Chad Epperson

Chad Epperson

• Bats Both, Throws Right
• Height 6' 2" or 6' 3", Weight 215-221 lb.
• School Seminole Community College

• Born March 26, 1972 in Elizabethtown, KY USA

BR minors page

Biographical Information

Catcher Chad Epperson was drafted by the New York Mets in the 40th round of the 1992 amateur draft. After a weak .165/~.257/.216 with the GCL Mets that year, he hit .342/~.430/.556 for the 1993 Kingsport Mets. He declined significantly with the 1994 St. Lucie Mets (.216/.289/.304) and did even worse the next year - .190/~.290/.289 for St. Lucie and 1 for 17 with 8 strikeouts for the Binghamton Mets. After the Mets gave up on Epperson, he went to play independent ball with the Lafayette Leopards and batted .336 and slugged .590. He made the Heartland League All-Star team at catcher and his 10 homers and 49 RBI both appear to have been second in the league.

That earned Epperson another glance from the mainstream minors. The 25-year-old was with the Boston Red Sox system in 1997, as a C/1B/DH for the Sarasota Red Sox and hitting .272/~.331/.411. He also played briefly with the Trenton Thunder that season. In 1998 Epperson spent all season with Trenton and posted a line of .253/~.321/.452 with 15 homers and 129 strikeouts. He was Trenton's primary DH that campaign.

Chad struggled in 1999, hitting .242/~.265/.364 with Sarasota and .197/~.311/.293 for the Thunder. After a .214/.267/.357 line for the Bowie Baysox (a Baltimore Orioles farm team) and a .247/?/.380 year for the Nashua Pride in 2000, he retired as a player.

Epperson quickly moved into the coaching ranks in 2001 as manager for the Cook County Cheetahs who played in the independent Frontier League. He began the 2002 campaign with the Cheetahs, but accepted a hitting coach position with the Sarasota Red Sox in early June. Epperson has worked in the Boston Red Sox organization ever since. He returned to Sarasota in the same role in 2003 before moving into a managerial position for the next several years. Epperson managed the Augusta GreenJackets in 2004, Greenville Bombers in 2005, and Wilmington Blue Rocks in 2006. He moved west for the next two years as the Lancaster JetHawks manager for the 2007-2008 campaigns. He skippered the Salem Red Sox in 2009.

Epperson spent 2010-2021 as the Red Sox' minor league catching coordinator. He returned to managing in 2022 as the leader of the Portland Sea Dogs.

Year-By-Year Minor League Managerial Record

Year	Team	League	Record	Finish	Organization	Playoffs
2004	Augusta GreenJackets	South Atlantic League	66-73	12th	Boston Red Sox
2005	Greenville Bombers	South Atlantic League	72-66	6th (t)	Boston Red Sox
2006	Wilmington Blue Rocks	Carolina League	67-71	4th	Boston Red Sox	Lost in 1st round
2007	Lancaster JetHawks	California League	83-57	1st	Boston Red Sox	Lost in 1st round
2008	Lancaster JetHawks	California League	76-64	2nd (t)	Boston Red Sox	Lost League Finals
2009	Salem Red Sox	Carolina League	67-72	5th	Boston Red Sox	Lost League Finals
2022	Portland Sea Dogs	Eastern League	75-63	5th	Boston Red Sox	Lost in 1st round
2023	Portland Sea Dogs	Eastern League	73-63	4th	Boston Red Sox
2024	Portland Sea Dogs	Eastern League	78-60	3rd	Boston Red Sox