Dave Engle
| Dave Engle | |
|---|---|
| Utility player | |
| Born: November 30, 1956 San Diego, California |
|
| Batted: Right | Threw: Right |
| MLB debut | |
| April 14, 1981 for the Minnesota Twins | |
| Last MLB appearance | |
| July 28, 1989 for the Milwaukee Brewers | |
| Career statistics | |
| Batting average | .262 |
| Home runs | 31 |
| Runs batted in | 181 |
| Teams | |
| Career highlights and awards | |
|
|
Ralph David Engle (born November 30, 1956, in San Diego, California) is a former Major League Baseball utility player who played for the Minnesota Twins, Detroit Tigers and Milwaukee Brewers all of the American League and the Montreal Expos of the National League from 1981 to 1989.
[edit] Pro career
A graduate of the University of Southern California, Engle was originally drafted in the 3rd round of the 1978 amateur draft by the California Angels. On February 3, 1979, He was traded by the Angels along with Brad Havens, Paul Hartzell and Ken Landreaux to the Minnesota Twins for Rod Carew.[1] He played catcher, first base, third base, outfield and designated hitter.
In the minor leagues, Engle won the International League batting title in 1980, beating out Wade Boggs .307 to .306. Four years later, he was selected to the American League All-Star team in 1984.
During his sophomore season, Engle became the first player to hit a home run in Minneapolis's newly opened Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome. This occurred on opening day, April 6, 1982 and also marked the first hit, run scored, and R.B.I. in the stadium's history.
His notable versatility was diminished somewhat after he began struggling with making return throws to his pitcher whilst playing as a backstop (not unlike Mackey Sasser). In Engle's case, this issue apparently stemmed from an incident in a batting practice session. A return throw from Engle glanced off off the top of the protective screen and broke his pitcher's nose. To prevent this from happening again, Engle began to make slower, lobbed throws with a pronounced arc. At one point, speedy infielder Alfredo Griffin stole a base off an Engle return throw.[2] After 1984, Engle played only rarely at catcher.[3]
Engle has family ties in baseball: he is the brother in-law of his former Twins team-mate, Tom Brunansky.
[edit] References
[edit] External links
- Career statistics and player information from Baseball-Reference, or Fangraphs, or The Baseball Cube
- 1956 births
- Living people
- Major League Baseball catchers
- Major League Baseball outfielders
- Minnesota Twins players
- Detroit Tigers players
- Montreal Expos players
- Milwaukee Brewers players
- American League All-Stars
- New York Mets coaches
- Baseball players from California
- People from San Diego, California
- USC Trojans baseball players
- Nashville Sounds players
- Toledo Mud Hens players
- Oklahoma City 89ers players
- Salinas Angels players
- Tucson Toros players
- Houston Astros coaches
- Major League Baseball hitting coaches
- Major League Baseball bullpen coaches
