U. L. Washington

U L Washington
Shortstop
Born: (1953-10-27) October 27, 1953 Stringtown, Oklahoma
Batted: Switch Threw: Right
MLB debut
September 6, 1977, for the Kansas City Royals
Last MLB appearance
October 4, 1987, for the Pittsburgh Pirates
MLB statistics
Batting average	.251
Home runs	27
Runs batted in	255
Stats at Baseball Reference
Teams
Kansas City Royals (1977–1984) Montreal Expos (1985) Pittsburgh Pirates (1986–1987)

U L Washington (born October 27, 1953) is a former Major League Baseball (MLB) player from 1977 to 1987 for the Kansas City Royals, Montreal Expos, and Pittsburgh Pirates. He is one of only three MLB players, along with Ron Washington and Frank White, who were products of the Royals Academy. He also was the manager of Pittsburgh's Welland Pirates minor league team in 1989. The U and L do not stand for anything; his legal first name is indeed "U L".

Washington played mostly as a shortstop during his career, and is probably best known for the toothpick in the corner of his mouth while on the field and at the plate. He was also on first base and scored on George Brett's "pine tar" home run in 1983.

Coaching career

After ending his playing career, Washington coached in the Minor League organizations of the Pirates (1989), Royals (1991–98), Los Angeles Dodgers (1999), Minnesota Twins (2001–02), and the Boston Red Sox (2003–present).

On January 28, 2013, Washington was named hitting coach for the Red Sox affiliate, Greenville Drive.

Sources

• Career statistics from Baseball Reference, or Baseball Reference (Minors)