Willie Blair

William Allen Blair (born December 18, 1965) is a former right-handed pitcher in Major League Baseball and current pitching coach for the West Michigan Whitecaps.

Willie Blair
Blair with the Fort Wayne TinCaps in 2011
Pitcher
Born: (1965-12-18) December 18, 1965
Paintsville, Kentucky
Batted: Right Threw: Right
MLB debut
April 11, 1990, for the Toronto Blue Jays
Last MLB appearance
July 26, 2001, for the Detroit Tigers
MLB statistics
Win–loss record60–86
Earned run average5.04
Strikeouts759
Teams

Playing career

Blair played baseball for Morehead State University before the Toronto Blue Jays drafted him in the 11th round of the 1986 amateur draft.[1] He spent four seasons in the Blue Jays minor league system, playing for the St. Catharines Blue Jays (1986), the Dunedin Blue Jays (1987–1988), the Knoxville Smokies (1988), and the Syracuse Chiefs (1989).[2][3][4]

Blair made his major league debut with the Blue Jays on April 11, 1990 and spent the season with the major league squad. He was traded in the offseason to the Cleveland Indians for Alex Sanchez (pitcher), and played in 11 games for the Indians that year. Blair was then traded to the Houston Astros with Eddie Taubensee for Kenny Lofton and Dave Rohde. After a season with Houston, he was picked up by the Colorado Rockies in their expansion draft. After the Rockies (1993–1994), he played for the San Diego Padres (1995–1996), Detroit Tigers (1997, 1999–2001), Arizona Diamondbacks (1998), and New York Mets (1998).

His best year was 1997, in which he had 16–8 record and an earned run average (ERA) of 4.17. In 1999, Blair was the starting pitcher for the final Opening Day in Tiger Stadium history.[5]

Coaching career

He was the pitching coach for the Fort Wayne TinCaps for the 2011 and 2012 seasons, and on December 11, 2012, he was named bullpen coach of the San Diego Padres, replacing Jimmy Jones.[6]

On December 2, 2015, Blair was named the pitching coach for the Double-A Erie SeaWolves.[7] He was transferred to the Single-A Whitecaps in December 2018.

Blair currently lives in Richmond, Kentucky.

References
  1. Whitmire, Tim (April 17, 1999). "Six-foot-10 pitcher racking up Ks at Morehead State". Associated Press.
  2. "Dunedin Blue Jays on winning streak". Toronto Star. May 22, 1987. p. G3.
  3. Perkins, Dave (November 17, 1988). "Jays acquire Tenace as a batting coach, add 10 roster rookies". Toronto Star. p. B6.
  4. MacCarl, Neil (July 26, 1989). "Glenallen Hill sacrifices power and his batting average soars". Toronto Star. p. F3.
  5. Stanton, Tom (2001). The Final Season. New York, NY: Thomas Dunne Books, An imprint of St. Martin's Press. p. 12. ISBN 0-312-29156-6.
  6. Brock, Corey. "Padres elevate Blair to bullpen coach". MLB.com.
  7. Fenech, Anthony (December 2, 2015). "Tigers announce minor-league coaching staffs". Detroit Free Press. Retrieved December 2, 2015.
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