Dick Bogard

John Richard Bogard Jr.

• Bats Left, Throws Right
• Height 5' 11", Weight 175 lbs

• Born February 10, 1937
• Died August 29, 2003 in La Palma, CA USA

BR minors page

Biographical Information

Dick Bogard played minor league baseball for six years, managed in the minor leagues for three years and scouted for almost three decades.

Bogard broke in professionally in the New York Yankees chain as the starting third baseman for the Modesto Reds in 1957 and hit .303/~.414/.447. He drew 94 walks, scored 88 runs and hit 39 doubles and 10 triples. He was one double behind California League leader Vada Pinson and was sixth in walks. In 1958, Bogard hit .295 with 7 HR and 87 RBI for Modesto. He split 1959 between the Birmingham Barons (.224, 1 HR, 7 RBI) and Greensboro Yankees (.264, 9 HR, 52 RBI).

After being taken in the class A phase of the 1959 Rule V Draft, Dick moved to the Los Angeles Dodgers chain, playing for the Green Bay Dodgers (.264, 3 HR, 28 RBI) and Macon Dodgers (.208, 2 HR, 16 RBI). In his fifth season, Bogard joined the Salem Dodgers and batted .355 with 9 HR and 60 RBI. He had the highest batting average in the Northwest League but the batting title apparently went to Moe Morhardt (as per the 1995 Baseball Almanac), so Dick likely fell short in plate appearances. In 1962, Bogard finished his playing career by hitting .260 with 5 HR and 38 RBI for Salem.

Bogard then took a job as a scout for the Houston Astros from 1963-1972. He also managed the Williamsport Astros in 1968 (40-35), the Covington Astros in 1969 (32-35), and Williamsport again in 1970 (28-42). He then scouted for the Milwaukee Brewers until 1977 and was a national crosschecker for the Major League Scouting Bureau.

Bogard next took a job as the Scouting Director for the Oakland A's from 1984 to 1994. During this period the A's drafted and signed Walt Weiss, Jason Giambi, and Ben Grieve among others. In 1995-1996, Bogard was a Special Assistant to the GM for the A's.

In January, 2003, he was named special assistant for scouting operations and Mel Didier special assignment professional scout. He died in August of that year.

Year-by-Year Managerial Record

Year	Team	League	Record	Finish	Organization	Playoffs	Notes
1968	Williamsport Astros	New York-Pennsylvania League	40-35	3rd	Houston Astros	Lost in first round
1969	Covington Astros	Appalachian League	32-35	6th	Houston Astros	none
1970	Williamsport Astros	New York-Pennsylvania League	28-42	8th	Houston Astros	none

Sources include 1958 Baseball Guide, Pat Doyle's Professional Baseball Player Database, BaseballAmerica.com Executive database.