. During his

career, Woodward played for the Milwaukee/Atlanta Braves (1963–68) and the

(1968–71). A

and second baseman, Woodward appeared in 880

games A game is a structured form of play, usually undertaken for entertainment or fun, and sometimes used as an educational tool. Many games are also considered to be work (such as professional players of spectator sports or games) or art (such ...

with 517

hits Hits or H.I.T.S. may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Music * ''H.I.T.S.'', 1991 album by New Kids on the Block * ''...Hits'' (Phil Collins album), 1998 * ''Hits'' (compilation series), 1984–2006; 2014 - a British compilation album se ...

. He had a career .236

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 ...

with one

home run In baseball, a home run (abbreviated HR) is scored when the ball is hit in such a way that the batter is able to circle the bases and reach home plate safely in one play without any errors being committed by the defensive team. A home run i ...

and 148

runs batted in A run batted in (RBI; plural RBIs ) is a statistic in baseball and softball that credits a batter for making a play that allows a run to be scored (except in certain situations such as when an error is made on the play). For example, if the bat ...

. He was acquired along with

Tony Cloninger Tony Lee Cloninger (August 13, 1940 – July 24, 2018) was an American professional baseball player and coach. He played in Major League Baseball as a right-handed pitcher from through for the Milwaukee / Atlanta Braves, Cincinnati Reds and ...

and

Clay Carroll Clay Palmer Carroll (born May 2, 1941) is an American former professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball as a right-handed pitcher from through , most notably as a member of the Cincinnati Reds dynasty that won three division ...

by the Reds from the Atlanta Braves for

Milt Pappas Milton Steven Pappas (May 11, 1939 – April 19, 2016) was an American professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball as a right-handed pitcher from through . Nicknamed "Gimpy", the 17-year veteran pitched for the Baltimore Ori ...

, Bob Johnson and

Ted Davidson Thomas Eugene Davidson (October 4, 1939 – September 1, 2006) was an American professional baseball player. He was a left-handed Major League Baseball relief pitcher from 1965 to 1968 for the Cincinnati Reds and Atlanta Braves. He was called "T ...

on June 11, 1968. On July 10, 1970, Woodward hit his only major league home run in 2,423 plate appearances, a two-run shot off

Ron Reed Ronald Lee Reed (born November 2, 1942) is a former two-sport star who spent two seasons as a power forward in the National Basketball Association (NBA) before spending nearly two decades as a Major League Baseball pitcher. Early life and educa ...

against the

. Afterwards Woodward was quoted as saying, "If I hit one home run per every seven seasons, it will take me 4,998 seasons to catch

Babe Ruth George Herman "Babe" Ruth Jr. (February 6, 1895 – August 16, 1948) was an American professional baseball player whose career in Major League Baseball (MLB) spanned 22 seasons, from 1914 through 1935. Nicknamed "the Bambino" and "the Su ...

." He played in four games of the

1970 World Series The 1970 World Series was the championship series of Major League Baseball's (MLB) 1970 season. The 67th edition of the World Series, it was a best-of-seven playoff between the American League champion Baltimore Orioles (108–54 in the regula ...

, which the Reds lost to 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 ...

in five games, with Woodward totaling one hit in five at bats. Woodward was involved in a bizarre incident on September 4, 1971. During a game against the Dodgers at

Dodger Stadium Dodger Stadium is a baseball stadium in the Elysian Park neighborhood of Los Angeles, California. It is the home stadium of Major League Baseball's Los Angeles Dodgers. Opened in 1962, it was constructed in less than three years at a cost of ( ...

, a sack of

flour Flour is a powder made by grinding raw grains, roots, beans, nuts, or seeds. Flours are used to make many different foods. Cereal flour, particularly wheat flour, is the main ingredient of bread, which is a staple food for many culture ...

fell out of the sky and landed approximately 10 feet from where Woodward was standing.

