Cody Asche

Cody James Asche

• Bats Left, Throws Right
• Height 6' 1", Weight 180 lb.
• School University of Nebraska
• High School Fort Zumwalt West High School
• Debut July 30, 2013
• Final Game May 12, 2017

• Born June 30, 1990 in St. Charles, MO USA

BR page

Biographical Information

Cody Asche reached the big leagues in 2013 with the Philadelphia Phillies. He played parts of five big league seasons.

Amateur Career

Asche set his high school's career records in average (.425) and hits (88). He batted .512/.580/.884 as a senior, winning All-State and being named high school All-American by Collegiate Baseball. He hit .290/.338/.411 as a college freshman then improved to .311/.374/.522 with 58 RBI in 55 games as a sophomore. He tied for 9th in the Big 12 Conference in RBI. As a junior in 2011, he batted .327/.424/.639 with 27 doubles and 56 RBI. He led the Big 12 in slugging and OPS, was second in doubles, fourth in RBI and third in home runs (12). The Philadelphia Phillies took him in the 4th round of the 2011 amateur draft, between Riccio Torrez and Tyler Glasnow. The scout was David Seifert.

Minors

Cody struggled in his pro debut with the Williamsport Crosscutters (.192/.273/.264 in 68 games) and had more errors as a second baseman (15) than runs scored (14). In 2012, he hit .349/.378/.447 in 62 games for the Clearwater Threshers and .300/.360/.513 with 47 RBI in 68 contests with the Reading Phillies. He finished the year with a .324 average, 73 runs, 33 doubles, 6 triples and 72 RBI. Among Phillies minor leaguers, he was first in average, first in hits (168, 13 more than Darin Ruf and Cesar Hernandez), fourth in runs, fourth in RBI, tied for 4th in doubles (with Kelly Dugan) and tied for 7th in triples. Baseball America rated him Philadelphia's #7 prospect. In 24 games for the Peoria Javelinas of the Arizona Fall League, he hit .281/.343/.438 with a league-high 11 doubles (one ahead of Anthony Rendon and Jeudy Valdez). Asche began 2013 with the Lehigh Valley IronPigs and was producing at a .295/.352/.485 clip with 15 home runs after 104 games. He was called up right before the trading deadline, leading to rumors that Michael Young was going to be dealt.

Majors

Cody made his MLB debut with a 7-3 lead over the Giants, pinch-hitting for John Lannan with two outs and one on in the 7th. Facing Jean Machi, he popped up. In an abbreviated campaign he batted .235 with 5 home runs and 22 runs batted in. He earned the Opening Day nod at the hot corner in 2014, becoming the first homegrown Phillie to do so since Scott Rolen. With super prospect Maikel Franco breathing down his neck, he batted .252/.309/.390 with 10 home runs and 43 runs scored. Despite a hot start to the 2015 season, Franco's accelerated progress led to Cody's demotion to Triple A Lehigh Valley to begin a transition to playing the outfield. He managed an okay .245/.294/.395 in 129 big league games, then saw his playing time dry up after struggling to a .213/.284/.350 line in 71 games in 2016. With Franco established at the hot corner and more promising outfield options, Asche was designated for assignment and released in December. Cody caught on briefly on the south side of Chicago, appearing in 19 games in 2017, and has kicked around in the minor league systems of both New York squads and the Boston Red Sox since.

Post-Playing Career

Asche was hitting coach of the Clearwater Threshers in 2021 in the Phillies organization. In 2022 Asche moved to the Baltimore Orioles as their Minor League Upper-Level Hitting Coordinator. He moved up to the Orioles major league coaching staff for the 2023 season as offensive strategy coach, a role he retained in 2024.

Related Sites

• Cody Asche on mlb.com
• UN bio