Al Newman

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Albert Dwayne Newman

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Biographical Information[edit]

Al Newman was born on June 30, 1960 in Kansas City, MIssouri.

He went to Bishop Hogan High School, then attended Chaffey College in California, where he was the conference MVP in 1980, and finally San Diego State University where he was a teammate of Tony Gwynn. He was drafted three times while at Chaffey College, in the January 1979 amateur draft by the California Angels, in the January 1980 amateur draft by the Texas Rangers and in June of 1980 by the New York Mets. In June 1981, he was selected by the Montreal Expos in the secondary phase.

Before playing a single game in the Expos system, he took part of the Instructional League in 1981. In 1982, he was assigned to the Memphis Chicks in the Southern League. He was second in the league with 63 stolen bases and his 85 runs were second on the team to Mike Fuentes. As the team's second baseman, his line was .275/.361/.346.

Newman split the 1983 season between Memphis and the Wichita Aeros, in the American Association. In 90 games overall, his line was .248/.337/.302 but he had only 18 stolen bases, way below his expected output. In December, he was sent to the San Diego Padres as part of the three-team trade that sent Gary Lucas to Montreal, Scott Sanderson from Montreal to the Chicago Cubs and Carmelo Martinez from Chicago to San Diego.

The Padres sent Newman to AA with the Beaumont Golden Gators, in the Texas League, where he played shortstop. In 88 games, he had 33 stolen bases with a .376 OBP. In August, he returned to Montreal when the Padres traded him for pitcher Greg Harris. He finished the season with the Indianapolis Indians, in the A.A., playing at second, third, shortstop and the outfield, hitting .301 in 37 games, stealing 11 more bases.

In 1985, Newman got his first taste of the big leagues when he was called up in June. He remained with the team until mid-July, getting in 12 games including 3 starts. He came back in September, making 3 more starts. His OPS was under .500 in 25 games with Montreal. With Indianapolis, he put up solid number in 87 games, with a line of .282/.380/.349 with 31 stolen bases. It was the last year he would play in the minors.

He made the big league team in April of 1986 as an infield substitute. The Expos were hit hard by injuries and as a result Newman played 95 games with 43 starts. He was hitting .264 after two months but hit only .174 the rest of the way with an OPS under .500. He had 11 stolen bases but was caught stealing the same number of times. It was his last season with the Expos organization. Just as spring training was due to begin in February 1987, he was traded to the Minnesota Twins for Mike Shade.

Newman played the next five seasons with the Twins, winning two World Series in 1987 and 1991. He was more of a super sub in 1987, starting at second, short and third base. In 110 games, his line was .221/.298/.303. In the postseason, he was the starting second baseman in the clinching game against the Detroit Tigers in the ALCS. He made one more start in the World Series, going 1 for 3 with a walk in Game 4, a 7-2 loss against the St. Louis Cardinals.

In 1988, he made 76 starts, mostly at third base. His line was .223/.301/.250. However, in June and July, he had one of the most productive periods of his career, hitting .282 with a .342 OBP in 46 games, including 31 starts.

The 1989 season was his most productive offensively. In 141 games, playing mostly at second but also at third and shortstop, his line was .253/.341/.303 with 25 stolen bases, a career-best, as were most of his numbers. He made a career-high 144 appearances in 1990 with a line of .242/.304/.278.

In 1991, he struggled offensively and his playing time declined. In 118 games, he made only 56 starts. His offensive line was .191/.260/.211. He made 2 appearances in the ALCS against the Toronto Blue Jays and 4 more in the World Series against the Atlanta Braves. He became a free agent after the season. In February, he signed a minor league deal with the Cincinnati Reds.

Newman was among the last cuts in spring training in 1992, but it took only a couple of days before he found a team willing to give him a spot on a major league roster. The Texas Rangers were in need of an infielder after Julio Franco was placed on the disabled list. He was his usual self with Texas. In 116 games, his line was .220/.317/.240. He was a free agent again after the 1992 season but he found no takers. In January 1993, the Twins welcomed him back in the organization as an advance scout.

In 1995, he managed the Twins affiliate in the Florida State League, the Fort Myers Miracle, losing the league finals. He managed in the Eastern League the next two seasons. In 1998, he was the bench coach with the Salt Lake Buzz in the Pacific Coast League. From 1999 to 2001, he managed the GCL Twins. He was a coach with the major league Twins from 2002-2005 before joining the Arizona Diamondbacks in 2006 as an advance scout.

Newman kept in touch with coaching in Summer collegiate leagues in Minnesota.

Notable Achievements[edit]

Year-By-Year Minor League Managerial Record[edit]

Year Team League Record Finish Organization Playoffs
1995 Fort Myers Miracle Florida State League 75-55 2nd Minnesota Twins Lost League Finals
1996 Hardware City Rock Cats Eastern League 61-81 9th Minnesota Twins
1997 New Britain Rock Cats Eastern League 70-72 7th Minnesota Twins
1999 GCL Twins Gulf Coast League 33-26 3rd Minnesota Twins Lost League Finals
2000 GCL Twins Gulf Coast League 33-23 4th Minnesota Twins
2001 GCL Twins Gulf Coast League 32-26 6th Minnesota Twins

Further Reading[edit]

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