Don Sutton III

Donald Frank Sutton III

• Bats Right, Throws Right
• Height 6' 1", Weight 220 lb.
• School College of Southern Nevada
• High School Durango High School (Las Vegas)

• Born November 21, 1983 in Las Vegas, NV USA

BR Minors page

Biographical Information

Don Sutton III was a minor league infielder for four years. His father Don Sutton won over 300 major league games while his brother Daron Sutton was an announcer.

Don was picked by the Oakland Athletics in the 41st round of the 2002 "Moneyball" draft, one round after Jonathan Papelbon. Sutton had a very good pro debut with the 2003 AZL A's (.333/.408/.571, 33 R, 35 RBI, 7 HR in 40 G) and also hit .302/.348/.372 in 13 games for the Vancouver Canadians. He tied for second in the Arizona League in dingers (even with Lizahio Baez, Jorge Mejia, Alexi Ogando and Ryan Fitzgerald, a distant 9 behind Wladimir Balentien) and was 4th with 16 doubles (behind Mike Aviles, Baez and Mejia).

In 2004, Sutton hit a lot worse overall for the AZL A's (.241/.330/.483, 21 RBI in 25 G), the Canadians (.163/.255/.245 in 14 G) and Modesto Nuts (.175/.271/.250 in 12 G). He was 8 for 25 with two doubles, two walks and 10 whiffs for the 2005 AZL A's and hit only .154/.313/.365 for the 2006 Canadians. In 131 games as a pro, he had produced at a .259/.344/.438 clip with 15 home runs, 34 doubles and 90 RBI in 524 plate appearances. He fielded .992 in 68 games at 1B and .975 with 13 passed balls in 22 games at catcher.