Post-playing career

After a brief stint as Reds TV commentator, Woodward returned to FSU from 1975 to 1978 as head baseball coach, where his teams earned three NCAA tournament bids and one College World Series bid. After working as an assistant general manager for both the

and

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 ...

, Woodward was named the general manager of the New York Yankees in October 1986. His resignation at the end of the 1987 season led to a flurry of moves as then-

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 o ...

Lou Piniella Louis Victor Piniella ( usually ; born August 28, 1943) is a former professional baseball player and manager. An outfielder, he played 16 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) with the Baltimore Orioles, Cleveland Indians, Kansas City Royals and ...

was promoted to general manager, and (for the fifth time)

Billy Martin Alfred Manuel Martin Jr. (May 16, 1928 – December 25, 1989), commonly called "Billy", was an American Major League Baseball second baseman and manager who, in addition to leading other teams, was five times the manager of the New York Yan ...

was named Yankees manager. The

Philadelphia Phillies The Philadelphia Phillies are an American professional baseball team based in Philadelphia. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the National League (NL) National League East, East division. Since 2004, the team's home sta ...

hired Woodward as general manager in October 1987, and fired him in June 1988. Phillies president Bill Giles refused to cite a reason for the termination after just six months. "It was a philosophical difference and that was the bottom line," said Woodward, who said he was 'shocked and disappointed' by his dismissal. The next month, in July 1988, he became the general manager of the

, working there until his retirement at the end of 1999. During his tenure, the Mariners made the playoffs in 1995 and 1997. His draft picks included

Alex Rodriguez Alexander Emmanuel Rodriguez (born July 27, 1975), nicknamed "A-Rod", is an American former professional baseball shortstop and third baseman, businessman and philanthropist. Rodriguez played 22 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the ...

Jason Varitek Jason Andrew Varitek (; born April 11, 1972), nicknamed Tek, is an American professional baseball coach and former catcher. He is currently the game planning coordinator, a uniformed coaching position, for the Boston Red Sox. After being traded a ...

, Derek Lowe,

Bret Boone Bret Robert Boone (born April 6, 1969) is a former Major League Baseball second baseman. During his career Boone was a three-time All-Star, four-time Gold Glove winner, and two-time Silver Slugger Award winner. He is a third generation professio ...

and

Raúl Ibañez Raúl Javier Ibañez (; born June 2, 1972) is a Cuban-American former professional baseball left fielder in Major League Baseball (MLB) now serving as Senior Vice President of On-Field Operations for MLB. He played 11 of his 19 big league season ...

. Perhaps his most notable trade was in 1989, acquiring

Randy Johnson Randall David Johnson (born September 10, 1963), nicknamed "The Big Unit", is an American photographer and former professional baseball pitcher who played 22 seasons in Major League Baseball (1988–2009) for six teams, primarily the Seattle M ...

from the

Montreal Expos The Montreal Expos (french: link=no, Les Expos de Montréal) were a Canadian professional baseball team based in Montreal, Quebec. The Expos were the first Major League Baseball (MLB) franchise located outside the United States. They played in t ...

(or trading away David Ortiz). In January 2009 the Mariners hired him to work as a part-time scout.
He is a 1981 inductee of the Florida State University Athletic Hall of Fame.

References

External links

Woody Woodward
at SABR (Baseball BioProject)
Woody Woodward
at Baseball Library
Woody Woodward
at Baseball America Executive Database {{DEFAULTSORT:Woodward, Woody Major League Baseball shortstops Milwaukee Braves players Cincinnati Reds players Atlanta Braves players Major League Baseball general managers Cincinnati Reds executives New York Yankees executives Philadelphia Phillies executives Seattle Mariners executives Seattle Mariners scouts Texas Rangers scouts Major League Baseball broadcasters Cincinnati Reds announcers Denver Bears players Atlanta Crackers players Florida State Seminoles baseball players Florida State Seminoles baseball coaches Baseball players from Miami Sports coaches from Miami 1942 births Living people Coral Gables Senior High School alumni