Anthony Lewis

Anthony Lamar Lewis
(Big Papa)

• Bats Left, Throws Left
• Height 5' 11", Weight 205 lb.
• High School Rancho High School
• Born February 2, 1971 in Las Vegas, NV USA

BR Minors page

Biographical Information

Outfielder Anthony Lewis had a 13-year minor league career in which he hit over 200 home runs.

He began his professional career in 1989 after being taken in the eighth round of the 1989 amateur draft. In 51 games with the AZL Cardinals, he hit .246/.282/.332 with two home runs, 27 RBI and 11 stolen bases. The following year, he hit .254/.291/.370 with eight home runs, 49 RBI and 10 stolen bases in 128 games for the Savannah Cardinals. He tied for third in the South Atlantic League in intentional walks.

With the St. Petersburg Cardinals in 1991, Lewis hit .230/.311/.343 with six home runs and 43 RBI in 124 games. He struggled again in 1992, also with St. Petersburg, hitting only .222/.299/.370 with 15 home runs and 55 RBI in 128 matches.

The 22-year-old suited up for the Arkansas Travelers in 1993, hitting .264/.314/.482 with 13 home runs and 50 RBI in 112 games. He split 1994 between the Travelers (88 G, 17 HR, 50 RBI, .254/.308/.466) and the Louisville Redbirds (21 G, 0 HR, 6 RBI, .122/.122/.149), hitting a combined .230/.276/.408 with 17 home runs and 56 RBI in 109 games. He finished third in the Texas League in home runs. He returned to Arkansas for a third season in 1995, hitting .251/.326/.494 with 24 home runs and 85 RBI in 115 games, finishing third in the league in home runs and strikeouts (117).

In the Minnesota Twins organization in 1996, Lewis hit .253/.320/.452 with 24 home runs and 95 RBI in 134 games for the Hardware City Rock Cats, finishing second in the Eastern League in RBI. With the New Haven Ravens in the Colorado Rockies organization in 1997, Lewis hit .228/.297/.497 with 12 home runs and 36 RBI in 51 games. Despite his overall down season, his .497 slugging percentage was the highest mark in his career to that point. He also spent time in Mexico that year.

Lewis spent the majority of 1998 with the independent Duluth-Superior Dukes, hitting .259/.350/.315 with eight home runs and 45 RBI in 56 games. He also spent ten games with the Wichita Wranglers in the Kansas City Royals system, hitting .206/.308/.588 with four home runs, bringing his season totals to .252/.344/.439 with 12 home runs and 53 RBI in 66 games.

He hit .296/.354/.540 with 19 home runs and 64 RBI in 83 games for the Dukes in 1999, tying for the Northern League lead in intentional walks and finishing second in home runs, behind Mike Busch's 21.

2000 was a breakout season for the slugger, as he hit .365/.444/.777 with 33 home runs, 89 RBI and 19 stolen bases in 86 games for the Dukes. He led the league in runs scored (88), hits (123), doubles (34), home runs, RBI, on-base percentage, slugging percentage, OPS (1.222) and total bases (262). He tied for the league lead in intentional walks (12) and games played. He finished second in batting average, behind Jason Hill. Due to his impressive season, Lewis was named the Independent League Player of the Year by Baseball America. He was also a league All-Star.

He struggled in 2001, his final professional season. Playing for the St. George Pioneerzz (89 G, 22 HR, 90 RBI, .248/.297/.512) of the independent Western League and the Dos Laredos Tecolotes (9 G, 0 HR, 3 RBI, .147/.189/.206), Lewis hit .240/.289/.487 with 22 home runs and 90 RBI in 98 games. He led the Western League in at-bats (379) and RBI, tied for second in games, finished third in plate appearances (417), tied for third in triples (5), finished second in home runs and third in strikeouts and tied for third in IBB (4). He made the All-Star team as a designated hitter.

Overall, Lewis spent 13 years in the minors, hitting .255 with 207 home runs and 795 RBI in 1,285 games.