Fred Nelson (minors02)

Frederick Harold Nelson

• Bats Right, Throws Right
• Height 5' 9", Weight 155 lb.
• School Arizona State University

• Born April 4, 1947

Minors BR page

Biographical Information

Fred Nelson has been a player, scout, manager and coach during a long career in baseball.

Nelson was the All-American second baseman in 1967; he also helped Arizona State win the 1967 College World Series. Nelson was selected by the Los Angeles Dodgers in the 18th round of the 1968 amateur draft. He played three years in their organization, reaching the AA level with the Albuquerque Dodgers in his final season. He split the summer of 1968 between the Ogden Dodgers (.236/.326/.325 in 32 G) and Bakersfield Dodgers (2 for 12, BB). His .959 fielding at second for Ogden ranked second among Pioneer League players with 10+ games at the position.

In 1969, Fred batted .272/.365/.319 with 16 steals in 22 tries for the Daytona Beach Dodgers. He led the club with 59 games at 2B and also saw significant action at SS (backing up John Gamble). With Albuquerque in 1970, he hit .212/.293/.263. Overall, he had batted .247 in 175 minor league games.

Following his playing days, Nelson went into coaching initially. He was assistant coach at ASU in 1972 then was the head coach at the University of Missouri-St. Louis from 1973 to 1975, taking them to the 1973 Division II College World Series. He next was head coach at Scottsdale Community College, from 1976 to 1984.

Nelson managed the Niagara Falls Sox from 1982-1984, then was assistant director of player development for the Chicago White Sox for a year. He spent 27 years in the Houston Astros system, working as a scout, special assistant to the GM, director of minor league operations, coordinator of professional scouting and director of professional scouting. In 2013 the Colorado Rockies added a "development supervisor" position for each of its minor league affiliates. Nelson was added to the Modesto Nuts in that role. When manager Lenn Sakata was fired on July 7th for "no longer going to be a fit" in the organization, Nelson managed the team for the rest of the season [1].