Eric Campbell

Note: This page is for 2010s OF/1B Eric Campbell; for others with the same name, click here.

Eric Singleton Campbell
(Soup)

• Bats Right, Throws Right
• Height 6' 3", Weight 220 lb.
• School Boston College
• High School Norwich Free Academy
• Debut May 10, 2014
• Final Game May 29, 2021
• Born April 9, 1987 in Norwich, CT USA

BR page

Biographical Information

Eric Campbell played three seasons as a corner infielder with the New York Mets, then returned to the major leagues with the Oakland Athletics in 2021 after not playing at that level since 2016.

Eric was All-State twice in high school and set school records for hits, homers, average, steals, runs scored and walks. As a freshman at Boston College, he hit .260/.354/.322. He improved as a sophomore to .350/.432/.510 with 20 doubles and 41 RBI in 52 games, tying for 4th in the ACC in doubles. As a junior, he produced at a .306/.386/.498 clip with 18 doubles, 43 runs scored and 41 RBI in 53 games. He was drafted by the Mets in the 8th round of that year's draft, between Andy Dirks and Beamer Weems; the scout was Art Pontarelli.

He began his career with the Brooklyn Cyclones that summer, hitting .260/.359/.358 and fielding .949 at third base (his main position). He split 2009 between the Savannah Sand Gnats (.248/.347/.360 in 95 games) and St. Lucie Mets (6 for 22, 2 doubles, 5 walks), playing mostly first base. In 2010, he saw most of his time at third base and left field; he played for the GCL Mets (3 for 11, a double), St. Lucie (.335/.415/.500 in 46 games) and the Binghamton Mets (.279/.328/.441 in 50 games). In winter ball, he batted .210/.354/.272 for the Caribes de Anzoategui. As a corner infielder-corner outfielder for Binghamton in '11, he batted .247/.345/.343. With Binghamton again, as a first base/left field option, in 2012, he hit .297/.391/.439. His single off Hector Nelo scored Troy Hanzawa with the winning run in the bottom of the 9th of the 2012 Eastern League All-Star Game, earning him MVP honors. He had gone 2 for 3 with a run and a RBI after replacing Darin Ruf at first base. Eric was 10th in the Eastern League in average (between Niuman Romero and Bryce Brentz) and 5th in OBP (between Chun-Hsiu Chen and Brock Holt). Among Mets farmhands, he was second to Cam Maron in OBP and 4th in average (behind T.J. Rivera, Maron and Wilmer Flores). His steady climb reached Triple A for the first time in 2013. He performed well, hitting .314/.435/.475 with 25 doubles, eight home runs and 66 RBI in 120 games for the Las Vegas 51s, with 26-29 games apiece at first base, third base, right and left field. He was 7th in the 2013 PCL in average (between Flores and Abraham Almonte), led in OBP (.012 ahead of Daric Barton), was 9th in walks (66) and led in OPS (15 points ahead of Brock Peterson). Among Mets farmhands, he trailed only Jayce Boyd and Flores in average and only Allan Dykstra (by .001) in OBP. He failed to make the league All-Star team, presumably due to the lack of a set position.

After attending spring training with the Mets in 2014, he began the season back in Triple A, where he hit an excellent .353/.442/.525 with 39 runs and 24 RBI in 33 games for Las Vegas. He was leading the 2014 PCL in runs scored when he was called up to the Big Apple in early May as a more versatile bench option when Josh Satin was demoted. He made his big league debut on May 10th as a pinch hitter for first baseman Lucas Duda in the 6th inning of a 5-4 loss to the Philadelphia Phillies. Batting against Jake Diekman with the bases loaded, he hit a sacrifice fly to right fielder Marlon Byrd, driving in Daniel Murphy to give the Mets a 4-3 lead. He stayed in the game playing first base, but the Phillies were able to score two late runs, while he struck out against Mike Adams in the 8th. Eric saw his most action in 2014 at the big league level, hitting .262/.322/.358 in 85 games. With the captain, David Wright, felled by injuries early in 2015, Campbell was pressed into third base duty, but his bat was not up to the task. In 71 games, he hit only .197/.312/.295. Injuries bought him some more action in 2016, but again he scuffled to a miserable .173/.284/.227 line in 40 games. He saw his last action in that year's Wild Card Game, manning first base along with James Loney due to an injury to Lucas Duda. He struck out against Madison Bumgarner in his final big league at bat as the San Francisco Giants won the game.

He played for the Hanshin Tigers in 2017, then saw time in the Miami Marlins and Oakland Athletics organizations.

Sources

• 2013 Mets Media Guide
• Boston College bio
• The Baseball Cube
• Purapelota
• 2012 EL All-Star Game

Related Sites

• Eric Campbell on mlb.com
• BR Minors page